Before his death at the age of 89, Doc Watson was the true voice of Appalachian music. After being discovered in 1960 by folklorist Ralph Rinzler, the blind guitarist graced thousands of American stages with his down-home wit, deep knowledge of traditional songs, and his blistering flatpicking guitar. Over 52 years in the music business, Doc influenced every musician with a pulse, from Bob Dylan to Jerry Garcia, and from Gillian Welch to Pete Seeger.

QUOTES FROM THE BOOK
“I never heard an off night from Doc Watson – ever, ever, ever.” – Taj Mahal

“When you listen to what Doc is doing on the guitar, it hits you right in the soul.” – Warren Haynes

“When you hear Doc Watson singing Amazing Grace, something else enters the room.” – Ben Harper

“Doc takes in the larger universe and makes it come out on the guitar.” – Bill Frisell

“I recorded ‘Strawberry Jam’ with Doc at MerleFest. After we played the set, I said, ‘Oh my God, that was as good as sex!’” – Michelle Shocked

“Doc is a force of nature. Without Doc, there would have been no anchor for the last 40 years to keep us remembering the simplicity of the old tunes.” – Peter Rowan

“There isn’t a musician anywhere who isn’t saying ‘My God, I’ll never even get close to that.’” – Mike Marshall

“You can feel the joy in Doc’s playing and hear it in his voice and the way he talks to the audience. You can just feel the joy.” – Sam Bush

“Doc is a major link in the chain of American roots music.” – David Grisman

“Doc has an unwavering authenticity in his playing, in his singing, and in his character.” – Tommy Emmanuel

“We owe Doc Watson a lot for being such a musical genius, for breaking down barriers, and for giving us a direction to go in.” – Jerry Douglas

“If the wind and rain could play guitar, they would sound a lot like Doc Watson” – Greg Brown