RALEIGH, N.C. -- Doc Watson, the blind Grammy-winning folk musician whose mountain-rooted sound and lightning-fast style of flatpicking influenced guitarists around the world, died Tuesday in North Carolina, a hospital spokeswoman and his manager said. He was 89.
Watson died at Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center in Winston-Salem, where he was hospitalized after falling at his home in Deep Gap, in the Blue Ridge Mountains. He underwent abdominal surgery and had been in critical condition for several days.
Arthel (Doc) Watson's mastery of flatpicking helped make the case for the guitar as a lead instrument in the 1950s and 1960s, when it was often considered a backup for the mandolin, fiddle or banjo.
"An old ancient warrior has gone home," country and bluegrass singer Ricky Skaggs said Tuesday. "He did his best to carry the old mountain sounds to this generation."
Doc Watson was born March 3, 1923, in Deep Gap, about 100 miles northwest of Charlot te. He lost his eyesight by age 1, when he developed an eye infection that was worsened by a congenital vascular disorder.
Seven of his albums won Grammys; his eighth Grammy was a lifetime achievement award in 2004. He received the National Medal of the Arts from President Bill Clinton in 1997.
"There may not be a serious, committed baby boomer alive who didn't, at some point in his or her youth, try to spend a few minutes at least trying to learn to pick a guitar like Doc Watson," Clinton said at the time.
In 2011, a life-size statue of Watson was dedicated in Boone, N.C., at the spot where Watson had played decades earlier for tips to support his family.
Tidak ada komentar:
Posting Komentar