Doc Watson Day Goes Virtual in Boone
Annual celebration will highlight past performances this year
BOONE-Doc Watson Day will be celebrated a bit differently in Boone this year. The annual event, normally held at the Jones House, will instead be online as a retrospective of sorts.
The COVID-19 shutdown caused organizers to cancel this year’s in-person event due to concern over infection. Currently there are 25 confirmed cases of the virus in Watauga County. Also, North Carolina is still in Reopening Phase 2, meaning there are restrictions for large crowds and events.
The event has been a tradition in Watauga County for almost a decade. In 2011, the town of Boone declared the third Friday of June to be Doc Watson Day, paying tribute to the Deep Gap native who was a bluegrass legend and founder of Wilkes County’s Merlefest. Each year, people gather at the Jones House for a free concert, featuring musicians who either played with Watson or are inspired by his work.
This year, the focus is on past inspiration. People can go to the Jones House website for the rest of this week and see videos of past concerts, some messages from people that knew Doc Watson and never-before-seen footage of Watson’s performance at the First Doc Watson Day.
Why Is It Held In June?
The celebration marks both the life of Doc Watson and the town’s tribute. On June 24, 2011, town officials unveiled a life-sized bronze statue of Watson in the downtown area. You can still find it today at the corner of W. King St. and N. Depot St. At the time, Watson reportedly said he was ok with a statue, but he asked for a plaque to be next to it saying he was “just one of the people.” Ever since then, the third Friday in June has been set aside for a celebration in his honor.
The seven-time Grammy award winner, who lost his sight before he was two, was known across the country for his flatpicking and fingerstyle skill with the guitar. Flatpicking is where you use a pick to strike the strings of a guitar. Fingerstyle is where you strum the strings using just your fingers. He recorded his first solo album in 1964 and started playing with his son Merle later that same year.
Doc and Merle also recorded albums together, playing as a trio with T. Michael Coleman. Starting in 1974, the group toured the globe for almost a decade, recording 15 albums between 1973 and 1985. Merle Watson died in a tractor accident in 1985 on the family farm and Doc organized the folk music festival MerleFest in his honor two years later.
Doc Watson was inducted into the North Carolina Music Hall of Fame in 2010 and he passed away on May 29, 2012.
