I made this movie in about 1971. I can remember sticking a microphone pole in the ground at Doc's house and setting up the shots and shooting it myself with a single camera. I am proud of my zooms and other camera moves and the sensitivity to what each musician was doing. I loved Doc Watson then. I am sure I would love him now. David Hoffman -- filmmaker
What talents these men, where... Hearts of gold and God Almighty bless you and your family, thank you so much for taking the time, too record history....
It's november 2022.... i'm a senior citizen sitting in my room alone watching youtube, my oh my, how times have changed. After listening to you wonderful bluegrass musicians sing & play a perfect rendition of 'john hardy' off the cuff, i could not help but break into spontaneous applause! ♥️ love it. I used to play an autoharp, but haven't picked it up in awhile. I should.
Donita: Thank you for your comment. Definitely pick up that autoharp. Such a beautiful sound. If your resources allow, I would sure appreciate your using the THANKS button under any of my videos including the one you have commented on. It is something new that TH-cam is beta testing and would mean a great deal for my continuing efforts. David Hoffman filmmaker
It’s November 2022. I’m 20 years old and have been listening to bluegrass for the past two years. Bluegrass to me is timeless, the greats laid the foundation but it will be played for decades maybe even centuries to come. I hope you are doing well in these crazy times
Old guy living alone in the mountains, pick that autoharp up, try plunking on a mandolin, lots of utube presentations. Rogue mandolin from musicians friend, $ 59.00 verry well made, music is life giving, Good luck !
I am praying for Doc. He is a magnificent human being and I never forgot how beautifully he treated me when I filmed this so many years ago. David Hoffman-filmmaker
I was a musician in Memphis when the Earl Scruggs Review came to town. He had just split up with Lest Flat and put together a band with his family. The local talent were given free passes in return for, "Watching their instruments." Scruggs must have found out that none of us had any money and had not eaten all day. Next thing we know, a bunch of barbecue with all the fixings and a bunch of sodas were delivered to us. We found out through the grapevine that it was Earl who ordered and paid for the stuff but he never came around for a thank you. I guess he just didn't want us to go hungry.
This music won't work without heart and soul, it all sprouts from our feelings and it's impossible to think of someone hungry and do nothing! Earls earned his way in our hearts, by having one.
I can't say much for the "Revue"...it seemed focused on making money and forced Earl to machine gun his music with amplification. This video is where Bluegrass should always be, as a get-together of friends & family. Earl in this vid piece is entirely at ease and smiling. When you try to make Bluegrass 'bigger' you ruin it. Nitty Gritty Dirt band got all the greats together for The Circle album set. To date, nothing like that has ever been done since. Bill Monroe was the only one not to participate in The Circle album.......his proud folly.
When I was growing up, I lived down in Ky., no TV reception! My whole family mom, uncles, aunts and Grandma played an instrument! We'd sit on the porch or in chairs out in the yard and play music, sing and dance! Many neighbors always carried their instrument with them, would stop by and join in! Grew up in the best of times! Loved it!
Rhonda Boncutter beats the heck out of rude young people staring at their phones today... I grew up listening to doc and Earle back when I could catch my limit of trout every day at the south saluda river behind table rock mountain. I started pickin real young. My dad wanted me to be a young Ricky Skaggs but I loved docs guitar flatpicking and took lessons in middle school. I remember all the kids at school laughed at me for playing bluegrass music. Now all the young hipsters are picking bluegrass in local bands...i just smile and say it took y'all long enough to found out what real music is....
Rhonda you may not of had a lot of material things growing up but you had much more than the richest kids in the city. You had real music and family and friends and that’s what I call a good life.
The best part of this video is Cripple Creek. Doc wasn't sure how good Randy really was...chided him in the beginning. But watch Doc light up as Randy kept up note for note and Doc laughs & rocks in his chair. That was RARE for Doc who was a perfectionist. The mind-bending perfection of impromptu Bluegrass as you may never hear again.
exact: banjo was designed metallic to be louder than guitar! As conterpart it can only produce short notes and must "harping" all the time. (plus a drone cord)
This music is universal.i am from Morocco and how much i love it.bluegrass make me living in Kentucky even if i never was there.i was realy sad when mister Earl Scruggs died
Your documentation of Earl Scruggs is so so important for a young person like me who can’t get this sort of thing anymore. I want to thank you, and express to you how incredibly jealous I am of you being able to see this man play in person.
Paolo I hope you are still pioneering your own music experience. What are you listening to lately? I am listening to Nick Shoulders and Ralph Stanley as well as the Osborne Brothers (not the modern ones.) Do you have any recommendations? I also like Jimmie Rodgers, so yodeling + bluegrass??
What you get from observing this magnificient spontaneous video is how beautiful a father/son relationship can be; Just before the last song, doc asks Earl's son if he can Play Cripple Creek, Earl's son says something like "I can tell alright" then he smiles and says "ii know" CUT and then they start the song, and we can see all Earl's attention on his son, his son plays the melodic guitar of the song so perfectly and happily, also to justify his reaction.. and at the end of the song we can see Earl very proud of his son joking with him, we can see also Shy Doc's son who looks very happy to play with his father and the guys, having a look at Earl's son and smiling, like giving him respect. We can see also the effect of Doc's Voice on Earl's son when he first heard it by looking at his father and expressing his happiness & wonder. Agree..? ?
Youssef Rhanem I noticed it as well. There was an awesome connection being made through the music played. Not only a good display of friendship and family, but a bonding between their spirits.
Mr. SCRUGGS Here in Buenos Aires, Argentina, a lover of Bluegrass and banjo player, raised to the Lord a heartfelt prayer for his eternal rest. Filmmaker thank Hofmann, who has captured in this film, the essence of bluegrass in its purest expression. EARL, REST IN PEACE, your music and your banjo will continue to echo in the hearts of those who enjoy your talent, that the Lord rest his soul, from Buenos Aires, Jose Luis.
@dkmurphygirl I know just what you mean about the feelings you have on both fronts. They make it look ridiculously easy. When I made this film so many years ago, I stopped picking banjo and started taking documentary filmmaking more seriously. Partially because I didn't learn as a kid like they did. What geniuses they were and are. David Hoffman - independent filmmaker
I'm from West(by god)Virginia,I grew up with this kind of music being played just about every weekend live in our home,foot stomp"n",cold beer drinking ,cigarettes stuck on the ends of the guitars extra string, I remember it was a blast just watching them. I remember my Dad and Mom taking us to a drive inn movie place in Boone Co.one summer night to watch Flat and Scruggs play live on top of the concession building.
I saw these gentlemen play at a bluegrass festival in Angier N.C. in the early 1970’s . Earl Scruggs Revue and Doc and Merle Watson and the evening closed with all of them on stage together.What a great day of music and strawberry daiquiri’s.
The banjo is such a dominant instrument, how can you not love these devoted country folks, gives me goose bumps at how great America was then, I was around and I loved Lester Flat and Earl Scruggs and Roy Clark and Buck Owen's and Andy Taylor ( Andy Griffith) and on and on and on, i feel fortunate to have been a young man during the 60s 70s 80s and 90s, the talent level in America for all types of music and entertainment was just incredible 😊❤
Damn, Doc's first break in John Hardy just kills me ever time. The melody is so strongly identifiable and at the same time Doc's personal style comes shining through. That's world class, right there!
Wow - I was 11 years old when this video was made. I was blessed to be raised in a family that loved bluegrass music. I loved how their feet were all tapping in time. Best music ever.
I fell in love with bluegrass because of Earl Scruggs and Lester Flatt. Dad got me the album "Will the circle be unbroken?" and in 1979 we went to see John Deering banjos in Spring Valley just a short drive from our house where I got my first banjo. Still have it.
Great stuff!! This video will be a classic!! Earl killing the banjo and Doc killing the guitar!! 2 legends playing their hearts out!!! IT just doesn't get any better!!!
@mikef1955 Thank you. I completely agree about Watson and his brilliance and uniqueness. When I did not know until I filmed him, which I did several times in my career, is what an extraordinarily kind giving philosophical individual he is. A superior person in every regard. And the relationship between him and Earl Scruggs was beautiful to witness. David Hoffman -- filmmaker
@jcline9244 Thank you for your comment. Interestingly enough, the Smithsonian has purchased the rights to two of my films as critical to their collection on American folk history. They did so not only because of the music but also because of the dialogue. When I made these films, it seemed to me that the speech, the interchange, was as important as the music. It turns out that that is the way Smithsonian sees it that way also. David Hoffman -- film maker
No. We used what we called double system. The sound was recorded on a Nagra iv-2. Fabulous tape recorder. Terrible microphone. David Hoffman -- filmmaker
Thanks for posting this. My favorite guitar player, Doc Watson. Bless his soul. A national treasure. But I would also like to mention what many people seem to overlook - his singing. That's understandable because of Doc's mastery of the guitar. Doc's singing was also remarkable. Consider this: He could not see, blind since he was a child, and yet he knew the words to all of those classic old Appalachian, bluegrass, and country songs. Imagine how hard you have to work, and how talented you have to be to be able to do that. I am a singer, I have my sight, and it is not easy for me to remember words to songs and I find myself sometimes having to look at lyric sheets. Doc never had that to lean on. He could not look at lyrics to memorize them...everything had to be learned and memorized by hearing. And that covers many, many, many songs. I am absolutely amazed at his talent, not only his guitar playing, but his singing as well.
Maxwell Smart I never thought about that. Im 58 yrs old and have been listening to Doc Watson since a teenager. I love his music wth The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band on the classic 3 album set Will The Circle Be Unbroken. Timeless music. Everyone forgot too that Doc often played a mean harmonica too in a rack while playing guitar. Im a harp player myself for over 35 yrs. and Doc was real good also on the harp.
No Slouch on The Claw Hammer Banjo , Not too shabbb on the Harmonica also , thanks for lettin me inturupt you Day, Way back When the Sheep Were Ner vous . ~~~~~~~~~~ >}}}:^>
Maxwell Smart - You‘re absolutely right with each aspect you‘re pointing out but we have to consider one thing objectively: If someone is handicaped like Doc with his blindness, each off your other senses are increasing in their effectiveness and sensibility. On the other hand: someone could‘ve helped him to learn the lyrics by reading them aloud to him. None the less he‘s an remarkable musician!! Greetings from germany! \m/
Absolutely! But lowly folk musicians being able to read is a very recent thing. I’m told if you can’t read your memory is much better- relying on ink withers our minds.
This is priceless. Genuine intersection of Country, Folk and Bluegrass. I could listen to them play all day and night. RIP Earl, Doc, Randy and Merle. The Real Deal
@MyMoppet52 thank you for your comment and your insight. My style has always the and to make a documentary shoot so that the extraordinary ordinary people I am filming feel relaxed. Kings and queens and presidents have a harder time with my style then wonderful "ordinary" people like Doc and Earl. Dave Altman-filmmaker
If only Doc Watson could have lived forever. His talent, gentle personality and musical magic are an awful loss to our world. Thank goodness for all the recordings he has left behind. They will keep his memory alive in us all.
This is at the mouth of the hollow; brings back so many memories! My grandparents often played w/ him & Flatt & Scruggs. Doc always said hi when we came to my great grandparent's home at the head of the hollow, & always knew if I was in the back of the truck, and would ask if lil' Jenny was in there!! 💗
I asked my grandmom how he always knew I was in the back of the truck b/c I knew he couldn't see well, and there was a topper on the pickup. She replied, " Oh honey, he sees more than most people ever will. I asked him one time what he saw. He said he could sense light & shadows, and energy.
Jennifer Zeikus thanks for the great stories. I saw Doc play a few times but never met him. He was a special man who not only inspired me to be a better musician but also a better man.
On 12-12-12, International Bluegrass Music Appreciation Day, I had to pause and play this video to remember Mr. Doc Watson and Mr. Earl Scruggs. We lost these men this year. I miss them. Bluegrass wouldn't be the same without them.
We'll never see Doc or Earl again, but talent like this or greater can be found and appreciated everyday. Going to a music festival or two would reveal that pretty quickly.
Haha. Earl says "We're gonna attempt to play a few tunes. Completely un-rehearsed" As if to say, this might not be that good, and then they proceed to tear the house down with some serious jams. And at 5:07 during Cripple Creek, Earl is just leaning in hard to hear Doc pick them guitar runs. Hell Yes!
@AnotherHoustonKid I find that their are people who use TH-cam to express their basic hostility and look to attack. To be a presenter on TH-cam as I am, an independent filmmaker, you have to be somewhat thick-skinned and I am. I love Doc and Earl and this is the recording of a a great moment in the history of country/mountain music. David Hoffman-filmmaker
@TheMeemeister And thank you for such a beautifully written comment. It was an extraordinary afternoon and so I was very young at the time, I knew that I was seeing history in the making. David Hoffman-filmmaker
bluegrass never gets out of your soul. our family reunion held in Rawlings MD is pretty much a bunch of hillbillies toting banjos. it's a style of living that you have to have grown up in like us kids did. enjoyed these vids
it just don't get any better then this I remember in Johnson co ky waking up to my gmaw and gpaw play old Joe. Clark and going up cripple creek man the sound still rings through my heart I was about 5 or 6 and danced my soul away. Ohhh. what memories I give the world to b back again for 20 minutes. .
I just realised all 5 of these boys are deceased now. Randy Scruggs was the last to go at age 64. Merle Watson was killed in a farm tractor accident and Stevie Scruggs committed suicide in his 30's. Very sad. Good music here.
@ratherknotty - thank you for your beautiful comment. I feel the same way about these old films that I made so many years ago. It is interesting that when I was there, setting up the scene and filming it, for each of these amazing moments in the music films I made back then, I knew that I was recording history. I could feel it at the time. And it proved to be true today. David Hoffman-filmmaker
I was lucky enough to see Doc & Merle at the North Wilkesboro High School in 1976, and a few years later when I lived in Boone he would come in the drugstore to the lunch counter for a meal.
I wish my Dad could have got up with Mr Earl, my Dad was a great guitar player and singer from Shelby North Carolina. My parents played live on the local Radio stations and just played where ever people would let sing and play. My Dad wrote songs to and sold them, I believe he sold some songs to Hank Williams Sr. and a few others out in Nashville TN, this is what i was told by my family. My Dad was a Cherokee Indian that put shows on dancing in different place mainly Cherokee, He's pass on to heaven now. But I did get to set in with a small band here in Shelby that Earl's brother play in and that's far as that got. Thanks for sharing this Video Mr. David
Imagine the musicians lost to the ages, but not these fine men. The Lord willing generations to come will be able to enjoy their performance not just as a mention in a book or the retelling of an old one. Thank you for filmning this, sincerely a great many thanks.
![[#2024MAMA] G-DRAGON - 무제(Untitled, 2014)+POWER+HOME SWEET HOME+뱅뱅뱅+FANTASTIC BABY | Mnet 241123 방송](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Ox29z5Nf1Uk/mqdefault.jpg)
Just as wonderful. Earl Scruggs and The Byrds -
th-cam.com/video/KWXulD-gxuw/w-d-xo.html
I made this movie in about 1971. I can remember sticking a microphone pole in the ground at Doc's house and setting up the shots and shooting it myself with a single camera. I am proud of my zooms and other camera moves and the sensitivity to what each musician was doing. I loved Doc Watson then. I am sure I would love him now.
David Hoffman -- filmmaker
David Hoffman you are a lucky man or skilled! Most likely both! Love your videos man!
What talents these men, where... Hearts of gold and God Almighty bless you and your family, thank you so much for taking the time, too record history....
Good on you for having cameras back when it was rare.
So great you were there and able to capture this. What an amazing thing to have seen in person! Thanks for sharing
Thank goodness you capture this moment. Thank you!
It's november 2022.... i'm a senior citizen sitting in my room alone watching youtube, my oh my, how times have changed. After listening to you wonderful bluegrass musicians sing & play a perfect rendition of 'john hardy' off the cuff, i could not help but break into spontaneous applause! ♥️ love it. I used to play an autoharp, but haven't picked it up in awhile. I should.
Donita: Thank you for your comment. Definitely pick up that autoharp. Such a beautiful sound. If your resources allow, I would sure appreciate your using the THANKS button under any of my videos including the one you have commented on. It is something new that TH-cam is beta testing and would mean a great deal for my continuing efforts.
David Hoffman filmmaker
It’s November 2022. I’m 20 years old and have been listening to bluegrass for the past two years. Bluegrass to me is timeless, the greats laid the foundation but it will be played for decades maybe even centuries to come. I hope you are doing well in these crazy times
Old guy living alone in the mountains, pick that autoharp up, try plunking on a mandolin, lots of utube presentations. Rogue mandolin from musicians friend, $ 59.00 verry well made, music is life giving,
Good luck !
Lovely Donita. Pick up the harp. We need you too!!! Much love from the east coast
Use to play all this stuff in the 60s and beyond. No one to play with now :(
With Doc Watson and Earl Scruggs together, can't believe the earth didn't crack open from the sheer awesomeness of this.
That's whatcha call "critical mass".
Indeed
I agree ❤
@@8656737s absolutely
and Earls SON
I am praying for Doc. He is a magnificent human being and I never forgot how beautifully he treated me when I filmed this so many years ago.
David Hoffman-filmmaker
I was a musician in Memphis when the Earl Scruggs Review came to town. He had just split up with Lest Flat and put together a band with his family. The local talent were given free passes in return for, "Watching their instruments." Scruggs must have found out that none of us had any money and had not eaten all day. Next thing we know, a bunch of barbecue with all the fixings and a bunch of sodas were delivered to us. We found out through the grapevine that it was Earl who ordered and paid for the stuff but he never came around for a thank you. I guess he just didn't want us to go hungry.
Great memory!
What class act. God bless him.
For all his talent it appears from what I've read and seen of him in performance and videos, that Earl was a very humble and all around nice guy.
This music won't work without heart and soul, it all sprouts from our feelings and it's impossible to think of someone hungry and do nothing! Earls earned his way in our hearts, by having one.
I can't say much for the "Revue"...it seemed focused on making money and forced Earl to machine gun his music with amplification. This video is where Bluegrass should always be, as a get-together of friends & family. Earl in this vid piece is entirely at ease and smiling. When you try to make Bluegrass 'bigger' you ruin it. Nitty Gritty Dirt band got all the greats together for The Circle album set. To date, nothing like that has ever been done since. Bill Monroe was the only one not to participate in The Circle album.......his proud folly.
When I was growing up, I lived down in Ky., no TV reception! My whole family mom, uncles, aunts and Grandma played an instrument! We'd sit on the porch or in chairs out in the yard and play music, sing and dance! Many neighbors always carried their instrument with them, would stop by and join in! Grew up in the best of times! Loved it!
Rhonda Boncutter beats the heck out of rude young people staring at their phones today... I grew up listening to doc and Earle back when I could catch my limit of trout every day at the south saluda river behind table rock mountain. I started pickin real young. My dad wanted me to be a young Ricky Skaggs but I loved docs guitar flatpicking and took lessons in middle school. I remember all the kids at school laughed at me for playing bluegrass music. Now all the young hipsters are picking bluegrass in local bands...i just smile and say it took y'all long enough to found out what real music is....
I am sooooooo jealous
@@mikelong3702 Highway 11, Cherokee County all the way to Oconee County. Prettiest stretch of mountains & road on God's green earth!
Rhonda you may not of had a lot of material things growing up but you had much more than the richest kids in the city. You had real music and family and friends and that’s what I call a good life.
now that's living
So sad that all these guys are now gone. You were in the presence of pure talent right here Mr. David.
Yes I was Bryan and I knew it at the time.
David Hoffman filmmaker
Doc Watson is the reason I wanted to play the guitar and banjo
So tragic how Steven Scruggs passed on, such a great loss.
All 5 gone 😥 thank goodness for the folk who recorded the greats.
This music makes my whisky go down even better! Much love from Scotland.
The best part of this video is Cripple Creek. Doc wasn't sure how good Randy really was...chided him in the beginning. But watch Doc light up as Randy kept up note for note and Doc laughs & rocks in his chair. That was RARE for Doc who was a perfectionist. The mind-bending perfection of impromptu Bluegrass as you may never hear again.
This is so amazing I could cry. The smiles on their faces is the purest thing I've seen in a long time.
I am glad that my clip gave you that experience, Lum. I felt that way when I shot it and I still feel that way when I see it.
David Hoffman-filmmaker
4 guitars aren't able to kill that banjo...
+JCMontero Boy you sure got that !
No, but they sure tried!
exact: banjo was designed metallic to be louder than guitar! As conterpart it can only produce short notes and must "harping" all the time. (plus a drone cord)
Earle plays a nice guitar too. U start w guitar...then banjo. Play it all after that.
3 fingers picking a banjo to one pick of Doc on Guitar. If you play, you realize how difficult it is to do. Doc did it and did it well.
2023 and I'm missing my banjo player. I'm 20 btw, and I love these old clips thank you for posting them!
This music is universal.i am from Morocco and how much i love it.bluegrass make me living in Kentucky even if i never was there.i was realy sad when mister Earl Scruggs died
thank you. It was an honor to have known Doc Watson for sure and I wish his family the very best of good wishes.
David Hoffman-filmmaker
The greatest all time banjo picker and the greatest all time guitar picker together is pure heaven.
Imagine doc Watson exclaiming “aw, play it now!” in the middle of your solo. I could not imagine a higher honor.
In Doc's biography, "Blind But Now I See" it mentioned several times that Doc had lots of respect for Earl Scruggs.
05:10
When Mr. Scruggs stops to watch, there's something worth seeing!
Scruggs stopped because he doesn’t see 300 mph flat pickin very often
Your documentation of Earl Scruggs is so so important for a young person like me who can’t get this sort of thing anymore. I want to thank you, and express to you how incredibly jealous I am of you being able to see this man play in person.
Paolo I hope you are still pioneering your own music experience. What are you listening to lately? I am listening to Nick Shoulders and Ralph Stanley as well as the Osborne Brothers (not the modern ones.) Do you have any recommendations? I also like Jimmie Rodgers, so yodeling + bluegrass??
What you get from observing this magnificient spontaneous video is how beautiful a father/son relationship can be; Just before the last song, doc asks Earl's son if he can Play Cripple Creek, Earl's son says something like "I can tell alright" then he smiles and says "ii know" CUT and then they start the song, and we can see all Earl's attention on his son, his son plays the melodic guitar of the song so perfectly and happily, also to justify his reaction.. and at the end of the song we can see Earl very proud of his son joking with him, we can see also Shy Doc's son who looks very happy to play with his father and the guys, having a look at Earl's son and smiling, like giving him respect. We can see also the effect of Doc's Voice on Earl's son when he first heard it by looking at his father and expressing his happiness & wonder. Agree..? ?
Youssef Rhanem I noticed it as well. There was an awesome connection being made through the music played. Not only a good display of friendship and family, but a bonding between their spirits.
Right on Youssef
Poor Stevie looked a bit cast adrift tho, beautiful music
Youssef Rhanem I love how Earl watches Doc’s soling so closely, such mutual respect
your observations are such a pleasure to read--thank you!
I seen Doc Watson play over 33 years later at the second Bonnaroo festival. The guy was unbelievable.
Rest in peace Earl Scruggs....your music brought me so much joy. I miss you already
Wow, you filmed this! Cool, thank David.
"Take it on home Earl!" RIP to these great musicians.
I made this movie in 1971-1972.
David Hoffman-filmmaker
These guys are awesome!!!! Doc Watson and Earl Scruggs...RIP
Mr. SCRUGGS
Here in Buenos Aires, Argentina, a lover of Bluegrass and banjo player, raised to the Lord a heartfelt prayer for his eternal rest.
Filmmaker thank Hofmann, who has captured in this film, the essence of bluegrass in its purest expression.
EARL, REST IN PEACE, your music and your banjo will continue to echo in the hearts of those who enjoy your talent, that the Lord rest his soul, from Buenos Aires, Jose Luis.
@dkmurphygirl I know just what you mean about the feelings you have on both fronts. They make it look ridiculously easy. When I made this film so many years ago, I stopped picking banjo and started taking documentary filmmaking more seriously. Partially because I didn't learn as a kid like they did. What geniuses they were and are.
David Hoffman - independent filmmaker
Doc & Merle, together! Never again will there be a father and son like them to grace us with such great, true-to-their-roots sound.
Doc Watson the Jimi hendrix of the flat style picking guitar
Interesting to see how Doc Watson kept trying to push the tempo ... you can tell he liked to rock 'em a bit ...
Family making music together is a Southern Tradition. Doc signing that first song is phenomenal skill!!!
I am the person who recorded this and agree with your assessment.
David Hoffman-filmmaker
I'm from West(by god)Virginia,I grew up with this kind of music being played just about every weekend live in our home,foot stomp"n",cold beer drinking ,cigarettes stuck on the ends of the guitars extra string, I remember it was a blast just watching them. I remember my Dad and Mom taking us to a drive inn movie place in Boone Co.one summer night to watch Flat and Scruggs play live on top of the concession building.
Thanks Earl, Doc, and David! National Treasures kept alive thanks to David.
I saw these gentlemen play at a bluegrass festival in Angier N.C. in the early 1970’s . Earl Scruggs Revue and Doc and Merle Watson and the evening closed with all of them on stage together.What a great day of music and strawberry daiquiri’s.
The banjo is such a dominant instrument, how can you not love these devoted country folks, gives me goose bumps at how great America was then, I was around and I loved Lester Flat and Earl Scruggs and Roy Clark and Buck Owen's and Andy Taylor ( Andy Griffith) and on and on and on, i feel fortunate to have been a young man during the 60s 70s 80s and 90s, the talent level in America for all types of music and entertainment was just incredible 😊❤
Delightful. I haven't listened to Doc Watson enough in my life, and NOBODY has listened to enough Earl Scruggs.
Dear dogvandave
Yes. 16mm it is. I used an Auricon Pro mounted with an Anjenieux 12 to 120 zoom.
David Hoffman -- filmmaker
Damn, Doc's first break in John Hardy just kills me ever time. The melody is so strongly identifiable and at the same time Doc's personal style comes shining through. That's world class, right there!
the film was made between 1971 and 1972.
David Hoffman-filmmaker
Wow - I was 11 years old when this video was made. I was blessed to be raised in a family that loved bluegrass music. I loved how their feet were all tapping in time. Best music ever.
some of the best musicians to ever walk the earth.
I fell in love with bluegrass because of Earl Scruggs and Lester Flatt. Dad got me the album "Will the circle be unbroken?" and in 1979 we went to see John Deering banjos in Spring Valley just a short drive from our house where I got my first banjo.
Still have it.
RIP for Two Gentle Giants. Thank you BOTH for the Music and soundtrack to my life.
Great stuff!! This video will be a classic!! Earl killing the banjo and Doc killing the guitar!! 2 legends playing their hearts out!!! IT just doesn't get any better!!!
Thank you Jay. I agree.
David Hoffman - filmmaker
David, thank you for filming this. Such a tremendous American treasure.
Jay Given Doc Watson was the greatest flat top picker ever!!! Earl was the greatest banjo picker ever!!!
RIP EARL You & Your musical Talents will be sadly missed.?
"It'll usually sound better if you DON'T rehearse it." True, sir. True.
Yep.
if you've played a song a few thousand times with the same crowd, rehearsals are a chore. For the rest of us....
lemonflower 7.
Brings tears to my heart good lord what did we let happen to country today
Just Amazing gift God gave us for 91 years. There will never be another Doc...understatement of all time!
@mikef1955 Thank you. I completely agree about Watson and his brilliance and uniqueness. When I did not know until I filmed him, which I did several times in my career, is what an extraordinarily kind giving philosophical individual he is. A superior person in every regard. And the relationship between him and Earl Scruggs was beautiful to witness.
David Hoffman -- filmmaker
Those were the best days back then, wish I was around then
@jcline9244 Thank you for your comment. Interestingly enough, the Smithsonian has purchased the rights to two of my films as critical to their collection on American folk history. They did so not only because of the music but also because of the dialogue. When I made these films, it seemed to me that the speech, the interchange, was as important as the music. It turns out that that is the way Smithsonian sees it that way also.
David Hoffman -- film maker
So these can’t be purchased anymore ??
RIP Doc.Thanks for the great music
I agree, Jim. And thank you.
David Hoffman-filmmaker
No. We used what we called double system. The sound was recorded on a Nagra iv-2. Fabulous tape recorder. Terrible microphone.
David Hoffman -- filmmaker
Thanks for posting this. My favorite guitar player, Doc Watson. Bless his soul. A national treasure. But I would also like to mention what many people seem to overlook - his singing. That's understandable because of Doc's mastery of the guitar. Doc's singing was also remarkable. Consider this: He could not see, blind since he was a child, and yet he knew the words to all of those classic old Appalachian, bluegrass, and country songs. Imagine how hard you have to work, and how talented you have to be to be able to do that. I am a singer, I have my sight, and it is not easy for me to remember words to songs and I find myself sometimes having to look at lyric sheets. Doc never had that to lean on. He could not look at lyrics to memorize them...everything had to be learned and memorized by hearing. And that covers many, many, many songs. I am absolutely amazed at his talent, not only his guitar playing, but his singing as well.
Maxwell Smart I never thought about that. Im 58 yrs old and have been listening to Doc Watson since a teenager. I love his music wth The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band on the classic 3 album set Will The Circle Be Unbroken. Timeless music. Everyone forgot too that Doc often played a mean harmonica too in a rack while playing guitar. Im a harp player myself for over 35 yrs. and Doc was real good also on the harp.
No Slouch on The Claw Hammer Banjo , Not too shabbb on the Harmonica also , thanks for lettin me inturupt you Day, Way back When the Sheep Were Ner vous . ~~~~~~~~~~ >}}}:^>
Maxwell Smart - You‘re absolutely right with each aspect you‘re pointing out but we have to consider one thing objectively: If someone is handicaped like Doc with his blindness, each off your other senses are increasing in their effectiveness and sensibility. On the other hand: someone could‘ve helped him to learn the lyrics by reading them aloud to him.
None the less he‘s an remarkable musician!!
Greetings from germany! \m/
Absolutely! But lowly folk musicians being able to read is a very recent thing. I’m told if you can’t read your memory is much better- relying on ink withers our minds.
Docs singing is like butter and honey on a hot biscuit right out of the oven. It doesn’t get any better.
If I ever got an “Ahhhh play it now!” From Doc Watson- I could die happy.
Thank You for Capturing these Great Moments!
Wow! Doc Watson with Earl Scruggs and sons! Great!!! R.I.P. Doc Watson and Earl Scruggs. from Genova, Italy.
Wow this is the most amazing musical moment I ever seen
Merle & Doc Watson & Earl Scruggs... thanks from my heart.
This is priceless. Genuine intersection of Country, Folk and Bluegrass. I could listen to them play all day and night. RIP Earl, Doc, Randy and Merle. The Real Deal
@MyMoppet52 thank you for your comment and your insight. My style has always the and to make a documentary shoot so that the extraordinary ordinary people I am filming feel relaxed. Kings and queens and presidents have a harder time with my style then wonderful "ordinary" people like Doc and Earl.
Dave Altman-filmmaker
If only Doc Watson could have lived forever. His talent, gentle personality and musical magic are an awful loss to our world. Thank goodness for all the recordings he has left behind. They will keep his memory alive in us all.
I totally agree Benny. What a special man.
David Hoffman - filmmaker
His spirit is eternal. That’s all anyone can ask for the end.
I wish I was there. 💙💙💙💙💙
This is at the mouth of the hollow; brings back so many memories! My grandparents often played w/ him & Flatt & Scruggs. Doc always said hi when we came to my great grandparent's home at the head of the hollow, & always knew if I was in the back of the truck, and would ask if lil' Jenny was in there!! 💗
That's a wonderful story right there.
I asked my grandmom how he always knew I was in the back of the truck b/c I knew he couldn't see well, and there was a topper on the pickup. She replied, " Oh honey, he sees more than most people ever will. I asked him one time what he saw. He said he could sense light & shadows, and energy.
i appreciate you sharing that. Touches my heart. sounds like you had a blessed childhood
Jennifer Zeikus thanks for the great stories. I saw Doc play a few times but never met him. He was a special man who not only inspired me to be a better musician but also a better man.
What a great bit of historical film
You can tell Earl was on his A game and focused on his picking because he well knew that Doc was a master musician and guitarist.
On 12-12-12, International Bluegrass Music Appreciation Day, I had to pause and play this video to remember Mr. Doc Watson and Mr. Earl Scruggs. We lost these men this year. I miss them. Bluegrass wouldn't be the same without them.
Unfortunately will we never see the likes of this talent ever again. I could listen all day thanks for sharing.
Herb Mordkoff says who?? Keep an open mind
We'll never see Doc or Earl again, but talent like this or greater can be found and appreciated everyday. Going to a music festival or two would reveal that pretty quickly.
You need to look up Billy Strings man!
U made me cry...
Only one person that could make Earl stop playing the banjo...Ol Doc Watson playing the guitar.
This world is a darker place without Doc
what about Earl
and Merle
Leroy Carroll Jesus Christ*
Indeed a darker place
Gods Speed.. thanks for the tunes............
an all-time classic for bluegrass lovers. What a group. Thanks for the video!
Earl Scruggs & Doc Watson....master musicians par excellence!
Most beautiful sound in the world....
This is truely amazing. I wish I could've seen them in action in real life.
All through this, I smiled, felt the love and enjoyed............ R.I.P.
you NEVER, EVER see this anymore. PURE. LIFE
yes we do.
David Hoffman - filmmaker
Haha. Earl says "We're gonna attempt to play a few tunes. Completely un-rehearsed" As if to say, this might not be that good, and then they proceed to tear the house down with some serious jams. And at 5:07 during Cripple Creek, Earl is just leaning in hard to hear Doc pick them guitar runs. Hell Yes!
@AnotherHoustonKid I find that their are people who use TH-cam to express their basic hostility and look to attack. To be a presenter on TH-cam as I am, an independent filmmaker, you have to be somewhat thick-skinned and I am. I love Doc and Earl and this is the recording of a a great moment in the history of country/mountain music.
David Hoffman-filmmaker
Speechless- this stuff is fantastic! No words can really do justice to what was going on here.
@TheMeemeister And thank you for such a beautifully written comment. It was an extraordinary afternoon and so I was very young at the time, I knew that I was seeing history in the making.
David Hoffman-filmmaker
bluegrass never gets out of your soul. our family reunion held in Rawlings MD is pretty much a bunch of hillbillies toting banjos. it's a style of living that you have to have grown up in like us kids did. enjoyed these vids
Born for the soul this bluegrass music is
RIP Doc! Thank you for all you did!
Once you discover Bluegrass, it's all over but the shouting. Thank you.
it just don't get any better then this I remember in Johnson co ky waking up to my gmaw and gpaw play old Joe. Clark and going up cripple creek man the sound still rings through my heart I was about 5 or 6 and danced my soul away. Ohhh. what memories I give the world to b back again for 20 minutes.
.
I just realised all 5 of these boys are deceased now. Randy Scruggs was the last to go at age 64. Merle Watson was killed in a farm tractor accident and Stevie Scruggs committed suicide in his 30's. Very sad. Good music here.
@ratherknotty - thank you for your beautiful comment. I feel the same way about these old films that I made so many years ago. It is interesting that when I was there, setting up the scene and filming it, for each of these amazing moments in the music films I made back then, I knew that I was recording history. I could feel it at the time. And it proved to be true today.
David Hoffman-filmmaker
Wow this makes your heart feel light and like all is well with the world.
I was lucky enough to see Doc & Merle at the North Wilkesboro High School in 1976, and a few years later when I lived in Boone he would come in the drugstore to the lunch counter for a meal.
I wish my Dad could have got up with Mr Earl, my Dad was a great guitar player and singer from Shelby North Carolina. My parents played live on the local Radio stations and just played where ever people would let sing and play. My Dad wrote songs to and sold them, I believe he sold some songs to Hank Williams Sr. and a few others out in Nashville TN, this is what i was told by my family. My Dad was a Cherokee Indian that put shows on dancing in different place mainly Cherokee, He's pass on to heaven now. But I did get to set in with a small band here in Shelby that Earl's brother play in and that's far as that got. Thanks for sharing this Video Mr. David
@joselo1944 thank you for your comment.
David Hoffman -- filmmaker
I can play the banjo. Hopefully I can play like that some day.
Imagine the musicians lost to the ages, but not these fine men. The Lord willing generations to come will be able to enjoy their performance not just as a mention in a book or the retelling of an old one. Thank you for filmning this, sincerely a great many thanks.
It occurred to me when this came across my loop today at work, that each picker here is gone. Merle first and just recently Randy. Sad deal.