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Legends of Flatpicking Guitar (2001)

1h 30min

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It wasn't like the flat-pick and the flat-top guitar had been strangers, but their relationship really heated up in the 1970s. The spark came from a North Carolinian named Doc Watson who discovered that sprightly fiddle tunes like Black Mountain Rag could flow as clear and crisp under a flat-pick as they did under a bow. His discovery had audiences gasping at the 1963 Newport Folk Festival and younger guitarists fumbling to get a grip on Doc's style. It took about a decade, but by the early 1970s a handful of fleet-fingered guitarists not only had Doc's licks in hand, but were tossing off some smart riffs of their own.
The three decades since these Young Turks first emerged from the maestro's shadow has only added lustre to their playing. Prepare to gasp again at the digital dexterity and plectrum prestidigitation of the ol' master and his three most fervent disciples. Doc Watson appears in half a dozen performances, ably supported by the late Merle Watson in one segment and by Jack Lawrence in the others. Norman Blake and the Rising Fawn String Ensemble purvey both Celtic roots and country branches with equal conviction, while Dan Crary, the eclectic Californian of this crowd, makes even the 'squarest' tune (Turkey in the Straw) an adventurous new experience. Tony Rice appears in a variety of settings, ranging from an evocation of the old-time country 'brother duo' (Ricky Skaggs plays mandolin and sings high harmony) to a kicking contemporary bluegrass ensemble (Tony Rice Unit) to a cooling all-star jam on the 'new acoustic' fringe (jamming with Tony are Sam Bush, mandolin, Mark O'Connor, fiddle, Bela Fleck, banjo, and Jerry Douglas, dobro). Call it a flat-pick, straight pick, or (for the formalist) plectrum, these modest means render awe-inspiring ends in the hands of the masters presented in this 90 minute flatpicking feast.
Actors:: Doc Watson, Ricky Skaggs, Norman Blake, Tony Rice, Dan Crary
Studio:: Vestapol
Genres:: Documentary, Music & Musicals, Performing Arts, Special Interest