Excerpt: Blind from infancy, Arthel “Doc” Watson (1923-2012) was among the most acclaimed American roots musicians active during the second half of the 20th Century, and he remains influential and legendary in the 21st Century. A master of two acoustic guitar styles (flat-picking and finger-style) and highly skilled at playing old-time banjo and harmonica, Watson was also an expressive singer who possessed a resonant baritone voice and an extensive repertoire of traditional and contemporary songs.