NJ.com*; August 20, 2007
Doc Watson was the closing performer this past Friday night at the
Philadelphia Folk Festival. He took the stage shortly before 11:00 and played
until after midnight. Although it turned increasingly windy and chilly during
those 70 minutes, very few people left until his set was over.Most of us I suspect had heard Doc before but we knew not to take for granted this chance to be in the presence of the 84-year old master. He was a little less sharp than he'd been when I last saw him three or four years ago, but with help from his grandson Richard and fellow musician David Holt he was still a delight and reminded me that Guy Clark's song equating hearing Doc Watson with seeing the Mona Lisa was not hyperbole.
As I left the concert, I started to imagine someone standing by the gate trying to sell tickets for a Doc Watson concert scheduled for four or six years from now. At that moment, I might have bought them but it would have been a gamble - similar to the gamble Frank Lautenberg will be asking of New Jersey voters should he run for reelection next year.
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