So much has been written and acclaimed about Doc Watson.

Regardless of how much he has been celebrated, it’s not enough.

When it comes to the styles of bluegrass, Appalachian and traditional folk tunes, old time fiddle tunes played on guitar, flatpicking, Travis-style fingerpicking, country blues, and Western Swing, Doc was at the top of his class.

To say Doc was mightily influential is to understate the impact he had on literally millions of guitarists and music lovers, not only in the US but the world over.

And Merle was close behind his father. He was an award-winning guitarist and songwriter, and sang as well as his dad.

OK, here’s the story behind this photo of Doc and Merle.

In 1985, after spending most of the day at the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Fair, we went to a very welcoming café in the French Quarter for dinner.

Susan said, “You’ll never believe who’s sitting behind you…Doc Watson.”

My eyes widened, “Doc Watson!”

I glanced over my shoulder, and sure ‘nuff, there was Doc, along with son Merle, at the table behind us, having dinner.

We had seen Doc and Merle at the Fair that afternoon, and they were in magnificent form, wowing the audience with their melodies and harmonies and guitar playing. The audience had jumped to their feet for a standing ovation.

Not wanting to interrupt their dinner, I said, “Tell me when they’re finished, and then I’ll tell them how much we enjoyed their concert, and then you get a photo.”

So we continued on with our dinner. After a while, Susan says, “They’ve just finished.”

So I jumped up and went to their table, just behind me.

“Hello Doc, my name’s Cal Miller. And I just wanted to tell you how much we enjoyed your show this afternoon.”

“Oh, thank you. I have an uncle named Cal Miller. How ‘bout that? Nice to meet you. Have a seat,” Doc said, in his softly spoken North Carolina drawl.

So, I had a few minutes of small talk with Doc and Merle, asking them how they were enjoying the Jazz and Heritage Fair, noting how responsive and enthusiastic the audience was, what a great show it was, and so on.

Meanwhile, Susan got in position to take this photo, and it is perfect.

Conscious of not overstaying my welcome, I thanked them again and excused myself.

What a special moment in time. To sit down with the legendary Doc Watson, even if it was only for a few minutes.

I was very saddened to read, several months later, that Merle, at a mere 36, had died in a tractor accident near his home in North Carolina. All I could think was how Merle’s death must have crushed Doc terribly. To lose your son and colleague and travelling companion at such a young age and in such circumstances would be hard to bear.

Doc performed for another 27 years, often playing with his grandson, Richard, Merle’s son.

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(I don’t know the name of the little girl, at left. At right is a journalist from The Times Picayune newspaper, published in New Orleans.)