Gene Watson Peer's Quote from Doyle Lawson: December 2008
Gene Watson's peers within the country music industry believe in the sheer talent of this unassuming man from east Texas, so much so that Gene is regarded by many of them as 'the singer's singer' - and rightly so!
All of Gene Watson's Peers who were contacted during 2008 were most gracious with their time and words. It is here, within this special part of the Gene Watson Fan Site, that you have an opportunity to read a quote from Doyle Lawson, which he submitted to this site on Friday 10 October 2008.
Sean Brady would like to take this opportunity to say 'thank you' to Doyle Lawson who made a special contribution to this unique part of this online 'celebration of a Lone Star Hero'.
Doyle Lawson
This quote was submitted on Friday 10 October 2008.
'I've been a Gene Watson fan since the first time I heard 'Love In The Hot Afternoon'. He most certainly is one of the most pure country singers of all time.
There is a line in a George Jones song that says, 'This old world is full of singers, but only a few are chosen'.
Gene is surely one of the chosen'.
Thank you, Doyle Lawson, for your support of Gene Watson.
'This old world is full of singers, but only a few are chosen' is a line from 'Who's Gonna Fill Their Shoes', which was co-written by Troy Seals and Max D. Barnes (Friday 24 July 1936 - Sunday 11 January 2004); the track was the title track of George Jones' 'Who's Gonna Fill Their Shoes' (Epic Records, 1985).
About Doyle Lawson...
Doyle Lawson was born on Thursday 20 April 1944 in Ford Town, a part of Sullivan County, near Kingsport, Tennessee to Leonard and Minnie Lawson; Doyle has two brothers, James and Les, and one sister, Colleen.
As far back as he can remember, Doyle Lawson loved the sound of music and listened regularly to The Grand Ole Opry. The group that impressed Doyle most was Bill Monroe and His Blue Grass Boys; he felt that their music was different and more intense and that it was this type of music that he wanted to play.
Doyle Lawson's father, mother and sister all sang gospel music and were members of trios and quartets that sang a-cappella music in churches and at revivals.
When Doyle Lawson was eleven years old, he learned to play the mandolin by listening to the radio, a few records and watching the occasional television show.
When he was fourteen years old, Doyle met Jimmy Martin, a native of Sneedville, Tennessee where Doyle and his family had moved to in 1954. It was at this time that Doyle decided to play music for a living and made a point of learning how to play the banjo and guitar.
In February 1963, Doyle Lawson went to Nashville and got a job playing banjo with Jimmy Martin. In 1966, he started working wit JD Crowe in Lexington, Kentucky, first playing guitar and then later switching to mandolin.
In 1969, Doyle returned to Jimmy Martin for about six months playing mandolin and singing tenor. He then returned to JD Crowe with whom he stayed until August 1971.
On Wednesday 1 September 1971, Doyle Lawson joined The Country Gentlemen and stayed with them until March 1979. He then decided to form a band that would have a unique Doyle Lawson 'sound' of its own.
Doyle formed Doyle Lawson and Foxfire in April 1979 and later changed the group name to Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver. With the help of group members Terry Baucom, Jimmy Haley and Lou Reid, Doyle laid the foundation for what became the quintessential Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver 'sound'.
Doyle Lawson's father passed away in 1994, but his mother still lives in Kingsport, Tennessee. Doyle and his wife Suzanne (they were married on Saturday 24 June 1978) have one son (Robbie) and two daughters (Suzi and Kristi).
Doyle collects western memorabilia of Roy Rogers (Sunday 5 November 1911 - Monday 6 July 1998) and Gene Autry (Sunday 29 September 1907 - Friday 2 October 1998), and enjoys looking at old cars. And he has been hosting the Doyle Lawson and Quicksilver Festival in Denton, North Carolina for more years than he cares to remember.