Jack Lawrence is an American bluegrass guitarist. He was

Doc Watson Arthel Lane "Doc" Watson (March 3, 1923 – May 29, 2012) was an American guitarist, songwriter, and singer of bluegrass, folk, country, blues, and gospel music. Watson won seven Grammy awards as well as a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. W ...

's performing partner since the early 1980s. As major influences, Lawrence cites Doc Watson,

Clarence White Clarence White (born Clarence Joseph LeBlanc; June 7, 1944 – July 15, 1973) was an American bluegrass and country guitarist and singer. He is best known as a member of the bluegrass ensemble the Kentucky Colonels and the rock band the Byrd ...

, and

Django Reinhardt Jean Reinhardt (23 January 1910 – 16 May 1953), known by his Romani nickname Django ( or ), was a Romani-French jazz guitarist and composer. He was one of the first major jazz talents to emerge in Europe and has been hailed as one of its most ...

Biography

Early years

Lawrence was raised in

Charlotte, North Carolina Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...

His father began work as a sound engineer for a local music hall when Lawrence was age 10. This allowed him to meet and learn from some performers such as

Buck Owens Alvis Edgar Owens Jr. (August 12, 1929 – March 25, 2006), known professionally as Buck Owens, was an American musician, singer, songwriter, and band leader. He was the lead singer for Buck Owens and the Buckaroos, which had 21 No. 1 hits on ...

Don Rich Donald Eugene Ulrich (August 15, 1941 – July 17, 1974), best known by the stage name Don Rich, was an American country musician who helped develop the Bakersfield sound in the early 1960s. He was a noted guitarist and fiddler, and a ...

Bill Monroe William Smith "Bill" Monroe (; September 13, 1911 – September 9, 1996) was an American mandolinist, singer, and songwriter, who created the bluegrass music genre. Because of this, he is often called the " Father of Bluegrass". The genre take ...

George Shuffler George Shuffler (April 11, 1925 – April 7, 2014) was an American bluegrass music, bluegrass guitar player and an early practitioner of the crosspicking style. During his career Shuffler played with The Bailey Brothers and the Happy Valley Boys, ...

, and

Flatt and Scruggs Flatt and Scruggs were an American bluegrass duo. Singer and guitarist Lester Flatt and banjo player Earl Scruggs, both of whom had been members of Bill Monroe's band, the Bluegrass Boys, from 1945 to 1948, formed the duo in 1948. Flatt and Scru ...

. In his teens, Lawrence played in local folk and bluegrass groups. A job with luthier C. E. Ward in Charlotte introduced Lawrence to

Carl Story Carl Story (May 29, 1916 – March 31, 1995) was an American bluegrass musician, and leader of his band the Rambling Mountaineers. He was dubbed "The Father of Bluegrass Gospel Music" by the governor of Oklahoma. Biography Story was born in Len ...

, and landed him his first professional job in 1970.

Early career

In 1971, Lawrence joined the progressive bluegrass ensemble New Deal String Band, which also included Frank Greathouse (mandolin) and Al McCanless (fiddle). Then in 1972, he joined the Bluegrass Alliance, replacing

Tony Rice David Anthony Rice (June 8, 1951 – December 25, 2020), known professionally as Tony Rice, was an American guitarist and bluegrass musician. He was an influential acoustic guitar player in bluegrass, progressive bluegrass, newgrass and a ...

and joining Lonnie Peerce (fiddle), Steve Maxwell (bass), Chuck Nation (mandolin), and Garland Shuping (banjo, vocal). This lineup recorded the album ''Tall Grass'' on the Bridges label in 1973, and Lawrence left in 1974. After a second stint with the New Deal String Band, Jack played electric guitar in rock and country bands for several years. In 1978, Lawrence formed a folk duo with Joe Smothers. Through Smothers, Lawrence met

and his son

Merle Watson Eddy Merle Watson (February 8, 1949 – October 23, 1985) was an American folk and bluegrass guitarist. He was best known for his performances with his father, Doc Watson. Merle played and recorded albums together with his father from age 15 unti ...

Doc Watson

1983, began working with Doc Watson in concerts and on recordings as Merle pursued other interests. When Merle died in 1985, Lawrence became Doc's full-time musical partner. In 2015, Lawrence coordinated a Doc Watson Guitar Tribute set at MerleFest, with participation by

Sam Bush Charles Samuel Bush (born April 13, 1952) is an American mandolinist who is considered an originator of progressive bluegrass music. In 2020, he was inducted into the International Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame as a member of New Grass Reviva ...

, David Holt, Stephen Mougin, Tim Stafford, Roy Book Binder, T. Michael Coleman, and Jack's son, Adam Lawrence.

Other projects

Lawrence released his first solo album ''About Time'' in 1997, and in 2002, he released ''I Don't Need The Whiskey Anymore'', featuring Sam Bush,

Jerry Douglas Gerald Calvin "Jerry" Douglas (born May 28, 1956) is an American Dobro and lap steel guitar player and record producer. Career In addition to his fourteen solo recordings, Douglas has played on more than 1,600 albums. As a sideman, he h ...

, Tony Williamson, the

Del McCoury Band The Del McCoury Band is a Grammy award-winning American bluegrass band. History Originally the band was called Del McCoury and the Dixie Pals with Del on guitar and his brother Jerry on bass. The band went through a number of changes in personn ...

, and Doc Watson. In 2013, Lawrence released Arthel's Guitar album, using Arthel "Doc" Watson's guitar on the recording. The album contains bluegrass and fiddle tunes performed with Curtis Burch and Dale Meyer (resonator guitar), Wayne Benson (mandolin), Don Lewis and Shadd Cobb (fiddle), Steve Lewis (banjo), Ron Shuffler (bass), and Jody Call (drums, percussion). The album also includes several unreleased tracks by Watson. Lawrence has performed in and recorded with the ToneBlazers, along with Billy Gee (bass), Dale Meyer (resonator guitar), Jim Ashton (banjo, pedal steel), Jody Call (percussion), and Randy Gambill (guitar, mandolin).

Personal life

Lawrence and his wife Katie live in

Harrisburg, North Carolina Harrisburg, a northeastern suburb of Charlotte, is a city in Cabarrus County, North Carolina, United States. The population was estimated to be 16,576 . Geography Harrisburg is located in southwestern Cabarrus County at (35.322295, -80.653331). ...

. They have three children: Matthew, Adam and Jenny.

Discography

Solo recordings

* 1997: ''About Time'' (G Run) * 2002: ''I Don't Need the Whiskey Anymore'' (G Run) * 2013: ''Arthel's Guitar'' (Little King)

With Joe Smothers

* 1981: ''Smothers/Lawrence'' (Park St.)

With
Doc Watson Arthel Lane "Doc" Watson (March 3, 1923 – May 29, 2012) was an American guitarist, songwriter, and singer of bluegrass, folk, country, blues, and gospel music. Watson won seven Grammy awards as well as a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award. W ...

* 1987: ''

Portrait A portrait is a painting, photograph, sculpture, or other artistic representation of a person, in which the face and its expressions are predominant. The intent is to display the likeness, personality, and even the mood of the person. For this r ...

'' ( Sugar Hill) * 1990: ''

On Praying Ground ''On Praying Ground'' is an album by the American musician Doc Watson, released in 1990. It is a collection of gospel songs. The version of "I'm Gonna Lay My Burdens Down" was inspired by Mississippi John Hurt's arrangement. At the Grammy Awards o ...

'' (Sugar Hill) * 1990: '' Songs for Little Pickers'' (Sugar Hill) * 1991: '' My Dear Old Southern Home'' (Sugar Hill) * 1995: '' Docabilly'' (Sugar Hill) * 1997: '' Doc & Dawg'' (

Acoustic Disc David Grisman (born March 23, 1945) is an American mandolinist. His music combines bluegrass, folk, and jazz in a genre he calls "Dawg music". He founded the record label Acoustic Disc, which issues his recordings and those of other acoustic mu ...

) with David Grisman * 1998: ''

Del Doc & Mac ''Del Doc & Mac'' (the cover actually prints the names and photos in a somewhat convoluted manner, hence most discographies use the alphabetical listing) is the title of a recording by American folk music artists Doc Watson, Del McCoury and Mac Wi ...

'' (Sugar Hill) with

Del McCoury Delano Floyd McCoury (born February 1, 1939) is an American bluegrass musician. As leader of the Del McCoury Band, he plays guitar and sings lead vocals along with his two sons, Ronnie McCoury and Rob McCoury, who play mandolin and banjo resp ...

and

Mac Wiseman Malcolm Bell Wiseman (May 23, 1925 – February 24, 2019) was an American bluegrass and country singer. Early life He was born on May 23, 1925, in Crimora, Virginia. He attended school in New Hope, Virginia, and graduated from high school the ...

* 2002: ''Doc's Guitar Jam'' DVD (Vestapol) with

Dan Crary Dan Crary ''(aka Deacon Dan Crary)'' was born September 29, 1939 in Kansas City, Kansas and is an American bluegrass guitarist. He helped re-establish flatpicked guitar as a prominent soloing bluegrass instrument. Crary is an innovator of the flat ...

, Steve Kaufman, and

(recorded at Merefest 1992) * 2014: ''Doc Watson and David Grisman In Concert'' DVD (Vestapol) * 2016: ''The Bottom Line Archive: Doc Watson'' (Bottom Line)

With the ToneBlazers

* 2011: ''Red Clay Roots'' (Little King) * 2012: ''Grass Roots'' (Little King) * 2013: ''Gold Rush Town'' (Little King)

Also appears on

* 1980: The Roustabouts - ''2001 A Bluegrass Odyssey'' (Lamon) * 1989:

Mike Auldridge Mike Auldridge (December 30, 1938 – December 29, 2012) was an American Dobro player and a founding member of the bluegrass group The Seldom Scene. The ''New York Times'' described Auldridge as "one of the most distinctive dobro players in the ...

- ''Treasures Untold'' (Sugar Hill) * 2001: Candlewyck - ''Wilkes County Breakdown'' (Votive) * 2003:

and David Grisman - '' Hold On, We're Strummin''' (Acoustic Disc) * 2005: various artists - ''Tone Poets'' (Acoustic Disc) - track 2-06, "Were You There" * 2006:

Jimmy Gaudreau Jimmy Gaudreau is a singer and mandolinist playing traditional and progressive bluegrass music. He is best known for his solo albums, and his work with The Country Gentlemen, Tony Rice, and J. D. Crowe. Biography Early life In high school in the ...

- ''In Good Company'' ( CMH) * 2006:

Bryan Sutton Bryan Sutton is an American musician. Primarily known as a flatpicking acoustic guitar player, Sutton also plays mandolin, banjo, ukulele, and electric guitar. He also sings and writes songs. Biography Early career Sutton's grandfather and ...

- ''Not Too Far from the Tree'' (Sugar Hill)

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lawrence, Jack 1953 births American bluegrass guitarists American male guitarists American country guitarists American folk guitarists American folk singers Appalachian culture Living people 20th-century American guitarists Musicians from Charlotte, North Carolina People from Harrisburg, North Carolina Country musicians from North Carolina 20th-century American male musicians