Wabash Valley Musicians Hall of Fame
'Promoting fellowship and friendship among all musicians of the Wabash Valley'
Musical History of Wilson "Will" Cox
Musical Influences
After seeing the Beatles perform on the Ed Sullivan Show, Will
Cox, along with most of the kids in his neighborhood, wanted to join
a band. When he and his friends discussed doing this, it
turned out that all of them wanted to play drums. They decided
to draw straws to see who would get to be the drummer, and Will won.
Will soon bought his first set of drums and started learning to
play. His first band job was at the YMCA in Terre Haute, IN.
Musical Career
Will played in a number of bands between 1966 and 1976, but doesn’t recall their names. Since then, he has been a member of the following.
| 1976-1978 | The Sockhoppers |
| 1978-1983 | Front Page |
| 1983-1987 | The Stand |
| 1987-1994 | Eddie and the Motivators |
| 1994-1998 | The Bad Dangos |
| 1998-1999 | Eddie and the Motivators |
| 2000-2001 | The Uptown Brass |
| 2001-2004 | Wayback Machine |
| 2003-2010 | The Pilgrim Blues Band |
| 2008-2015 | Dicky James and the Blue Flames |
| 1997-2016 | Maryland Community Church Band |
Memorable Moments
Will has opened for numerous major acts through the years.
He produced, engineered and played on “Hard Rain”, an album by Dicky
James and the Blue Flames. It received world wide airplay, was
the 2011 Best Self Produced CD for Indiana, was #1 in the nation in
September 2011 and spent 20 weeks in the top 30.
Hall of Fame
Will was inducted into the Hall of Fame as a part of the Class of
2007.
Will was elected to the Board of Directors in June 2008, serving until
his death in 2016. He was elected to the position of Vice Chair
in 2010, and re-elected in 2012 and 2014. He chose not to run again
in 2016 due to his declining healt.
Obituary
Wilson N. Cox III, 62, of West Terre Haute, died on September 14, 2016 after a battle with cancer. Will was born in Terre Haute on June 11, 1954, the son of Wilson N. Cox Jr. and Jean McCrocklin Cox. He attended TH North High, the University of Tampa, and Indiana State University. He was proud to be a drummer and musician his entire life and enjoyed touring the country. He was especially proud of his playing time with great friends Eddie and the Motivators and, more recently, blues band Dicky James and the Blue Flames with whom he achieved national recognition and a #1 album. He was also a Master Scuba Diver, sailor, and avid motorcyclist.He is survived by the love of his life, Mary Cassandra Cox, who he married on November 10, 1990. He is also survived by a son, Wilson N. Cox IV, a daughter, Courtney A. Cox, a same-as-son Wesley A. Cox, and twin grandsons Russell and Dale Cox as well as a sister, Eleanor Riggs.
A gathering of family and friends will held at Greiner Funeral Home, 2005 N. 13th St., Terre Haute, IN., 47804 from 4-8 pm on Wednesday September 21st. In lieu of flowers donations may be made to the Wabash Valley Musicians Hall c/o The Music Shoppe, 1427 So. 25th St., Terre Haute, IN 47803.
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Last update on 17 Sep 2016