Like Guy Lombardo before him, Bob
Wilcox was born in London, Ontario.
Spending his childhood without a steady
home or family, moving between his
Mother, Grandparents, orphanages,
group homes and foster homes, Bob
was constantly on the move and fixated
on music from a very young age. First
stop was a school for International
children in the Dominican Republic
where he made friends with a bird
spider, countless lizards and hermit
crabs. In 1988 the civil war in Haiti, a
short distance from his home, drove
Bob and his Mother out of the
country returning to London. In 1990,
he began moving with his Grandmother
throughout Europe. First Brighton,
England, where his cousin was
headmaster of the school he attended.
Next travelling through France visiting
galleries, learning about art and history
from his Grandmother. After graduation
from high school Bob moved out on
his own, living in Sark, part of the
Channel Islands and in Bunclody,
Ireland. Each place Bob would live,
he would absorb the local music
obsessing with singing and writing
songs.
Bob's Mother and Stepfather opened
his eyes to the world of music with
records of Joni Mitchell The Beach boys and The
Beatles. His Stepfather, Larry Douglas,
who was briefly the drummer for James
Brown at the time, allowed Wilcox to
spend time with musicians both at
home and on the road. It was, however,
the eventual discovery of the piano at
his Grandparent's house that truly
captivated him. Tinkering and toying at
the keys in time blossomed into his first
songs as Wilcox taught himself how to
play and sing.
After his wanderlust wore off, Wilcox
returned to Canada only to suffer a
nervous breakdown from exhaustion.
Six months were spent in the hospital
in which time he penned "The
Channel" and "Heart Attacks", each
song touching on the subjects of
loneliness and social misconnections.
After he recovered, Wilcox joined his
friend Aaron Grant's band and played
frequent shows. During this time, he
also showcased his own material both
as a solo act and with a band, receiving
praise from his audiences for his
captivating voice. He then met Tony
Marriott (Jeff Buckley), with whom he
wrote songs and recorded demos with
in his home studio.
With unrecorded material and a bundle
of demos already under the belt,
Wilcox set out to find a group of
musicians to help him put his creations
together. Rehearsing and recording
demos with an accomplished line up of
musicians featuring Jordon Zadorozny(Blinker the star,hole,sam roberts),Ken Stringfellow(REM,The Posies,Big Star), Ryan Dahle
(Limblifter, Age of Electric), Kurt Dahle
(New Pornographers), Dan Morris
(Smashing Pumpkins, Rufus Wainwright)
and Pat Steward (Matthew Good),
Wilcox has been preparing 2 full length lp's, for international release.
