I. David Wilcox i… Read Full Bio ↴There are at least two artists named David Wilcox.
I. David Wilcox is a Canadian rock and blues musician.
II. David Wilcox is an American folk musician and singer-songwriter guitarist.
I. More than three decades into his career, singer/songwriter David Wilcox continues to push himself, just as he always has. Wilcox, by so many measures, is a quintessential folk singer, telling stories full of heart, humor, and hope, substance, searching, and style. His innate sense of adventure and authenticity is why critics and colleagues, alike, have always praised not just his artistry, but his humanity, as well.
That's not by accident; it's very much by design. It's the result of a man giving himself over in gratitude and service to something bigger than himself. “I'm grateful to music,” he says. “I have a life that feels deeply good, but when I started playing music, nothing in my life felt that good. I started to write songs because I wanted to find a way to make my life feel as good as I felt when I heard a great song. I don't think I'd be alive now if it had not been for music.”
An early '80s move to Warren Wilson College in North Carolina set his wheels in motion, as he started playing guitar and writing songs, processing his own inner workings and accessing his own inner wisdom. In 1987, within a couple of years of graduating, Wilcox had released his first independent album, The Nightshift Watchman. A year later, he won the prestigious Kerrville Folk Festival New Folk Award and, in 1989, he signed with A&M Records, selling more than 100,000 copies of his A&M debut, How Did You Find Me Here.
In the 30 years and more than 20 records since — whether with a major label, an indie company, or his own imprint — Wilcox has continued to hone his craft, pairing thoughtful insights with his warm baritone, open tunings, and deft technique. He's also kept up a brisk and thorough tour itinerary, performing 80 to 100 shows a year throughout the U.S., and regularly deploying his talents by improvising a “Musical Medicine” song for an audience member in need. In recent years he’s taken that process a step further, carefully writing and recording dozens of his “Custom Songs” for long-time fans who seek his help in commemorating and explaining the key milestones in their lives.
Lest anyone think that he's lost his touch, Wilcox pulled no punches on his most recent release, 2018's The View From the Edge. Not only does the song cycle find him delving into mental health, family legacies, spiritual contemplations, and topical concerns, the song “We Make the Way By Walking" also won him the Grand Prize in the 2018 USA Songwriting Contest.
"I think the coolest thing about this kind of music is that, if you listen to a night's worth of music, you should know that person,” he explains. “If you're hearing a performer sing all these songs, you should know not only where he gets his joy and what he loves, but you should know what pisses him off and what frightens him and what runs him off the rails, what takes him apart and what puts him back together.”
To attain that level of revelatory honesty, Wilcox follows a song to its deepest truth, even when it haunts him, a practice which demands the strength of vulnerability that he has sought since his teen years. That honesty is why Rolling Stone has written that his “ongoing musical journey is compelling and richly deserving of a listen.” It's also why Blue Ridge Public Radio has noted that, “The connection people feel with David’s music is also the connection they feel with each other.”
But Wilcox's unique brand of storytelling doesn't come easily. And it doesn't come quickly. “I could always think of a lot of possible ways the song could go, but the trick was recognizing truth amidst all the cleverness,” he confesses. “The more time I took, the more my deep heart could speak to me through the process of songwriting. I could gradually craft a song that felt like it was coming from the place I was going. If you decide to trust heart over cleverness, you not only get a song that moves you, you get a song that moves you toward being who you want to be. The time you spend immersed in the emotion of a song changes you. The song shows you the world through a particular point of view. Once you have seen the world that way, you can't un-see it.”
Website: David Wilcox
II. The American David Wilcox was born in Cleveland, Ohio. His work features lyrical insight, asmooth baritone voice, virtuosic guitar chops, and creative open tunings. He released an independent album in 1987, won the Kerrville Folk Festival New Folk award in 1988, and by 1989 he had signed with A&M Records. His first release on the label, ‘How Did You Find Me Here’, sold over 100,000 copies its first year. 17 albums later his songs have been covered by artists such as k.d. lang and many others.
Ask For More
David Wilcox Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
But nothing you can put your finger on
In so many ways it's going fine
You couldn't complain, you say
And day to day you get along
But lately you lie awake at night
What are you missing? Even though
You felt this way before, you know it's true
It's calling you to ask for more
Like a message in a bottle, 'cross the ocean
Just to wash up on your shore
From deep in your heart, please, ask for more
A beautiful dream you had reminds you of the emptiness
Something your soul is trying to say
Usually you can close your eyes and not remember this
But it's echoing back from miles away
Only a whisper, showing you something you already know
What are you missing? Even though
You're not alone, you wake up lonely
You've had this dream before
Signs are true, calling you to ask for more
Like the fragrance of the garden
That can reach you through the cracks around your door
God speaks in your heart, please, ask for
The lyrics of David Wilcox's song, "Ask For More," are about a feeling of dissatisfaction, despite the fact that nothing is overtly wrong in the singer's life. The opening lines describe something as being amiss, but not in a way that can be pinpointed. In fact, the singer notes that "in so many ways, it's going fine," and that he "couldn't complain." However, there is a sense of unease that is keeping him up at night, a sense that something is missing that he cannot quite identify.
This sense of emptiness is further explored throughout the song, as the singer talks about how he wakes up lonely, even though he knows he is not alone. He has had dreams that remind him of the emptiness inside, dreams that show him what he is missing. The repeated call to "ask for more" is the singer's attempt to find this missing something, to understand what it is that he needs. He likens it to a message in a bottle washing up on his shore, or the fragrance of a garden wafting in through a crack in the door. It is something that is both elusive and yet somehow still attainable.
Overall, "Ask For More" is a song about the human desire for something more, something deeper and more meaningful than what is readily apparent. It's about the need to explore the unknown, to find what truly fulfills us, even when we cannot quite articulate what that is.
Line by Line Meaning
Something is wrong
There is something amiss.
But nothing you can put your finger on
You can't exactly identify the problem.
In so many ways it's going fine
Everything is good in many aspects.
You couldn't complain, you say
You have no real reason to complain.
And day to day you get along
You go through life smoothly.
But lately you lie awake at night
You have trouble sleeping, something is bothering you.
What are you missing? Even though
What could be the one thing you lack? Despite the fact
You're not alone, you wake up lonely
You do not feel like you have anybody to turn to.
You felt this way before, you know it's true
You've experienced this feeling in the past, that much you know.
It's calling you to ask for more
This feeling pushes you to demand something beyond what you have.
Like a message in a bottle, 'cross the ocean
Just like a note drifting over the sea,
Just to wash up on your shore
This sensation comes to you quietly.
From deep in your heart, please, ask for more
It comes from the deepest part within you, ask for more.
A beautiful dream you had reminds you of the emptiness
You have a pretty dream that reminds you of how hollow everything feels.
Something your soul is trying to say
Something is urging you from within.
Usually you can close your eyes and not remember this
Usually, it's easy to forget about this feeling after a good night's rest.
But it's echoing back from miles away
But the sensation just keeps reverberating throughout you.
Only a whisper, showing you something you already know
It's only a gentle murmur, indicating something you already understand
What are you missing? Even though
What could be the one thing you lack? Even if
You're not alone, you wake up lonely
You do not feel like you have anybody to turn to.
You've had this dream before
This isn't your first time experiencing this dream
Signs are true, calling you to ask for more
It's the correct path, prompting you to request for more.
Like the fragrance of the garden
Similar to the scent of a garden.
That can reach you through the cracks around your door
That breaks through the gaps around your doors.
God speaks in your heart, please, ask for more
It's a message from heaven, requesting that you ask for more.
Lyrics © SOROKA MUSIC LTD.
Written by: DAVID WILCOX, MAIA SHARP
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind