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.
Glory
David Wilcox Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
That was my best guess
But hey, here I am this morning
Singing happy birthday to me
As I clean up all this mess
Because I'm still left alive
Without warning
Of my long book of life
After the twist has been told
If you don't die in glory
At the age of Christ
Then your story is just getting old
You can see leather-jacket-James
And Jimi, fan the flames
Their posters will always look younger
Ah, but they never knew
And they can't guide us through
The long stretch of spiritual hunger
In the big boring middle
Of my long book of life
After the twist has been told
If you don't die in glory
At the age of Christ
Then your story is just getting old
As a skinny kid she knew
That she should never sell her beauty
But it's a strong narcotic
To feel the public stare
It's like a powerful dose
Of some synthetic self-image
It makes you feel so alive
As long as it is there
And that was how she felt
Not pushed by human hands
She was pushed
By the eyes all around her
So, she fell back into her past
Where her beauty mark would last
So, the camera could never have found her
In the big boring middle
Of my long book of life
After the twist has been told
If you don't die in glory
At the age of Christ
Then your story is just getting old
Now, when Jesus told the rest
That He would have His way
And in death He would not be defeated
Maybe it was all for the best
For what He had to say
Because He would not always
Have to repeat it
Through the big boring middle
Of His long book of life
After He passed thirty-two
If you don't die in glory
At the age of Christ
Then your story is still coming true
Still coming true, still coming true
The lyrics to David Wilcox's song Glory touch upon themes of mortality, self-worth, and the struggle for meaning as we navigate through life. The opening lines, "Well, I'd be dead by thirty-three / That was my best guess" set a somber tone, juxtaposed against the celebratory line "Singing happy birthday to me." The singer seems to acknowledge his uncertainty about the future, but is nonetheless grateful for the present moment. The implications of dying before one has a chance to reach their full potential are explored further in the lines "If you don't die in glory / At the age of Christ / Then your story is just getting old." Here, the age of thirty-three takes on a symbolic significance, as it is the age at which Jesus was crucified. The singer feels a sense of pressure to achieve something great before reaching that age, or risk being forgotten.
The song's second verse shifts focus to a woman who has become addicted to the attention she receives for her beauty. The line, "It's like a powerful dose / Of some synthetic self-image / It makes you feel so alive / As long as it is there" suggests that this feeling of validation is temporary and ultimately unsatisfying. The woman chooses to retreat into the past, where she can maintain her beauty and avoid the potential disappointments of the present. This idea of being stuck in the "big boring middle" of one's life is a recurring theme throughout the song.
The final verse brings the focus back to Jesus, who also faced the struggle of finding meaning in a seemingly ordinary life. The lines "Through the big boring middle / Of His long book of life / After He passed thirty-two / If you don't die in glory / At the age of Christ / Then your story is still coming true" imply that even Jesus had doubts and faced challenges during his lifetime, but ultimately his message and legacy transcended his mortality. The song ends on a hopeful note, suggesting that even if we don't achieve fame or glory, our stories are still valuable and worth telling.
Line by Line Meaning
Well, I'd be dead by thirty-three
David Wilcox thought he wouldn't live long
That was my best guess
It was just his prediction
But hey, here I am this morning
He is alive and celebrating his birthday
Singing happy birthday to me
He is singing and showing appreciation for being alive
As I clean up all this mess
He's cleaning up what's left behind in his life
Because I'm still left alive
He's still alive and able to clean up messes
Without warning
Life doesn't always go as planned
In the big, boring middle
He's in the middle of his life where nothing exciting happens
Of my long book of life
His life is like a book
After the twist has been told
After the exciting part of his life is over
If you don't die in glory
If you don't do something amazing with your life
At the age of Christ
At 33, the age Jesus died
Then your story is just getting old
Your life is becoming less interesting
You can see leather-jacket-James
He's referring to James Dean
And Jimi, fan the flames
Jimi Hendrix was a famous musician
Their posters will always look younger
Their images will always be iconic
Ah, but they never knew
They never experienced the middle of their lives
And they can't guide us through
They can't help us during the mundane parts of our lives
The long stretch of spiritual hunger
The emptiness that comes with the boring parts of our lives
As a skinny kid she knew
He's talking about a woman who was once young
That she should never sell her beauty
She shouldn't rely on her looks
But it's a strong narcotic
The attention she got for her looks was addictive
To feel the public stare
She liked being looked at and admired
It's like a powerful dose
It's like a strong drug that makes you feel good
Of some synthetic self-image
It's an artificial version of yourself that you're trying to uphold
It makes you feel so alive
It makes you feel important and validated
As long as it is there
As long as the attention is coming in
And that was how she felt
That's how the woman in the story felt
Not pushed by human hands
She was not directly influenced by other people
She was pushed
She was guided
By the eyes all around her
By the scrutiny and attention of others
So, she fell back into her past
She went back to what made her famous-her looks
Where her beauty mark would last
A mole or beauty mark on her face she wanted to keep as a reminder of her youth
So, the camera could never have found her
She chose to hide from the camera so she wouldn't have to face the truth of her aging
Now, when Jesus told the rest
David refers to Jesus and his journey
That He would have His way
That he knew what was going to happen
And in death He would not be defeated
Even though he died, it was for a greater purpose
Maybe it was all for the best
David speculates that Jesus' death may have been necessary
For what He had to say
The message he brought to people
Because He would not always
Jesus wouldn't be able to repeat or share his message with everyone
Have to repeat it
He wouldn't always be around to share his message again
After the twist has been told
After the tumultuous event happened
If you don't die in glory
If you don't make a big impact in life
At the age of Christ
33 years old
Then your story is still coming true
Your life is still unfolding
Still coming true, still coming true
Reiterating that the story of our lives is unfolding
Lyrics © SOROKA MUSIC LTD.
Written by: DAVID WILCOX
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind