Quotes by Steve Dougherty, Wall Street Journal
Alison Krauss is probably one of the most renowned “Bluegrass” singers and musicians in the world. When she performs in concert at 7:30 Wednesday evening at the Municipal Auditorium in Shreveport, she’ll be welcoming a family group from Cotton Valley, LA – the Cox Family – to perform as her opening act.
After all, she’s known the Cox family since she was 16. They are like family to the Decatur, Illinois native.
Steve Dougherty, a writer for the Wall Street Journal, quoted Ms. Krauss as saying, “Music is a byproduct for that family. They are fierce lovers of each other. They have the kind of family ties that we all long for.”
Krauss is also a music producer, and her collaboration with The Cox Family on “I Know Who Holds Tomorrow” led to a Grammy-winning album.
So how did the Illinois Bluegrass performer meet the rural Louisiana family group? According to Dougherty, they met at the same time Suzanne Cox was celebrating her 21st birthday in 1987.
“The year before, Ms. Krauss heard a snippet of a recording made by her banjo player at a Bluegrass festival in Hannibal, MO,” said Dougherty. “She (Krauss) was 15 years old at the time, an up-and-coming singer and fiddle player who was already signed to a Rounder Records contract. She became intrigued by the tape of the Cox Family singing ‘Cry Baby Cry’ (a song by Sidney Cox that the group and Ms. Krauss would later record).”
“Group leader Willard Cox was heard on the tape introducing each of his children to the audience,” Dougherty said.
“I remember being fascinated equally by the singing and the songs, as by the introductions of the family and the way Willard talked,” Alison said. “He would say ‘stuff’ and they would laugh. You could barely understand what Suzanne Cox said, her accent was so thick.”
When she learned that she and the Cox Family were both booked to appear at the Mitchell Family Bluegrass Festival in Perrin, Texas in early June the following year, Ms. Krauss said, “Oh my gosh, I was counting down the months.”
“Finally we got down there,” she recalled. “I got up early and I’m walking around the festival campground trying to find them. I don’t know what they look like and nobody’s awake. How goofy! I must have looked like a crazy person. Finally, I found someone” and she asked if they knew the Cox family. They did.
“I knocked on the door of the camper, and we’ve been going along ever since.”
The Northwest Louisiana Walk of Stars honored The Cox Family with one of its highest distinctions on Monday, recognizing the music group’s enduring influence on bluegrass, gospel, and country music and its deep ties to the region.