Early Life
Wiley was born in Houston's Fourth Ward. His parents divorced when he was very young, and Wiley was raised by his mother, Vanilla Yancy, and two sisters. Wiley attended Booker T. Washington High School, where he played clarinet in the marching band and concert band. In his final year of high school, Wiley, who cites Lester Young, Arnett Cobb and Gene Ammons as his leading influences, began playing saxophone at local dances. By his 18th birthday, he had recorded on several upstart Texas labels and was a regular at such venues as Houston's Eldorado Ballroom and the Bronze Peacock, and Don's Keyhole in San Antonio.
Read more about this topic: Ed Wiley, Jr.
Famous quotes related to early life:
“... goodness is of a modest nature, easily discouraged, and when much elbowed in early life by unabashed vices, is apt to retire into extreme privacy, so that it is more easily believed in by those who construct a selfish old gentleman theoretically, than by those who form the narrower judgments based on his personal acquaintance.”
—George Eliot [Mary Ann (or Marian)