William Hundley Emerson, Jr. (January 22, 1938 – August 21, 2021) was an American five-string banjo player known for being one of the founding members of the original The Country Gentlemen and Emerson & Waldron and considered one of the finest bluegrass banjo players in music history.
[original research] Wild Bill and Jody have written for many country artists such as George Jones, Hank Williams, Jr. and John Anderson.
In 1957, when Busby was injured in a car accident, Emerson and Charlie Waller – who was also a member of the Bayou Boys – formed The Country Gentlemen.
In 1962, he joined Jimmy Martin's Sunny Mountain Boys where he remained until 1967 with the exception of a brief interlude with Red Allen between 1964–1965.
[4] While recovering from a February 1972 drive-by shooting following a Country Gentlemen performance at the Red Fox Inn in Bethesda, Maryland, Emerson again left the group.