[2] He arranged music for Duke Ellington, Sarah Vaughan, Ray Charles, Julie London, Dizzy Gillespie, Ella Fitzgerald, Benny Carter, Lionel Hampton, Billie Holiday, Dinah Washington, and Nancy Wilson.

[1] Wilson was born in Shelby, Mississippi,[1] and at the age of 16 moved to Detroit, Michigan, where he graduated from Cass Technical High School (one of his classmates was saxophonist Wardell Gray).

[4] During World War II, Wilson also performed for a brief time with the U.S. Navy, with Clark Terry, Willie Smith and Jimmy Nottingham.

Recording Orchestra performed at the famed twelfth Cavalcade of Jazz held at Wrigley Field in Los Angeles which was produced by Leon Hefflin, Sr. on September 2, 1956.

His 1968 album California Soul featured a title track written by Ashford & Simpson, as well as a version of The Doors' hit "Light My Fire".

With his wife, Wilson had three daughters (Jeri, Lillian (Teri) and Nancy Jo), his son Anthony (who is guitarist for Diana Krall), and a number of grandchildren, all of whom have songs composed for them—his compositions were often inspired by his family members.

[3] He hosted an innovative show, in the 1970s, on KBCA in Los Angeles, which was co-hosted by Dennis Smith, where he played "...music of the past, the present, and the future."

He had a unique style of conducting: "Garbed in well tailored suits, his long white hair flowing, Wilson shaped the music with dynamic movements and the elegant grace of a modern dancer."

Wilson died at his home in Los Angeles, California, on September 8, 2014, four days after his 96th birthday,[2] after a brief illness that followed a bout of pneumonia, which had hospitalized him.