James V Cockerham is #Flyah
JAMES VINSON COCKERHAM Atlanta African American composer, James Vinson Cockerham, grew up in Wilkesboro, NC. His mother was a domestic worker for three generations of judges and the towns newspaper publisher. His father worked for Southern Railway. He was fourth of six children. Cockerham began his musical training in the third grade. His learning continued in the Lincoln Heights Elementary and High School Band and Chorus. James learned to play keyboard instruments. When he was young, his family could not afford piano lessons, so he borrowed music books from his cousins and taught himself to read them. He played by ear and directed his first choir when he was in the seventh grade. His oldest brother and sister moved to New York and they would bring jazz and gospel albums home when they visited. He was in middle school when he learned to play gospel and jazz. His older brother, Harry, allowed him to tag along as they played the Top 40, R&B, blues and jazz