William Manning MacGregor

1959 - 2019

William Manning MacGregor

Agoura Hills, CA - William Manning MacGregor passed away peacefully in his sleep on December 31st, 2019, in Agoura Hills, California at the age of 60. He is survived by his mother, Helen Jean MacGregor, his younger brothers Brian & Thomas; nieces and nephews Brittany, Collin, Meghan, Sean, Ian, Kayleigh and Connor. He also leaves behind Brook & Brendon, Terri, Julie-Anne and numerous cousins. Will was born in Watertown, Wisconsin on February 2, 1959. He attended Atwater Elementary School in Shorewood, Wisconsin and graduated from Shorewood High School in 1977. He then attended the Wisconsin Conservatory Of Music before heading west to California to pursue his lifelong dream of becoming a professional musician. Upon his arrival in LA, he began studying and working with bass legend Stanley Clark, along with Louis Johnson (The Brothers Johnson) and Bobby Watson (Rufus). His professional music career flourished—he was in his element. In 1985, Will joined The Monte Carlos, one of LA's hottest backing bands for many of the legendary artists of the 50's and 60's. He would spend the next few years sharing the stage with Del Shannon, Chuck Berry, The Drifters, The Coasters, The Platters, The Shirelles, Bo Diddly, Martha Reeves, Eddie Money and many more. Will played with dozens of bands and rock 'n roll greats over the years, including Ben E. King, Keith Richards (The Rolling Stones), Ian McLagan (Faces/ The Rolling Stones/Bump Band) and Ronnie Wood (The Rolling Stones). Throughout the 80's and 90's, Will earned a reputation as one of the most sought after studio bassists on the West Coast. His amazing sight reading skills and soulful slap bass grooves were a rarity and in high demand. Will was featured on dozens of commercials, films and albums, laying down tracks with some of the most notable artists in the industry including Tori Amos ("Little Earthquakes"), The Pretenders ("Packed"), David Pack (Lead Singer of Ambrosia-"Anywhere You Go"), Terence Trent D'Arby ("Symphony or Damn"), and Pat McLaughlin ("Get Out and Stay Out"). Will was a loyal member of the Chuck E Weiss band for over 30 years—a gig that included countless recordings and late night jam sessions with Chuck's pal Johnny Depp. In the late 90's and early 2000's, Will toured extensively with Rita Coolidge. During this time he starred as a member of the house band on the nationally televised late night hit "The Tracy Ullman Show". Will also appeared on "The Tonight Show", "Conan O"Brien" and "The Jimmy Kimmel Show". In 2007 Will recorded his first solo CD "Welcome To The Carnival". The last 8 years of his life, Will circled the globe with guitar great Albert Lee, playing to packed houses from Sydney, Australia to Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Will's infectious laugh, silly sense of humor, generosity, kind spirit and astounding talent was an inspiration to everyone in his life. He will be missed greatly by the music community, his family, friends and many, many fans. He touched us all with his music, and his music will play in our hearts forever. Celebrations of Will's life will be held in both Los Angeles, California and Muscoda, Wisconsin on dates TBD. Updates will be posted on The William MacGregor Memorial Page on Facebook. The family respectfully requests that instead of flowers or gifts, contributions in memory of Will may be made to the "Cystic Fibrosis Foundation", one of the many important causes Will supported. Cards of Condolence can be sent to the family at PO Box 673, Muscoda, Wi 53573.