As the leader of one of the most popular swing-era bands and a skilled saxophone jazz soloist, Jimmy Dorsey (1904-1957) became famous. With or without his equally well known brother Tommy, he was in demand in nightclubs and in the motion picture business.

Jimmy Dorsey was born in Shenandoah, Pennsylvania on February 29, 1904. Along with his younger brother Tommy, Dorsey appeared destined to become a musician. Not that his father's brass band was all that successful, since he had to work on the side to support his family. But the elder Dorsey, a miner and music teacher, wanted a better life for his sons, and he felt music was the way. Both boys studied music with a real passion, each beginning with a cornet. Before long they were allowed to play in their father's band and by the time he was 17 years old, Jimmy Dorsey was playing clarinet in...