Jimmy Dorsey – born February 29, 1904 in Shenandoah, Pennsylvania – was one of the most influential alto saxophonists and clarinetists of the big band and swing era. He was also a bandleader and respected composer, and trumpeter. Dorsey wrote or co-wrote jazz and pop standards including “It’s the Dreamer in Me” and “I’m Glad There Is You (In this World of Ordinary People)”, “So Many Times”, “John Silver”, “Tailspin”, and “Jumpin’ Jehosaphat”. With his younger brother Tommy on trombone, Jimmy Dorsey co-founded Dorsey’s Novelty Six in the early 1920s, the beginning of a career that the two would forge together and apart. Jimmy Dorsey made his first substantial musical mark by playing clarinet on “Singin’ the Blues” with Frankie Trumbauer’s Orchestra. He spent time touring and appearing on radio broadcasts, often times with his brother. The two brothers formed the Dorsey Brothers Orchestra and signed with Okeh Records. Their first chart hit was the single “Coquette” in 1928. Jimmy Dorsey contributed clarinet to Hoagy Carmichael and His Orchestra’s 1930 recording of “Georgia on My Mind”. The hit single “Let’s Do It (Let’s Fall in Love)” featured vocals by Bing Crosby. The Dorsey Brothers split up in May 1935 when Tommy stormed off stage after a disagreement. By September of that year, the band’s name was officially changed to Jimmy Dorsey and His Orchestra. Dorsey and his band provided musical accompaniment for Bing Crosby’s Kraft Music Hall radio show for the next two years. The band also provided backing on Crosby’s hit single “Pennies from Heaven”. In 1937, Dorsey left Crosby and focused on his own career. In order to stand out amongst all the other big bands, he brought in vocalists Bob Eberly and Helen O’Connell to add a different dimension to their sound. Jimmy Dorsey’s biggest hit was “Amapola”, which was a Number 1 single for seven weeks in 1941. The band appeared in various films including The Fleet’s in (1942), I Dood It (1943), Lost in a Harem (1944) and Hollywood Canteen (1944). In 1945, Jimmy and Tommy Dorsey reunited and combined their orchestras and renamed the band The Dorsey Brothers Orchestra. By the 1950s, the big bands were fading in popularity, but the Dorsey brothers rekindled interest in their music when they hosted a weekly program called Stage Show – produced by Jackie Gleason – from 1954 to 1956. Tommy Dorsey died on November 26, 1956 and Jimmy took over as leader of the orchestra. Diagnosed with throat cancer shortly after his brother’s death, Jimmy Dorsey died on June 12, 1957. After his death, Decca Records released The Great Jimmy Dorsey and The Fabulous Jimmy Dorsey collections, the first of many compilations that would be released over the next six decades.
