Dexter Keith Gordon was born on February 27, 1923, in Los Angeles, California. He began his study of music with the clarinet at age 13, then switched to the alto saxophone at 15 and finally to the tenor saxophone at 17. He studied music with Lloyd Reese and at Jefferson High School with Sam Browne, both of whom also taught Charles Mingus and Chico Hamilton. In his last year of high school, he received a call from alto saxophonist Marshall Royal asking him to join the Lionel Hampton Band. He left Los Angeles with the band, traveling down South and learning to play from fellow band members Illinois Jacquet and Marshall Royal. In January 1941, the band played at the Grand Terrace in Chicago for six months and the radio broadcasts made there were his first r...