Sonny Dunham
b. Elmer L. Dunham, 16 November 1914, Brockton, Massachusetts, USA. Dunham learned to play several brass instruments and by the early '20s he was proficient enough to be hired by the popular bandleader Ben Bernie. With Bernie he played trombone, but a later engagement with the Paul Tremaine orchestra found him also playing trumpet. In the early '30s, after a brief spell leading his own band, he joined the Casa Loma Orchestra where his high-note solos attracted considerable attention. His feature-spot with this unit came in Memories Of You, a song which he adopted as his theme when he formed a new band in 1937. Like some other bandleaders struggling to stand out among the many groups of the swing era, Dunham tried a gimmick—most of his sidemen doubled on trumpet—but this did not prove to be a great crowd-puller. For all his band's imperfections, Dunham employed several good musicians, amongst them the outstanding future lead trumpeter Pete Candoli. After the band folded, he divided his time between studio work and occasional appearances with name outfits. From time to time, during the '50s and '60s, he assembled bands for special engagements.