From humble beginnings in Philadelphia, a son of Molisano immigrants changed his name and helped revolutionize jazz and blues music, while performing with some of the biggest stars of the 20th century.

Salvatore Massaro was born at home in the 700 block of Saint Albans Street in the Little Italy section in the south end of Philadelphia, Pa., on October 25, 1902. His parents had emigrated from the community of Monteroduni (population 2,140 in the 2017 Census) in the province of Isernia in Molise.