Charlie Barnet was born into a wealthy family. Lawyers, they wanted Charlie to go into the family "business", but he refused to study law and dedicated his life to music. He started playing saxophone in the late 1920s in different orchestras and formed his own band in 1933. They became famous in 1939 with the theme "Cherokee", a major hit in that year. Many musicians started their career with Barnet, such as Billy May, pianist Bill Miller and singers Mary Ann McCall and Lena Horne, who recorded with Barnet in 1941. His style on saxophone was influenced by Coleman Hawkins on tenor and Johnny Hodges on alto. He was also noted for his beautiful and stylish soprano sax playing.