Gerald was born in New York City and grew up in Philadelphia.
The first instrument he played was the piano. When he was a
teenager, he started to play the saxophone and write arrangements
for bands. When he moved to New York, Gene Krupa hired Gerry
as the band's arranger. Then he started to play the bigger baritone
saxophone. He continued arranging music for many great musicians
like Miles Davis, Claude Thornhill, Kai Winding and Stan Kenton. He
moved to California and started a quartet with Chet Baker, then toured
all over Europe and Japan and formed his first big band. Gerry led
many types of bands and wrote and arranged beautiful songs. His
marvelous sound on the baritone was famous because it was a cool
combination of delicacy and strength—just like Gerry.