Teddy Napoleon was an American swing jazz pianist. He was the nephew of Phil Napoleon

Phil Napoleon

Phil Napoleon , born Filippo Napoli, was an early jazz trumpeter and bandleader born in Boston, Massachusetts...

 and the older brother of Marty Napoleon

Marty Napoleon

Marty Napoleon is an American jazz pianist born in Brooklyn, New York, perhaps best known for having replaced Earl Hines in Louis Armstrong's All Stars in 1952. In 1946 he worked with Gene Krupa and went on to work with his uncle Phil Napoleon, a trumpeter, in Phil's Original Memphis Five...

.

Teddy Napoleon's first professional engagement was with Lee Castle

Lee Castle

Lee Castle was an American jazz trumpeter and bandleader. He was born Lee Aniello Castaldo, and performed under this name early in his career....

 in 1933. He played with Tommy Tompkins for several years before working as a freelance musician in New York City

New York City

New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

. In the 1940s he played in several big band

Big band

A big band is a type of musical ensemble associated with jazz and the Swing Era typically consisting of rhythm, brass, and woodwind instruments totaling approximately twelve to twenty-five musicians...

s, including those of Johnny Messner

Johnny Messner (musician)

Johnny Messner was an American bandleader, composer, saxophonist, and vocalist during the big band/swing heyday.- Background :...

 and Bob Chester

Bob Chester

Bob Chester was an American jazz and pop music bandleader and tenor saxophonist.Chester's stepfather ran General Motors's Fisher Body Works. He began his career as a sideman under Irving Aaronson, Ben Bernie, and Ben Pollack. He formed his own group in Detroit in 1939, with a Glenn...

, before signing up with Gene Krupa

Gene Krupa

Gene Krupa was an American jazz and big band drummer and composer, known for his highly energetic and flamboyant style.-Biography:...

 in 1944. He would work under Krupa intermittently for the next fourteen years, including on many of Krupa's big band releases in the 1940s and in his trio settings with Charlie Ventura

Charlie Ventura

Charlie Ventura was a tenor saxophonist and bandleader.Ventura was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He had his first successes working with Gene Krupa. In 1945 he won the Down Beat readers' poll in the tenor saxophone division...

. He also spent time working with Flip Phillips

Flip Phillips

Flip Phillips was an American jazz tenor saxophone and clarinet player. He is best remembered for his work with Jazz at the Philharmonic from 1946 to 1957.-Biography:...

, Bill Harris

Bill Harris (musician)

Bill Harris was a jazz trombonist.-Biography:Early in his career, Harris performed with Benny Goodman, Charlie Barnet, and Eddie Condon. He is renowned for his broad, thick tone and quick vibrato that remained for the duration of each tone. He went on to join Woody Herman's First Herd in 1944...

, and Eddie Shu

Eddie Shu

Eddie Shu was an American swing jazz saxophonist.Shu learned violin and guitar as a child before picking up saxophone as a teenager. His first professional gigs were as a ventriloquist/harmonica player...

.

Napoleon moved to Florida

Florida

Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...

in 1959 and led his own trio there, though he never recorded as a leader.