His mother was a school teacher and his father was an insurance salesman; both recognized his early interest and talent as a musician and encouraged his pursuit of a musical life.

Among others, his early musical influences included famous jazz musicians like Louis Armstrong, Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, and Stan Kenton.

His career would be most influenced by popular band leaders like Freddy Martin, Harry James, and Orrin Tucker.

He began playing local dance gigs culminating in a summer 1946 engagement at Camp Sagamore (an adult resort) in the Pocono Mountains of Pennsylvania.

A future jazz star and Grammy winner, Evans was usually the first choice to play the piano at local proms and social events.

Rather than remain constantly in Evans' shadow as a pianist, Melick decided the best route to success on the local scene was to be the "leader of the band" and concentrate on commercial dance music.

To which he quickly came to realization that the hours of practice and focus on piano didn't fit his ultimate desire to be a dance band leader.

Music education not only better suited his career path, it was also something he could pursue in the event he didn't make it in the dance band business.

Melick's musicianship and leadership skills served him well when he was named the band's director – as a high school senior – as Schaedel suffered from a short-term illness.

By his second year, he and his dance band played almost every weekend throughout northwestern Ohio; parties at small colleges like Kenyon, Antioch, Wittenberg, Hiram, and Wooster.

In the summer of 1949, he would begin a three-summer solo engagement at a local hangout called The Club in Point Pleasant Beach, New Jersey.

He graduated from Oberlin in June 1951 and headed straight home to his piano gig in Point Pleasant but with an inkling about what might happen next.

In addition to his own playing, he booked a series of talented Japanese entertainers to perform at the EM HUT – the enlisted men's club at the Yokohama R&R Center.

Melick's military draft period ended in August 1953 and he returned briefly to The Club in Point Pleasant Beach.

Melick spent another year entertaining in Japan, and in November 1954 decided it was time to begin his "real career" in the United States.

Melick had been with Leo Peeper for just 4 months when he got a call from Jimmy "Dancing Shoes" Palmer – a Chicago band leader.

[5] Melick was briefly the center of controversy as Jimmy Palmer publicly accused Landsberg of stealing his piano player.

Melick remained the featured pianist on The Orrin Tucker Show until it was cancelled in October 1956 shortly after the death of Landsberg.

The studio system was still in force in Hollywood from 1955–1956, and The Keys was a favorite local hangout for such young stars as Clint Eastwood, William Reynolds, and David Janssen, in addition to the many crew members and stuntmen.

The desired level of name recognition never quite materialized, but MCA would keep him busy in quality roles as a band leader or piano soloist for the next several years.

Early bookings included recurring engagements in Los Angeles, Hollywood, Albuquerque, Phoenix, the High Desert of California, and Reno.

In addition, he began a solo gig at the Dunes Hotel in Las Vegas which would become part of his regular schedule every summer during the years he was based in Los Angeles.

The Southwest in general, and Dallas in particular, remained a viable market for big band dance music long after the Great American Songbook faded away in most areas of the country.

[10] In 1967, he ended his regular visits to Las Vegas and the Far East and focused his efforts entirely in the southwest, adding the Warwick Hotel in Houston.

At the urging of his many Dallas-based patrons, he focused primarily on the lucrative society band business based in Dallas with occasional one-nighters around Texas, Oklahoma and Louisiana.

One of Melick's band members, Marshall Head – who still plays with him today – acquired a book of clarinet solos from a well-known Jewish musician on the California social circuit named Mickey Katz.

As societal trends changed more and more away from the pure big bands, Melick found an opportunity to co-exist with the new sounds of the 1960s and beyond at weddings, debutante parties, and other social events.

In Melick's own words, "When rock and roll started to become real popular, I would meet with the debutante or bride, her mother, and sometimes her grandmother – you know, the one who was paying for the whole thing.

His 11-piece band, the Jack Melick Orchestra, has maintained a "semi-retired" schedule, performing 4 to 6 times a month at dance halls, hotel ballrooms, and clubs across the Southwest, including Dallas, Houston, Tyler, and beyond.

Notably, in September 2012, the orchestra played at the Highland Springs Gala, a charity ball that marked a significant milestone—69 years after Melick's first paying gig at Doris Mae's Dance Studio.