Young was born in Savannah, Georgia, United States,[1] and grew up Richmond, Virginia; he was originally a trumpeter, but by his professional debut in 1928 he had switched to trombone.

[1] In September 1952, he joined the Louis Armstrong All-Stars and stayed for twelve years[1] (he performed in the musical film, High Society (1956).

He appeared in the Universal-International biopic, The Glenn Miller Story (1954), with Louis Armstrong, Gene Krupa, and Barney Bigard.

Young performed with Louis Armstrong and his All Stars for the ninth Cavalcade of Jazz concert held at Wrigley Field in Los Angeles.

[6] In 1964, Young ceased touring in order to settle in Hawaii, occasionally emerging for jazz parties and special appearances.