French horn was Pecora's first instrument, chosen as a child. In his teens he switched to trombone, an axe much more appropriate to the instrumental styles developing in New Orleans. Professionally he has said to have begun as a player in a the silent cinema orchestra pit, but he had already worked casually with bandleaders such as Johnny De Droit and Leon Roppolo. Vocalist Bea Palmer took the trombonist on a road tour in the early '20s and by the middle of that decade Pecora had teamed up with the New Orleans Rhythm Kings. Chicago and its fervid interest in the new jazz styles became an important destination for him, like many players from his geographical background, with additional theatre music work filling in the schedule.



During the '30s his course of action regarding employment was again similar to his peers on the national jazz scene as opposed to New Orleans stylists: he headed for the big bands. He did not abandon his musical homeground, however, bringing the Crescent City sounds to New York City with Sharky Bonano's aggregation in the mid '30s. Subsequently the trombonist set himself up on the west coast, his skills honed and ready for studio assignments. Collaborators from the stylistic good old days included the one-armed trumpeter and bandleader Wingy Manone. Pecora returned to New Orleans in the '40s, having evolved into a bandleader in his own right. He also kept working with Bonano, gigged on riverboats and was solidly cemented into a series of epic club residencies. In the '60s his spot of choice was The Dream Room.