Born in Kolomea (now in the Ukraine) as Samuel Weinberg, he immigrated at a very young age to Austria where he grew up in Vienna. He was related to the musician Robert Starer (cousins). Berg studied music with G. Marcus. His speciality was composing popular music for cabarets. Later on he also wrote lyrics. He was the principal composer of the cabaret ABC im Regenbogen. He wrote the music to Jura Soyfer’s plays.
Jimmy Berg and his wife Gertrurd nee Hammerschlag fled to the USA after the Anschluss (1938). In new York he wrote music for Broadway cabarets and his first success was the music of Revue “DC Melody” directed by Maria Ley Piscator and Lein Askin. He also worked for the Juedisch politisches cabaret Die Arche (1943-1945).
Later he abandoned his free-lance composing and lyrics career and joined the The Voice Of America radio station, where he worked for twenty five years. Among his songs the most popular were: Wien ist nicht nur die Walzerstadt, Broadway -Melody 1942, Walzertraum 1944.