Solomon was born in Sunderland, Durham in December 1910 to Joseph and Sarah nee Brennan. The family moved to Scotland, living in Glasgow where Joseph initially worked as a sewing machine repairer before working as a labourer in the docks. Joseph died aged 59 in 1930 from a cerebral haemorrhage and Sarah died in 1940.

Joseph married Rebecca Shulman in Glasgow on 28 August 1934 and their only child Harvey was born in 1936. Solomon enlisted into the RAF in Edinburgh at the end of 1941 and was posted to Tunisia working as groundcrew.

He was killed whilst driving a military vehicle on the airstrip at Souk el Arba when he was strafed by an enemy Messerschmitt Bf109.