Chick Henderson (22 November 1912 – 24 June 1944) was an English singer who achieved great popularity and acclaim as a prolific recording artist and performer at the tail end of the

British dance band British dance band is a genre of popular jazz and dance music that developed in British dance halls and hotel ballrooms during the 1920s and 1930s, often called a Golden Age of British music, prior to the Second World War. Thousands of miles awa ...

era in the late 1930s and early 1940s. Chick Henderson was born Henderson Rowntree in

Hartlepool Hartlepool ( ) is a seaside resort, seaside and port town in County Durham, England. It is governed by a unitary authority borough Borough of Hartlepool, named after the town. The borough is part of the devolved Tees Valley area with an estimat ...

, England. He attended Galleys Field School on Hartlepool

Headland A headland, also known as a head, is a coastal landform, a point of land usually high and often with a sheer drop, that extends into a body of water. It is a type of promontory. A headland of considerable size often is called a cape.Whittow, Jo ...

. "Chick" was nothing more than his mother's nickname for her smallest son. His first recordings were made for

Harry Leader Henry George Leader (March 10, 1880 – May 9, 1946) was a politician, farmer, and cattle breeder from Manitoba, Canada. Leader served as a councillor in the township of Burnside, Manitoba, from 1906 to 1912 and was reeve from 1912 to 1914 as ...

in June 1935. The following year he began singing for

Joe Loss Joshua Alexander "Joe" Loss (22 June 1909 – 6 June 1990) was a British dance band leader and musician who founded his own eponymous orchestra. Life Loss was born in Spitalfields, London, the youngest of four children. His parents, Israel an ...

' popular radio orchestra. He stayed with Loss for five years and became a great favourite among young women who formed his core audience. A tall, handsome man with a rich, strong vocal delivery, he appeared on postcards and magazine covers. In his short life, Chick Henderson made over 250 recordings but, as with many dance band singers, his name did not appear on the record label;only the orchestra was listed. In July 1939, he recorded with Joe Loss' orchestra what would become his biggest-selling recording "

Begin the Beguine "Begin the Beguine" is a popular song written by Cole Porter. Porter composed the song during a 1935 Pacific cruise aboard the Cunard ocean liner ''Franconia'' from Kalabahi, Indonesia, to Fiji. In October 1935, it was introduced by June Knigh ...

", which sold over a million copies, the only recording by a British dance band vocalist to achieve such a triumph. Chick Henderson's five-year singing career came to an end with his final recordings in 1940. Less than a year following the start of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

in September 1939, he began serving in the Merchant Navy. He survived two torpedo attacks on his ships, but after four years of service, sustained fatal wounds in

Southsea Southsea is a seaside resort and a geographic area of Portsmouth, Portsea Island in the ceremonial county of Hampshire, England. Southsea is located 1.8 miles (2.8 km) to the south of Portsmouth's inner city-centre. Southsea began as a f ...

from flying bomb shrapnel. Chick Henderson was 31 years old. A Sub-Lieutenant in the

Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve Royal may refer to: People * Royal (name), a list of people with either the surname or given name * A member of a royal family or royalty Places United States * Royal, Arkansas, an unincorporated community * Royal, Illinois, a village * Roya ...

, on strength of HMS ''Victory'' at time of his death, he was buried in

Haslar Haslar is on the south coast of England, at the southern tip of Alverstoke, on the Gosport peninsula, Hampshire. It takes its name from the Old English , meaning "hazel-landing place". It may have been named after a bank of hazel strewn on mar ...

Royal Naval Cemetery under his real name.
CWGC Casualty Record.

References

External links

*
Chick Henderson biography with publicity photoBrief overview of Chick Henderson's life and career
{{DEFAULTSORT:Henderson, Chick 1912 births 1944 deaths Military personnel from County Durham People from West Hartlepool English radio personalities British entertainers Royal Navy personnel killed in World War II British Merchant Navy personnel of World War II Deaths by German airstrikes during World War II Royal Navy officers of World War II Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve personnel of World War II Burials in Hampshire