The Crew Chiefs were a

vocal group A vocal group is a performing ensemble of vocalists who sing and harmonize together. The first well-known vocals groups emerged in the 19th century, and the style had reached widespread popularity by the 1940s. Types Vocal groups can come in s ...

popular in the 1940s, known for accompanying

Tex Beneke Gordon Lee "Tex" Beneke ( ; February 12, 1914 – May 30, 2000) was an American saxophonist, singer, and bandleader. His career is a history of associations with bandleader Glenn Miller and former musicians and singers who worked with Miller. Hi ...

Glenn Miller Alton Glen Miller (March 1, 1904 – December 15, 1944) was an American big band founder, owner, conductor, composer, arranger, trombone player and recording artist before and during World War II, when he was an officer in the United States Arm ...

, and

Ray McKinley Ray McKinley (June 18, 1910 – May 7, 1995) was an American jazz drummer, singer, and bandleader. He played drums and later led the Major Glenn Miller Army Air Forces Orchestra in Europe. He also led the new Glenn Miller Orchestra in 1956. ...

. Member

Artie Malvin Artie Malvin (July 7, 1922 – June 16, 2006) was a composer and vocalist who was the baritone member of The Crew Chiefs. He also sang with Glenn Miller's band. Career During World War II, Malvin performed with Glenn Miller as part of The Crew ...

co-wrote the song " I'm Headin' For California" with Glenn Miller in 1944.

Appearances

The name of the group is an allusion to a crew chief in the U.S. Army Air Force. A Crew Chief is responsible for the day to day condition of the military aircraft assigned to them. The group appeared on the ''I Sustain the Wings'' radio broadcasts with Captain Glenn Miller and the Army Air Forces Training Command Orchestra. They also appeared on the V Discs released by the U.S. War Department. After the war, they were part of the Glenn Miller Orchestra under the direction of Tex Beneke. Their appearances include: *

and the Army Air Forces Training Command Orchestra (with

Johnny Desmond Johnny Desmond (born Giovanni Alfredo De Simone; November 14, 1919 – September 6, 1985) was an American singer who was popular in the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s. Biography Early years Desmond was born Giovanni de Simone in Detroit, Michigan, ...

) – "Moon Dreams" (1944) *

Glenn Miller Orchestra Glenn Miller and His Orchestra was an American swing dance band formed by Glenn Miller in 1938. Arranged around a clarinet and tenor saxophone playing melody, and three other saxophones playing harmony, the band became the most popular and c ...

– "

Have Ya Got Any Gum, Chum? "Have Ya Got Any Gum, Chum?" is a big band song written by Murray Kane in 1944. The music and lyrics were registered in the United States Copyright Catalog on February 6, 1945. Recordings On December 8, 1944, the song was recorded by Fred Wari ...

" (1945) *

(with

) – "

Chattanooga Choo-Choo "Chattanooga Choo Choo" is a 1941 song written by Mack Gordon and composed by Harry Warren. It was originally recorded as a big band/ swing tune by Glenn Miller and His Orchestra and featured in the 1941 movie ''Sun Valley Serenade''. It was t ...

" (1944) *

(with

) – "

The Trolley Song "The Trolley Song" is a song written by Hugh Martin and Ralph Blane and made famous by Judy Garland in the 1944 film ''Meet Me in St. Louis''. In a 1989 NPR interview, Blane said the song was inspired by a picture of a trolleycar in a turn-of-t ...

" (1945) *

– "

It's Love-Love-Love "It's Love, Love, Love" is a popular song whose music was written by Joan Whitney and Alex Kramer, with lyrics by Mack David, and published in 1943. Guy Lombardo recording The best-known recording was by Guy Lombardo and his Royal Canadians (vo ...

" (1944) *

– "

There Are Yanks There may refer to: * ''There'' (film), a 2009 Turkish film (Turkish title: ''Orada'') * ''There'' (virtual world) *''there'', a deictic adverb in English *''there'', an English pronoun used in phrases such as ''there is English grammar is the se ...

" (1944) *

(with

) – " I'm Headin' For California" (1946)

Members

The following singers all had tenure within the group: * Bill Conway *

Murray Kane Murray Kane (born Moses Simon Kaplan, May 26, 1915 – January 31, 1986) was an American Corporal, composer and band manager. As a performer, he was a member of the Crew Chiefs vocal group and the Glenn Miller Orchestra. Early life Kane was ...

Gene Steck In biology, the word gene (from , ; "...Wilhelm Johannsen coined the word gene to describe the Mendelian units of heredity..." meaning ''generation'' or ''birth'' or ''gender'') can have several different meanings. The Mendelian gene is a ba ...

Steve Steck ''yes'Steve is a masculine given name, usually a short form (hypocorism) of Steven or Stephen Notable people with the name include: steve jops * Steve Abbott (disambiguation), several people * Steve Adams (disambiguation), several people * Steve ...

* Lynn Allison

References

Sources

*Butcher, Geoffrey (1997). ''Next to a Letter from Home.'' *Polic, Edward F. (1989). ''The Glenn Miller Army Air Force Band: Sustineo Alas 2.'' *Simon, George Thomas. (1974). ''Glenn Miller and His Orchestra.'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Crew Chiefs American vocal groups