Chick Bullock

Chick Bullock (September 16, 1898^[1] – September 15, 1981) was a popular American jazz and dance band vocalist, most active in the 1930s. He recorded some 500 tunes over the course of his career. Bullock was mostly associated with the ARC group of labels (Melotone, Perfect, Banner, Oriole, Romeo). Many of his records were issued under the name "Chick Bullock and his Levee Loungers".

Bullock belonged to select group of mostly freelance vocalists who sang the vocal refrains on hundreds of New York sessions, which included Smith Ballew, Scrappy Lambert, Elmer Feldkamp, Irving Kaufman, Paul Small, Arthur Fields, and Dick Robertson. Some of these vocalists were also musicians, but their singing was more often featured. (All of the above had records also issued under their own name, and in case of Ballew, actually had a working orchestra for a couple of years.)

Bullock rarely performed live because his face was disfigured due to an eye disease. He was born in Montana to William and Emily Bullock, both of whom were immigrants from England^[2]. He began his career in vaudeville and sang in movie palaces. His career as a studio musician took off in the late 1920s, and in the 1930s he sang with musicians such as Duke Ellington, Luis Russell, Cab Calloway, Bunny Berigan, Bill Coleman, Jack Teagarden, Tommy Dorsey, Jimmy Dorsey, Joe Venuti, and Eddie Lang. Bullock's recordings proved so popular that he used pseudonyms for some recordings, including the name Sleepy Hall.

In the 1940s the World War II recording ban essentially ended Bullock's career. He moved to California and took up real estate.

References

1. ^ 1900 U.S. Federal Census, Township #5, Silver Bow, Montana, enumeration district 90, page 5. Bullock's birth date is confirmed by his entries in the Social Security Death Index and the California Death Index.
2. ^ Ibid.

• Chick Bullock at Allmusic

Persondata
Name	Bullock, Chick
Alternative names	Bullock, Charles (birth name)
Short description
Date of birth	September 16, 1898
Place of birth	Montana
Date of death	September 15, 1981
Place of death	California