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This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1945.
Specific locations
Specific genres
Events
- January 27 – Billboard has added a third chart to measure record popularity, "Records Most-Played On the Air". which will track disk jockey ("spinners", "dial twisters") activity.[1]
- February 13–15 – Bombing of Dresden in World War II destroys the Semperoper (Saxon state opera house).
- February 13 – The premiere of Sergei Prokofiev's Symphony No. 5 under the composer's baton at the Moscow Conservatory is delayed by a military salute marking the Red Army's crossing of the Vistula.[2]
- April 12 – The Berlin Philharmonic gives one of its final performances of the Nazi era in Berlin with various members of the military and political elite in attendance. Robert Heger conducts Brünnhilde's last aria (the Immolation Scene) and the finale from Richard Wagner's Götterdammerung, Beethoven's Violin Concerto and Anton Bruckner's Symphony No. 4. Members of the Hitler Youth offer cyanide capsules to the audience as they leave the building.[3][4] The Battle of Berlin then forces the orchestra to close for two months.
- July 26 – Composer Ernest John Moeran marries cellist Peers Coetmore.
- July 27 – Benjamin Britten and Yehudi Menuhin perform concerts at Bergen-Belsen displaced persons camp.
- August 19 – Dick Powell marries June Allyson.
- September 1 – Trio Lescano's last concert on Italian radio.
- September 4 – Beethoven's Fidelio becomes the first opera to be performed in Berlin following World War II.
- October 25 – Philharmonia Orchestra plays its first concert, in London.
- November – Hans Schmidt-Isserstedt conducts the North German Radio Symphony Orchestra in its first concert.
- November 26 – Charlie Parker makes his first recording as a leader, also featuring Miles Davis.
- The Motion Picture Daily Fame Poll designates Bing Crosby "Top Male Vocalist" for the ninth straight year.
- Antal Doráti becomes conductor of the Dallas Symphony Orchestra.
- Reynaldo Hahn is appointed director of the Paris Opéra.
- Frank Sinatra leaves Your Hit Parade to appear on Max Factor Presents Frank Sinatra and, starting in September, Songs By Sinatra.
- Ruth Weston runs away from home in Portsmouth, Virginia, to marry trumpeter Jimmy Brown and begin her career as a singer.
- Marlene Dietrich appears on the CBS radio network, accompanied by accordionist John Serry Sr.
Publications
- Spade Cooley – Spade Cooley's Western Swing Song Folio (the first songbook to identify the big Western dance band music as Western Swing)
Albums released
- Nat King Cole – King Cole Trio
- Bing Crosby
- Glenn Miller – Glenn Miller
- Django Reinhardt – Paris 1945
Top popular records 1945
For each Year in Music (beginning 1940) and Year in Country Music (beginning 1939), a comprehensive Year End Top Records section can be found at mid-page (popular), and on the Country page.
The charts are compiled from data published by Billboard magazine, using their formulas, with slight modifications. Most important, there are no songs missing or truncated by Billboard's holiday deadline. Each year, records included enter the charts between the prior November and early December. Each week, fifteen points are awarded to the number one record, then nine points for number two, eight points for number three, and so on. This system rewards songs that reach the highest positions, as well as those that had the longest chart runs. This is our adjustment to Mr. Whitburn's formula, which places no. 1 records on top, then no 2 and so on, ordered by weeks at that position. This allows a record with 4 weeks at no. 1 that only lasted 6 weeks to be rated very high. Here, the total points of a song's complete chart run determines its position. Our chart has more songs, more weeks and may look nothing like Billboard's, but it comes from the exact same surveys.
Before the Hot100 was implemented in 1958, Billboard magazine measured a record's performance with three charts, 'Best-Selling Popular Retail Records', 'Records Most-Played On the Air' or 'Records Most Played By Disk Jockeys' and 'Most-Played Juke Box Records'. As Billboard did starting in the 1940s, the three totals for each song are combined, with that number determining the final year-end rank. For example, 1944's "A Hot Time in the Town of Berlin" by Bing and the Andrews Sisters finished at no. 19, despite six weeks at no. 1 on the 'Most-Played Juke Box Records'(JB) chart. It scored 126 points, to go with its Best-Selling chart (BS) total of 0. Martha Tilton's version of "I'll Walk Alone" peaked at no. 4 on the Juke Box chart, which only totalled 65 points, but her BS total was also 65, for a final total of 130, ranking no. 18. Examples like this can be found in "The Billboard" magazine up to 1958. By the way, the 'Records Most-Played On the Air' chart didn't begin until January 1945, which is why we only had two sub-totals.
Our rankings are based on Billboard data, but we also present info on recording and release dates, global sales totals, RIAA and BPI certifications and other awards. Rankings from other genres like 'Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs' or 'Most Played Juke Box Race Records', Country charts including 'Most Played Juke Box Folk (Hillbilly) Records', 'Cashbox magazine', and other sources are presented if they exist. We supplement our info with reliable data from the "Discography of American Historical Recordings" website, Joel Whitburn's Pop Memories 1890-1954[5] and other sources as specified.
The following songs appeared in The Billboard's 'Best Selling Retail Records', 'Records Most-Played On the Air' and 'Most Played Juke Box Records' charts during 1945.
Rank | Artist | Title | Label | Recorded | Released | Chart Positions |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Les Brown and his Orchestra (Vocal Chorus by Doris Day) | "Sentimental Journey"[6] | Columbia 36769 | November 20, 1944 | January 22, 1945 | US 1942 #3, US #1 for 8 weeks, 28 total weeks, CashBox #2, Grammy Hall of Fame in 1998, 1,000,000 sales[5] |
2 | Perry Como | "Till The End Of Time"[7] | Victor 20-1709 | July 3, 1945 | July 30, 1945 | US BB 1945 #2, US #1 for 9 weeks, 17 total weeks, CashBox #3, Grammy Hall of Fame in 1998, 1,000,000 sales[5] |
3 | Johnny Mercer And The Pied Pipers | "On the Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe"[8] | Capitol 195 | December 13, 1944 | July 1945 | US BB 1945 #3, US #1 for 7 weeks, 19 total weeks, CashBox #7 |
4 | Vaughn Monroe and his Orchestra | "There! I've Said It Again"[7] | Victor 20-1637 | December 17, 1944 | February 1945 | US BB 1945 #4, US #1 for 6 weeks (Air Play), 25 total weeks, CashBox #8 |
5 | The Andrews Sisters | "Rum and Coca-Cola"[9] | Decca 18636 | October 23, 1944 | December 1944 | US 1945 #1, US #1 for 10 weeks (Juke Box), 21 total weeks, CashBox #6, 1,000,000 sales[5] |
6 | Les Brown and his Orchestra (Vocal Chorus by Doris Day) | "My Dreams Are Getting Better All the Time"[6] | Columbia 36779 | February 3, 1945 | February 15, 1945 | US 1945 #5, US #1 for 7 weeks, 16 total weeks, CashBox #1, 1,000,000 sales[5] |
7 | Swing And Sway With Sammy Kaye | "Chickery Chick"[7] | Victor 20-1726 | August 8, 1945 | September 1945 | US 1945 #8, US #1 for 4 weeks, 16 total weeks, 1,000,000 sales[5] |
8 | Harry James and his Orchestra (Vocal Chorus by Kitty Kallen) | "It's Been a Long, Long Time"[6] | Columbia 36838 | July 24, 1945 | September 17, 1945 | US BB 1945 #6, US #1 for 4 weeks, 17 total weeks, CashBox #5 |
9 | Johnny Mercer, Jo Stafford, and The Pied Pipers | "Candy"[8] | Capitol 183 | December 6, 1944 | January 1945 | US BB 1945 #14, US #1 for 1 week, 19 total weeks |
10 | Bing Crosby with Carmen Cavallaro on piano | "I Can't Begin to Tell You"[10] | Decca 23457 | August 7, 1945 | October 1945 | US BB 1945 #10, US #1 for 6 weeks (Juke Box), 19 total weeks, 1,000,000 sales[11] |
11 | Johnny Mercer and The Pied Pipers | "Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive"[8] | Capitol 180 | October 4, 1944 | December 1944 | US BB 1945 #11, US #1 for 2 weeks, 13 total weeks, Grammy Hall of Fame in 1998 |
12 | Bing Crosby and Les Paul | "It's Been a Long, Long Time"[12] | Decca 18708 | July 12, 1945 | September 1945 | US BB 1945 #13, US #1 for 2 weeks, 16 total weeks |
13 | Carmen Cavallaro and His Orchestra | "Chopin's Polonaise"[13] | Decca 18677 | March 30, 1945 | May 1945 | US BB 1945 #14, US #3 for 10 weeks, 20 total weeks, 1,000,000 sales[11] |
14 | Harry James and his Orchestra (Vocal Chorus by Kitty Kallen) | "I'm Beginning To See The Light"[6] | Columbia 36758 | November 24, 1944 | December 18, 1944 | US BB 1945 #10, US #1 for 2 weeks, 18 total weeks |
15 | Tony Pastor and his Orchestra | "Bell Bottom Trousers"[7] | Victor 20-1661 | April 4, 1945 | May 1945 | US BB 1945 #16, US #2 for 2 weeks, 15 total weeks |
16 | Benny Goodman and his Orchestra | "Gotta Be This Or That"[6] | Columbia 36813 | April 27, 1945 | June 1945 | US BB 1945 #18, US #2 for 1 week, 17 total weeks |
17 | Hal McIntyre and His Orchestra | "Sentimental Journey"[7] | Victor 20-1643 | February 9, 1945 | April 1945 | US BB 1945 #18, US #3 for 1 week, 19 total weeks |
18 | Helen Forrest & Dick Haymes | "I'll Buy That Dream"[14] | Decca 23434 | May 1, 1945 | August 1945 | US BB 1945 #19, US #2 for 1 week, 18 total weeks |
19 | Stan Kenton and His Orchestra | "Tampico"[8] | Capitol 202 | February 26, 1945 | July 1945 | US BB 1945 #20, US #3 for 1 weeks, 14 total weeks |
20 | The Pied Pipers | "Dream"[8] | Capitol 185 | December 10, 1944 | February 1945 | US BB 1945 #20, US #1 for 1 week, 18 total weeks |
Top race records
At the start of 1945, Billboard magazine published a chart ranking the "most popular records in Harlem" under the title of "the Harlem Hit Parade" (HHP). Rankings were based on a survey of record stores primarily in the Harlem district of New York City, an area which has historically been noted for its African American population. This chart was published for the final time in the issue dated February 10. The following week the magazine launched a new chart in its place, "Most Played Juke Box Race Records", based on reports from juke box operators (details can be found in each issue). For the year-end list of 1945's top R & B records below, peak positions and numbers of weeks from the HHP charts were carried over. 1945 chronological list of records that reached number one on the "Most Played Juke Box Race Records" chart.
Rank | Artist | Title | Label | Recorded | Released | Chart positions |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Joe Liggins and His Honeydrippers | "The Honeydripper" | Exclusive 207 | August 11, 1944 | July 1945 | US BB 1945 #191, US #16 for 1 week, 4 total weeks, US Most-Played Race Records 1945 #1, Harlem/Race Records #1 for 18 weeks, 27 total weeks |
2 | Lucky Millinder and His Orchestra | "Who Threw The Whiskey In The Well" | Decca 18674 | June 9, 1944 | May 1945 | US BB 1945 #90, US #9 for 1 week, 10 total weeks, US Most-Played Race Records 1945 #2, Harlem/Race Records #1 for 8 weeks, 20 total weeks |
3 | Louis Jordan and His Tympany Five | "Caldonia"[15] | Decca 8670 | January 19, 1945 | April 19, 1945 | US BB 1945 #66, US #6 for 1 weeks, 8 total weeks, US Most-Played Race Records 1945 #3, Harlem/Race Records #1 for 7 weeks, 26 total weeks |
4 | Roosevelt Sykes and His Piano | "I Wonder" | Bluebird 34-0721 | December 15, 1944 | January 1945 | US Most-Played Race Records 1945 #4, Harlem/Race Records #1 for 7 weeks, 13 total weeks |
5 | Erskine Hawkins and His Orchestra | "Tippin' In" | Victor 20-1639 | January 10, 1945 | March 1945 | US BB 1945 #238, US #21 for 1 week, 2 total weeks, US Most-Played Race Records 1945 #5, Harlem/Race Records #1 for 6 weeks, 25 total weeks |
6 | Pvt. Cecil Gant | "I Wonder" | Gilt-Edge 500 | August 30, 1944 | September 1944 | US BB 1945 #266, US #26 for 1 week, 1 total weeks, US Most-Played Race Records 1945 #6, Harlem/Race Records #1 for 2 weeks, 28 total weeks |
7 | Louis Jordan and His Tympany Five | "Mop Mop"[16] | Decca 8668 | March 15, 1944 | October 1944 | US Most-Played Race Records 1945 #7, Harlem/Race Records #1 for 1 weeks, 17 total weeks |
8 | Jimmie Lunceford and His Orchestra | "The Honeydripper" | Decca 23451 | February 26, 1945 | April 1945 | US BB 1945 #247, US #21 for 1 week, 4 total weeks, US Most-Played Race Records 1945 #8, Harlem/Race Records #2 for 8 weeks, 9 total weeks |
9 | Louis Jordan and His Tympany Five | "You Can't Get That No More"[17] | Decca 8668 | March 15, 1944 | October 1944 | US BB 1945 #189, US #15 for 1 week, 1 total weeks, US Most-Played Race Records 1945 #9, Harlem/Race Records #2 for 4 weeks, 13 total weeks |
10 | Lionel Hampton and His Orchestra | "Beulah's Boogie"[18] | Decca 18719 | May 21, 1945 | November 1945 | US Most-Played Race Records 1945 #10, Harlem/Race Records #2 for 4 weeks, 9 total weeks |
Published popular music
- "All of My Life", words and music: Irving Berlin
- "All Through the Day" w. Oscar Hammerstein II m. Jerome Kern
- "Along the Navajo Trail" w.m. Dick Charles, Eddie DeLange & Larry Markes
- "Apple Honey" m. Woody Herman
- "Aren't You Glad You're You?" w. Johnny Burke m. Jimmy Van Heusen
- "Atlanta G.A." w. Sunny Skylar m. Arthur Shaftel
- "Autumn Serenade" w. Sammy Gallop m. Peter DeRose
- "Be-Baba-Leba" w.m. Helen Humes
- "The Blond Sailor" w. (Eng) Mitchell Parish, Bell Leib m. Jacob Pfeil
- "Boogie Blues" w.m. Gene Krupa & Ray Biondi
- "Caldonia" w.m. Fleecie Moore
- "The Carousel Waltz" w. Richard Rodgers
- "Cement Mixer" w.m. Slim Gaillard & Lee Ricks
- "Chickery Chick" w. Sylvia Dee m. Sidney Lippman
- "Close as Pages in a Book" w. Dorothy Fields m. Sigmund Romberg. Introduced by Maureen Cannon and Wilbur Evans in the musical Up in Central Park
- "Cruising Down the River" w.m. Eily Beadell & Nell Tollerton
- "Day By Day" w. Sammy Cahn m. Paul Weston & Axel Stordahl
- "Detour" w.m. Paul Westmoreland
- "Dig You Later" w. Harold Adamson m. Jimmy McHugh
- "Doctor, Lawyer, Indian Chief" w. Paul Francis Webster m. Hoagy Carmichael
- "Don't Be a Baby, Baby" w. Buddy Kaye m. Howard Steiner
- "The End of the News" w.m. Noël Coward
- "Everything But You" w.m. Don George, Duke Ellington and Harry James.
- "For Sentimental Reasons" w. Deek Watson m. William Best
- "The Frim Fram Sauce" w.m. Joe Ricardel & Redd Evans
- "Full Moon and Empty Arms" w.m. Buddy Kaye & Ted Mossman
- "Give Me the Moon Over Brooklyn" w.m. Jason Matthews & Terry Shand
- "Give Me the Simple Life" w. Harry Ruby m. Rube Bloom
- "Good Good Good (That's You, That's You)" w.m. Fisher Roberts
- "Gotta Be This or That" w.m. Sunny Skylar
- "Guess I'll Hang My Tears Out to Dry" w. Sammy Cahn m. Jule Styne
- "The Gypsy" w.m. Billy Reid
- "Have I Told You Lately that I Love You?" w.m. Scott Wiseman
- "Her Bathing Suit Never Got Wet" w. Charles Tobias m. Nat Simon
- "Hey! Ba-Ba-Re-Bop" w.m. Lionel Hampton & Curley Hamner
- "Homesick – That's All" w.m. Gordon Jenkins
- "The Honeydripper" w.m. Joe Liggins
- "I Can't Begin to Tell You" w. Mack Gordon m. James V. Monaco. Introduced by John Payne and reprised by Betty Grable in the film The Dolly Sisters
- "I Don't Know Enough About You" w.m. Peggy Lee & Dave Barbour
- "I Have But One Heart" Marty Symes, J. Farrow
- "I Wish I Knew" w. Mack Gordon m. Harry Warren. Introduced by Dick Haymes in the film Diamond Horseshoe
- "I Wonder" Gant, Leveen
- "I Wonder What Happened To Him" w.m. Noël Coward
- "If I Loved You" w. Oscar Hammerstein II m. Richard Rodgers. Introduced by John Raitt and Jan Clayton in the musical Carousel.
- "I'll Buy That Dream" w. Herb Magison m. Allie Wrubel
- "I'm a Big Girl Now" w.m. Al Hoffman, Milton Drake & Jerry Livingston
- "I'm Gonna Love That Guy" w.m. Frances Ash
- "In Acapulco" w. Mack Gordon m. Harry Warren. Introduced by Betty Grable in the film Diamond Horseshoe
- "In Love In Vain" w. Leo Robin m. Jerome Kern. Introduced by Louanne Hogan dubbing for Jeanne Crain in the film Centennial Summer
- "In the Middle of May" w. Al Stillman m. Fred Ahlert
- "Isn't It Kinda Fun" w. Oscar Hammerstein II m. Richard Rodgers. Introduced by Dick Haymes and Vivian Blaine in the film State Fair. Performed in the 1962 film version by Ann-Margret and David Street
- "It Might as Well Be Spring" w. Oscar Hammerstein II m. Richard Rodgers. Introduced by Louanne Hogan dubbing for Jeanne Crain in the film State Fair. Performed in the 1962 film version by Anita Gordon dubbing for Pamela Tiffin.
- "It's a Grand Night For Singing" w. Oscar Hammerstein II m. Richard Rodgers
- "It's Been a Long, Long Time" w. Sammy Cahn m. Jule Styne
- "Johnnie Fedora (and Alice Bluebonnet)" w. Allie Wrubel & Ray Gilbert
- "June is Bustin' Out All Over" w. Oscar Hammerstein II m. Richard Rodgers
- "Just a Blue Serge Suit" w.m. Irving Berlin
- "Laura" w. Johnny Mercer m. David Raksin
- "Lavender Blue" w. Larry Morey m. Eliot Daniel
- "Leone Jump" m. John Serry Sr.
- "Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!" w. Sammy Cahn m. Jule Styne
- "Love Letters" w. Edward Heyman m. Victor Young
- "Love on a Greyhound Bus" w. Ralph Blane & Kay Thompson m. George Stoll
- "Matelot" w.m. Noël Coward. Introduced by Graham Payn in the revue Sigh No More
- "Mister Snow" w. Oscar Hammerstein II m. Richard Rodgers
- "Money is the Root of All Evil" w.m. Joan Whitney & Alex Kramer
- "The More I See You" w. Mack Gordon m. Harry Warren
- "Nina" w.m. Noël Coward
- "Oh! What It Seemed To Be" w.m. Bennie Benjamin, George David Weiss & Frankie Carle
- "Personality" w. Johnny Burke m. Jimmy Van Heusen
- "Rodger Young" w.m. Frank Loesser
- "Shoo-Fly Pie and Apple Pan Dowdy" w. Sammy Gallop m. Guy Wood
- "Sigh No More" w.m. Noël Coward
- "Sioux City Sue" w. Ray Freedman m. Dick Thomas
- "Soliloquy" w. Oscar Hammerstein II m. Richard Rodgers
- "Some Sunday Morning" w. Ted Koehler m. M.K. Jerome & Ray Heindorf
- "A Stranger in Town" w.m. Mel Tormé
- "Symphony" w.(Eng) Jack Lawrence m. Alex Alstone
- "Tampico" w.m. Allan Roberts & Doris Fisher
- "(Did You Ever Get) That Feeling in the Moonlight?" w.m. James Cavanaugh, Larry Stock & Ira Schuster
- "That Little Dream Got Nowhere" w. Johnny Burke m. Jimmy Van Heusen
- "That's for Me" w. Oscar Hammerstein II m. Richard Rodgers
- "This Was a Real Nice Clambake" w. Oscar Hammerstein II m. Richard Rodgers
- "Till the End of Time" w.m. Buddy Kaye & Ted Mossman
- "Two Silhouettes" w. Ray Gilbert m. Charles Wolcott
- "Waitin' for the Train to Come In" w.m. Sunny Skylar & Martin Block
- "We'll Be Together Again" w. Frankie Laine m. Carl Fischer
- "We'll Gather Lilacs" w.m. Ivor Novello
- "What's the Use of Wond'rin'?" w. Oscar Hammerstein II m. Richard Rodgers
- "When the Children Are Asleep" w. Oscar Hammerstein II m. Richard Rodgers
- "The Wild, Wild West" w. Johnny Mercer m. Harry Warren from the film The Harvey Girls
- "You'll Never Walk Alone" w. Oscar Hammerstein II m. Richard Rodgers
- "You're a Queer One, Julie Jordan" w. Oscar Hammerstein II m. Richard Rodgers