2020: Top 25 Albums

First posted 1/8/2021; updated 1/12/2021.

Dave’s Music Database: Top Albums of 2020

Based on a combination of year-end lists and overall status in Dave’s Music Database, these are the top 25 albums of 2020: Taylor Swift Folklore Fiona Apple Fetch the Bolt Cutters Bruce Springsteen Letter to You The Weeknd After Hours Bob Dylan Rough and Rowdy Ways Dua Lipa Future Nostalgia Phoebe Bridgers Punisher Taylor Swift Evermore Run the Jewels Run the Jewels 4 (RTJ4) Dixie Chicks Gaslighter Haim Women in Music Part III Pop Smoke Shoot for the Stars, Aim for the Moon Lady Gaga Chromatica Lil Baby My Turn Jason Isbell & the 400 Unit Reunions Lil Uzi Vert Eternal Atake Tame Impala The Slow Rush BTS Map of the Soul: 7 Perfume Genius Set My Heart on Fire Immediately 21 Savage/Metro Boomin Savage Mode II AC/DC Power Up Juice Wrld Legends Never Die Rina Sawayama Sawayama Ariana Grande Positions The Strokes The New Abnormal Resources and Related Links: Dave’s Music Database: “Top 25 Albums by Year” Dave’s Music Database: “Other Year-End Album Awards”

Top 50 Songs of 2020

Dave’s Music Database: Top 50 Songs of 2020

These are the top 50 songs of 2020 based on their overall performance in Dave’s Music Database, which is determined by combining chart data, sales figures, streaming, video views, and aggregates from year-end lists. Check out “Top Songs and Albums of the Year” lists here. DMDB Top 1%: Glass Animals “Heat Waves” Dua Lipa with DaBaby “Levitating” DMDB Top 2%: The Weeknd with Ariana Grande “Save Your Tears” 24K Goldn with Iann Dior “Mood” Cardi B with Megan Thee Stallion “WAP” BTS “Dynamite” DaBaby with Roddy Ricch “Rockstar” DMDB Top 5%: Chris Brown with Young Thug “Go Crazy” Jawsh 685 with Jason Derulo “Savage Love (Laxed – Siren Beat)” Lady Gaga with Ariana Grande “Rain on Me” Future with Drake “Life Is Good” Ariana Grande “Positions” Megan Thee Stallion with Beyoncé “Savage” Justin Bieber with Quavo “Intentions” Wizkid with Justin Bieber & Tems “Essence” The Kid Laroi with Miley Cyrus “Without You” Taylor Swift “Cardigan” Tate McRae “You Broke Me First” Billie Eilish “Therefore I Am” Taylor Swift “Willow” Ava Max “Kings & Queens” Ariana Grande with Justin Bieber “Stuck with U” Eminem with Juice Wrld “Godzilla” Twenty One Pilots “Level of Concern” Justin Bieber with Benny Blanco “Lonely” Juice Wrld with Marshmello “Come & Go” Gabby Barrett “The Good Ones” Ariana Grande “34+35” Dua Lipa “Break My Heart” Luke Combs “Forever After All” Drake “Toosie Slide” AJR “Bang!” DMDB Top 10%: Justin Bieber “Yummy” SZA “Good Days” Pop Smoke “What You Know Bout Love” Justin Bieber with Chance the Rapper “Holy” Drake with Lil Durk “Laugh Now Cry Later” The Scotts (Travis Scott & Kid Cudi) “The Scotts” BTS “Life Goes On” DJ Khaled with Drake “Popstar” Powfu with beabadoobee “Death Bed (Coffee for Your Head)” 6ix9ine with Nicki Minaj “Trollz” Lady Gaga “Stupid Love” Giveon “Heartbreak Anniversary” Internet Money with Don Toliver & Nav “Lemonade” JP Saxe with Julia Michaels “If the World Was Ending” Jonas Brothers “What a Man Gotta Do” Beyoncé “Black Parade” The Killers “Caution” Chris Stapleton “Starting Over” Resources/Related Links: Dave’s Music Database: Top Songs and Albums by Year lists Dave’s Music Database: Songs of the Year lists First posted 12/26/2021; last updated 1/17/2023.

Dave's Music Database Hall of Fame: Music Maker Inductees (December 2020)

Originally posted 12/22/2020. January 22, 2019 marked the 10-year anniversary of the DMDB blog! To honor that, Dave’s Music Database announced its own Hall of Fame. This eighth class of music maker inductees is comprised of the top classic rock acts from 1962 to 1981 as ranked in the DMDB’s yet-to-be-published classic rock book. These are the top ten acts on that list that were not previously inducted. Previous inductees were the Beatles, David Bowie, Bob Dylan, Elton John, Paul McCartney, the Rolling Stones, Bruce Springsteen, and Rod Stewart. See the full list of music maker inductees here.

AC/DC (active 1973-) Inducted December 2020 as a “Top Classic Rock Act”

Hard-rock group from Australia. Members included brothers Angus Young (guitar) and Malcolm Young (guitar: 73-14) with Dave Evans (vocals: 73-74), Bon Scott (vocals: 74-80), Phil Rudd (drums: 74-82, 95-), Mark Evans (bass: 74-77). Cliff Williams (bass: 77-), Brian Johnson (vocals: 80-), Simon Wright (drums: 82-89), Chris Slade (drums: 89-95). Their album Back in Black is one of the best-selling of all-time and is featured in the DMDB book The Top 100 Albums of All Time. Read more.

Creedence Clearwater Revival (active 1967-1972) Inducted December 2020 as a “Top Classic Rock Act”

Rock group formed while members attended high school at El Cerrito, California. Members included John Fogerty (vocals/guitar), his brother Tom Fogerty (guitar), Stu Cook (keyboards/bass: 67-72), and Doug Clifford (drums: 67-72). Their song “Proud Mary” is featured in the DMDB book The Top 100 Songs of the Rock Era. Read more.

The Doors (active 1965-1971) Inducted December 2020 as a “Top Classic Rock Act”

Rock group formed in Los Angeles, California. Members included Jim Morrison (vocals), Ray Mazarek (keyboards), Robbie Krieger (guitar), and John Densmore (drums). “Light My Fire” is featured in the DMDB book The Top 100 Songs of the Rock Era. Their debut album, The Doors, is featured in the DMDB book The Top 100 Albums of All Time. Read more.

Eagles (active 1971-1980, 1994-) Inducted December 2020 as a “Top Classic Rock Act”

Rock/country group formed in Los Angeles, California. Members included Don Henley (vocals/drums: 71-80,94), Randy Meisner (bass/vocals: 71-77), Bernie Leadon (guitar/vocals: 71-75), Don Felder (guitar/vocals: 75-80,94), Joe Walsh (guitar/vocals: 75-80,94), and Timothy B. Schmit (bass/vocals: 77-80,94). Their song “Hotel California” is featured in the DMDB book The Top 100 Songs of the Rock Era. Their album Hotel California is featured in the DMDB book The Top 100 Albums of All Time. Read more.

Fleetwood Mac (active 1967-) Inducted December 2020 as a “Top Classic Rock Act”

Formed initially as a British blues group, but by 1975 the group had evolved into a California pop-rock group. Members included Mick Fleetwood (drums: 67-), John McVie (bass: 67-), Peter Green (guitar: 67-70), Jeremy Spencer (guitar: 67-71). Danny Kirwan (guitar: 68-72), Christine McVie (keyboards/vocals: 68, 70-97), Bob Welch (guitar: 71-74), Lindsey Buckingham (guitar/vocals: 75-87,97,03), and Stevie Nicks (vocals: 75-93,97,03-). Their album Rumours is featured in the DMDB book The Top 100 Albums of All Time. Read more.

Jimi Hendrix (1942-1970) Inducted December 2020 as a “Top Classic Rock Act”

Legendary psychedelic-blues/rock guitarist born Johnny Allen Hendrix in Seattle, Washington. Died of a drug overdose in London on 9/18/1970. Started playing as a sideman with Little Richard and others before he was discovered in 1966 by the Animals’ Chas Chandler at New York City’s Café Wha? Went to London to form the Jimi Hendrix Experience (66-69) with Noel Redding (b) and Mitch Mitchell (d). Formed Band of Gypsys (69-70) with Buddy Miles (d) and Buddy Cox (b). His cover of Bob Dylan’s “All Along the Watchtower” is featured in the DMDB book The Top 100 Songs of the Rock Era. The Experience albums Are You Experienced and Electric Ladyland are featured in the DMDB book The Top 100 Albums of All Time. Read more.

Led Zeppelin (active 1968-1980) Inducted December 2020 as a “Top Classic Rock Act”

British heavy-metal rock supergroup. Members included Robert Plant (vocals), Jimmy Page (guitar), John Paul Jones (bass/keyboards), and John “Bonzo” Bonham (drums; died on 9/25/80, at age 33, of asphyxiation). “Stairway to Heaven” is featured in the DMDB book The Top 100 Songs of the Rock Era. Their albums Led Zeppelin I, Led Zeppelin II, Led Zeppelin IV, and Physical Graffiti are featured in the DMDB book The Top 100 Albums of All Time. Read more.

Pink Floyd (active 1965-1987, 1994) Inducted December 2020 as a “Top Classic Rock Act”

English progressive-rock group. Members included Syd Barrett (guitar/vocals: 65-68), Roger Waters (bass/vocals: 65-83), Nick Mason (drums: 65-87,94), Richard Wright (keyboards: 65-87,94), and David Gilmour (guitar/vocals: 68-87,94). “Another Brick in the Wall Part II” is featured in the DMDB book The Top 100 Songs of the Rock Era. Their albums Dark Side of the Moon (which holds the record for most weeks on the Billboard album chart), Wish You Were Here, and The Top 100 Albums of All Time. Read more.

Bob Seger (1945-) Inducted December 2020 as a “Top Classic Rock Act”

Rock singer/songwriter born in Detroit, Michigan. Has sold more than 51 million records worldwide. His 1994 Greatest Hits album has been a continuous presence on either the Billboard Top 200 Albums or Catalog Albums charts since its release and was named the #1 Catalog Album of the Decade (2000-2010). His song “Old Time Rock and Roll” ranks in the DMDB’s top 1% of songs. Read more.

The Who (active 1964-) Inducted December 2020 as a “Top Classic Rock Act”

Rock group formed in London. Founding members were Roger Daltrey (vocals), Pete Townshend (guitar/vocals), John Entwistle (bass/vocals), Keith Moon (drums; died in 1978). “My Generation” is featured in the DMDB book The Top 100 Songs of the Rock Era. Their albums Tommy and Who’s Next are featured in the DMDB book The Top 100 Albums of All Time. Read more.

Grammy Hall of Fame: Songs, 1973-2020

Grammy Hall of Fame: Songs

From the Grammy Hall of Fame website: “The GRAMMY Hall Of Fame was established by the Recording Academy's National Trustees in 1973 to honor recordings of lasting qualitative or historical significance that are at least 25 years old. Inductees are selected annually by a special member committee of eminent and knowledgeable professionals from all branches of the recording arts.” Dave’s Music Database has listed all the recipients from 1973 to present on two separate pages, one for songs and one for albums. Click here to see albums which have been inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame. Click here to see other awards and Hall of Fame inductees for songs. Year of Induction: Performer “Song” (year released) A 2015: Abba “Dancing Queen” (1976) 1998: Roy Acuff & the Smoky Mountain Boys “Wabash Cannonball” (1938) 2009: Roy Acuff “The Great Speckled Bird” (1938) 2018: Aerosmith “Dream On” (1973) 2019: Aerosmith “Walk This Way” (1975) 1998: Herb Alpert “The Lonely Bull” (1962) 2008: Herb Alpert “A Taste of Honey” (1965) 1999: Marian Anderson “Ave Maria” (1936) 2008: Marian Anderson “He's Got the Whole World in His Hands” (1936) 2009: Marian Anderson “My Country 'Tis of Thee” (1939) 1996: The Andrews Sisters “Bei Mir Bist Du Schoen (Means That You're Grand)” (1938) 2000: The Andrews Sisters “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy” (1941) 2016: The Andrews Sisters “Don't Sit Under the Apple Tree with Anyone Else But Me” (1942) 1999: The Animals “The House of the Rising Sun” (1964) 2011: The Animals “We Gotta Get Out of This Place” (1965) 1999: Louis Armstrong “Heebie Jeebies” (1926) 2018: Louis Armstrong “Savoy Blues” (1927) 1974: Louis Armstrong “West End Blues” (1928) 2008: Louis Armstrong “Weather Bird” (1928) 2016: Louis Armstrong “What Did I Do to Be So Black and Blue?” (1929) 2008: Louis Armstrong “St. Louis Blues” (1930) 2009: Louis Armstrong “Stardust” (1931) 2010: Louis Armstrong “Lazy River” (1931) 2005: Louis Armstrong “All of Me” (1932) 2014: Louis Armstrong “Nobody Knows the Trouble I've Seen” (1938) 2017: Louis Armstrong “When the Saints Go Marching In” (1939) 1997: Louis Armstrong “Mack the Knife” (1956) 2001: Louis Armstrong “Hello Dolly!” (1964) 1999: Louis Armstrong “What a Wonderful World” (1967) 1999: Eddy Arnold “Make the World Go Away” (1965) 2006: Fred Astaire “Fascinating Rhythm” (1926) 2004: Fred Astaire “Night and Day” (1932) 2000: Fred Astaire “Cheek to Cheek” (1935) 2008: Fred Astaire “Top Hat, White Tie, and Tails” (1935) 1998: Fred Astaire “The Way You Look Tonight” (1936) 2005: Fred Astaire “They Can't Take That Away from Me” (1937) 2005: Gene Austin “Bye Bye Blackbird” (1926) 1978: Gene Austin “My Blue Heaven” (1927) 1997: Gene Autry “Back in the Saddle Again” (1939) 2012: Gene Autry “Deep in the Heart of Texas” (1942) 1985: Gene Autry & the Pinafores “Rudolph, the Red-Nosed Reindeer” (1949) B 2007: DeFord Bailey “Pan American Blues” (1927) 2011: Mildred Bailey “Rockin' Chair” (1937) 1998: Charlie Barnet & His Orchestra “Cherokee” (1939) 2008: Barry, John “The James Bond Theme” (1962) 1979: Count Basie “One O’Clock Jump” (1937) 2005: Count Basie “Lester Leaps In” (1939) 1992: Count Basie “Everyday I Have the Blues” (1955) 1985: Count Basie “April in Paris” (1956) 2015: Fontella Bass “Rescue Me” (1965) 2008: Shirley Bassey “Goldfinger “( 1964) 2008: Nora Bayes “Over There” (1917) 1999: The Beach Boys “In My Room” (1963) 2017: The Beach Boys “I Get Around” (1964) 2010: The Beach Boys “California Girls” (1965) 1994: The Beach Boys “Good Vibrations” (1966) 1998: The Beatles “I Want to Hold Your Hand” (1963) 1997: The Beatles “Yesterday” (1965) 2008: The Beatles “Help!” (1965) 2002: The Beatles “Eleanor Rigby” (1966) 1999: The Beatles “Strawberry Fields Forever” (1967) 2011: The Beatles “Penny Lane” (1967) 2001: The Beatles “Hey Jude” (1968) 2004: The Beatles “Let It Be” (1970) 2011: Sidney Bechet “Summertime” (1939) 1980: Bix Beiderbecke “In a Mist” (1928) 2009: Harry Belafonte “Banana Boat (Day-O)” (1957) 2008: Vincenzo Bellini “Casta Diva (from "Norma")” (1929) 1994: Tony Bennett “I Left My Heart in San Francisco” (1962) 2009: Tony Bennett “For Once in My Life” (1967) 1975: Bunny Berigan & His Orchestra “I Can't Get Started” (1938) 1988: Chuck Berry “Maybellene” (1955) 1990: Chuck Berry “Roll Over Beethoven” (1956) 1999: Chuck Berry “Johnny B. Goode” (1958) 1999: Big Maybelle “Candy” (1953) 1998: Art Blakey “Moanin'“ (1958) 1999: Bobby “Blue” Bland “Turn on Your Love Light” (1961) 2016: Blondie “Heart of Glass” (1978) 1999: Booker T. & the MG’s “Green Onions” (1962) 2008: Boston Pops Orchestra “Jalousie (Jealousy)” (1935) 2018: David Bowie “Space Oddity” (1969) 2017: David Bowie “Changes” (1971) 2011: The Box Tops “The Letter” (1967) 1998: Jackie Brenston & His Delta Cats “Rocket 88” (1951) 1999: Fanny Brice “My Man (Mon Homme)” (1922) 2012: Big Bill Broonzy “Key to the Highway” (1941) 2001: James Brown “Please Please Please” (1956) 1999: James Brown “Papa’s Got a Brand New Bag” (1965) 2013: James Brown “I Got You (I Feel Good)” (1965) 2010: James Brown “It's a Man's Man's Man's World” (1966) 2016: James Brown “Cold Sweat” (1967) 2014: James Brown “Get Up I Feel Like Being Like a Sex Machine” (1970) 1998: Les Brown with Doris Day “Sentimental Journey” (1945) 1996: Dave Brubeck Quartet “Take Five “( 1959) 2000: Buffalo Springfield “For What It’s Worth” (1966) 2016: Buffett, Jimmy “Margaritaville” (1977) 1999: The Paul Butterfield Blues Band “East-West” (1966) 1998: The Byrds “Mr. Tambourine Man” (1965) 2001: The Byrds “Turn! Turn! Turn! (To Everything There Is a Season)” (1965) 1999: The Byrds “Eight Miles High” (1966) C 1999: Cab Calloway “Minnie the Moocher (The Ho De Ho Song)” (1931) 2017: Cab Calloway “Hep! Hep! the Jumpin' Jive” (1939) 2004: Glen Campbell “By the Time I Get to Phoenix” (1967) 2008: Glen Campbell “Gentle on My Mind” (1967) 2000: Glen Campbell “Wichita Lineman” (1968) 2007: Gus Cannon’s Jug Stompers “Walk Right In” (1929) 1995: Hoagy Carmichael “Stardust” (1927) 2014: Hoagy Carmichael “Georgia on My Mind” (1930) 1998: Carpenters “We've Only Just Begun” (1970) 2000: Carpenters “They Long to Be Close to You “( 1970) 2016: James Carr “The Dark End of the Street” (1967) 2012: Leroy Carr “How Long Blues” (1928) 1998: Fiddlin’ John Carson “Little Old Log Cabin in the Lane” (1923) 1999: The Carter Family “Wildwood Flower” (1928) 2006: The Carter Family “Keep on the Sunny Side” (1928) 1998: The Carter Family “Can the Circle Be Unbroken (Bye and Bye)” (1935) 1993: Enrico Caruso “Celeste Aida (Heavenly Aida)” (1904) 1975: Enrico Caruso “Pagliacci, Act I: Vesti La Giubba (On with the Play) (new version)” (1907) 2001: Johnny Cash “Folsom Prison Blues” (1955) 1998: Johnny Cash “I Walk the Line” (1956) 1999: Johnny Cash “Ring of Fire” (1963) 1999: The Cats and the Fiddle “I Miss You So” (1939) 1999: Feodor Chaliapin (performer) “Song of the Flea” (1926) 2001: The Champs “Tequila” (1958) 2002: Gene Chandler “Duke of Earl” (1962) 2011: Harry Chapin “Cat's in the Cradle” (1974) 1990: Ray Charles “I Gotta Woman” (1955) 2000: Ray Charles “What’d I Say” (1959) 1993: Ray Charles “Georgia on My Mind” (1960) 2013: Ray Charles “Hit the Road Jack” (1961) 2001: Ray Charles “I Can’t Stop Loving You” (1962) 2005: Ray Charles “America the Beautiful” (1972) 2000: Chubby Checker “The Twist” (1960) 2017: Cher “ I Got You Babe” (1965) 2015: Chic “Le Freak” (1978) 2002: The Chordettes “Mr. Sandman” (1954) 2008: The Chords “Sh-Boom” (1954) 2020: The Chuck Wagon Gang “I’ll Fly Away” (1948) 2003: Eric Clapton “I Shot the Sheriff” (1974) 2003: Petula Clark “Downtown” (1964) 2011: Jimmy Cliff “Many Rivers to Cross” (1969) 2020: Patsy Cline “Walkin’ After Midnight” (1957) 1992: Patsy Cline “Crazy” (1961) 2001: Patsy Cline “I Fall to Pieces” (1961) 1999: Rosemary Clooney “Hey There” (1954) 1999: The Coasters “Yakety Yak” (1958) 1999: Eddie Cochran “Summertime Blues” (1958) 2001: Joe Cocker “With a Little Help from My Friends” (1968) 2016: Joe Cocker “You Are So Beautiful” (1974) 2019: Leonard Cohen “Hallelujah” (1984) 1998: Nat “King” Cole “Straighten Up and Fly Right” (1944) 1974: Nat “King” Cole “The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire)” (1946) 2002: Nat “King” Cole “Get Your Kicks on Route 66” (1946) 2018: Nat “King” Cole “I Love You for Sentimental Reasons” (1946) 1999: Nat “King” Cole “Nature Boy” (1948) 1992: Nat “King” Cole “Mona Lisa” (1950) 2000: Nat “King” Cole “Unforgettable” (1951) 2005: Arthur Collins and Byron Harlan “Alexander’s Ragtime Band” (1911) 2003: Judy Collins “Both Sides Now” (1968) 2000: John Coltrane “Lush Life” (1963) 1998: Perry Como “Till the End of Time” (1945) 1998: Sam Cooke “You Send Me” (1957) 2014: Sam Cooke “Wonderful World” (1960) 2018: Sam Cooke “Bring It on Home to Me” (1962) 2000: Sam Cooke “A Change Is Gonna Come” (1964) 2015: Alice Cooper “School's Out” (1972) 2009: Aaron Copland “Fanfare for the Common Man” (1943) 2009: Aaron Copland “Appalachian Spring” (1944) 1999: Chick Corea “Now He Sings, Now He Sobs” (1968) 2021: Elizabeth Cotton “Freight Train” (1905) 2013: Francis Craig with Bob Lamm “Near You” (1947) 2004: Floyd Cramer “Last Date” (1960) 1998: Creedence Clearwater Revival “Proud Mary” (1969) 2014: Creedence Clearwater Revival “Fortunate Son” (1969) 2005: Bing Crosby “Brother, Can You Spare a Dime?” (1932) 2004: Bing Crosby “Pennies from Heaven” (1936) 1974: Bing Crosby with the Ken Darby Singers & the John Scott Trotter Orchestra “White Christmas” (1942) 1998: Bing Crosby “Don't Fence Me In” (1944) 2002: Bing Crosby “Swinging on a Star” (1944) 2009: Crosby, Stills & Nash with Neil Young “Ohio” (1970) 2018: Arthur Crudup “That's All Right, Mama” (1946) 2004: The Crystals “He's a Rebel” (1962) D 2020: Dick Dale & the Del-Tones “Misirlou” (1962) 2022: Vernon Dalhart “The Wreck of the Old 97” (1924) 1998: Vernon Dalhart “The Prisoner’s Song” (1925) 1999: Bobby Darin “Mack the Knife” (1959) 1999: Jimmie Davis “You Are My Sunshine” (1940) 2002: Sammy Davis, Jr. “What Kind of Fool Am I?” (1962) 1999: Spencer Davis Group “Gimme Some Lovin'“ (1966) 1999: Doris Day “Secret Love” (1954) 2012: Doris Day “Whatever Will Be Will Be (Que Sera Sera)” (1956) 2017: Deep Purple “Smoke on the Water” (1972) 2021: Édouard-Léon Scott De Martinville “Au Clair De La Lune” (1860) 2007: Desmond Dekker “The Israelites” (1969) 2007: The Delmore Brothers “Blues Stay Away from Me” (1949) 1998: John Denver “Take Me Home, Country Roads “( 1971) 1998: Derek & the Dominos “Layla” (1970) 2008: Jackie DeShannon “What the World Needs Now Is Love” (1965) 2000: Al Dexter & His Troopers “Pistol Packin' Mama” (1943) 2020: Neil Diamond “Sweet Caroline” (1969) 1998: Bo Diddley “Bo Diddley” (1955) 2020: Bo Diddley “I’m a Man” (1955) 2010: Bo Diddley “Who Do You Love?” (1956) 1999: Dion “I Wonder Why” (1958) 2002: Dion “Runaround Sue” (1961) 2017: Dion “The Wanderer” (1961) 2000: The Dixie Hummingbirds “Amazing Grace” (1946) 1998: Bill Doggett “Honky Tonk (Parts 1 & 2)” (1956) 2016: Fats Domino “The Fat Man” (1950) 2002: Fats Domino “Ain't That a Shame” (1955) 1987: Fats Domino “Blueberry Hill” (1956) 2019: Fats Domino “I’m Walkin’” (1957) 2011: Fats Domino “Walking to New Orleans” (1960) 2015: The Dominoes “Sixty Minute Man” (1951) 1998: The Doors “Light My Fire” (1967) 2010: The Doors “Riders on the Storm” (1971) 2009: Jimmy Dorsey & His Orchestra “Brazil (Aquarela Do Brasil)” (1942) 1998: Tommy Dorsey & His Orchestra “I'm Gettin' Sentimental Over You” (1936) 1998: Tommy Dorsey & His Orchestra “Marie” (1937) 1982: Tommy Dorsey with Frank Sinatra “I’ll Never Smile Again” (1940) 1999: The Drifters “Money Honey” (1953) 1998: The Drifters“There Goes My Baby” (1959) 2001: The Drifters “Save the Last Dance for Me” (1960) 2013: The Drifters “On Broadway” (1963) 2014: The Drifters “Under the Boardwalk” (1964) 1994: Bob Dylan “Blowin' in the Wind” (1963) 2013: Bob Dylan“The Times They Are A-Changin’” (1964) 1998: Bob Dylan “Like a Rolling Stone” (1965) 2002: Bob Dylan “Mr. Tamborine Man” (1965) E 2000: Eagles “Desperado” (1973) 2008: Eagles “Hotel California” (1976) 2008: Earth, Wind & Fire “Shining Star” (1975) 1999: Billy Eckstine “I Apologize” (1951) 2018: Thomas Alva Edison “Mary Had a Little Lamb” (1878) 2002: Cliff Edwards “When You Wish Upon a Star” (1940) 1981: Duke Ellington “Black and Tan Fantasy” (1927) 1975: Duke Ellington “Mood Indigo” (1931) 2008: Duke Ellington “It Don't Mean a Thing if It Ain't Got That Swing” (1932) 2007: Duke Ellington “Cocktails for Two” (1934) 2009: Duke Ellington “Caravan” (1937) 2010: Duke Ellington “Don't Get Around Much Anymore” (1940) 2011: Duke Ellington “Do Nothin' Till You Hear from Me” (1940) 2011: Duke Ellington “Ko-Ko” (1940) 1976: Duke Ellington “Take the ‘A’ Train” (1941) 1990: Duke Ellington “Black, Brown and Beige” (1943) 1999: Duke Ellington “Diminuendo and Crescendo in Blue” (1956) 2005: Ruth Etting “Love Me or Leave Me” (1929) 1999: Ruth Etting “Ten Cents a Dance” (1930) 2020: Eurythmics “Sweet Dreams Are Made of This” (1983) 1998: The Everly Brothers “Bye Bye Love” (1957) 2017: The Everly Brothers “Wake Up Little Susie” (1957) 2004: The Everly Brothers “All I Have to Do Is Dream” (1958) F 2000: Percy Faith “A Summer Place (Theme from)” (1960) 2013: Joseph Falcon “Allons a Lafayette” (1928) 2010: Jose Feliciano “Feliz Navidad” (1970) 2012: Freddy Fender “Wasted Days and Wasted Nights” (1975) 2003: The Fifth Dimension “Up Up and Away” (1967) 2004: The Fifth Dimension “Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In” (1969) 2015: Fisk University Jubilee Quartet “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot” (1910) 1986: Ella Fitzgerald with Chick Webb & His Orchestra “A-Tisket, A-Tasket” (1938) 2002: Ella Fitzgerald “How High the Moon” (1960) 1998: The Five Satins “In the Still of the Nite (I’ll Remember)” (1956) 1999: Roberta Flack “Killing Me Softly with His Song” (1973) 2003: The Flamingos “I Only Have Eyes for You” (1959) 1999: Flatt & Scruggs “Foggy Mountain Breakdown” (1950) 1998: Tennessee Ernie Ford “Sixteen Tons” (1955) 2006: Jimmy Forest “Night Train” (1952) 2015: The Four Seasons “Big Girls Don’t Cry” (1962) 1998: Four Tops “Reach Out (I’ll Be There)” (1966) 1998: Aretha Franklin “Respect” (1967) 1999: Aretha Franklin “You Make Me Feel Like a Natural Woman” (1967) 2001: Aretha Franklin “Chain of Fools” (1967) 1999: Lefty Frizzell “If You've Got the Money, I've Got the Time” (1950) 2015: The Bobby Fuller Four “I Fought the Law” (1966) G 2013: Carols Gardel “El Dia Que Me Quieras” (1935) 1998: Judy Garland “You Made Me Love You (Dear Mr. Gable)” (1937) 1981: Judy Garland “Over the Rainbow” (1939) 2010: Judy Garland “For Me and My Gal” (1942) 1991: Erroll Garner Trio “Misty” (1954) 1999: Marvin Gaye “Ain't No Mountain High Enough” (1967) 1998: Marvin Gaye “I Heard It Through the Grapevine” (1968) 2002: Marvin Gaye “Mercy Mercy Me (The Ecology)” (1971) 2012: Gloria Gaynor “I Will Survive” (1978) 1999: Bobbie Gentry “Ode to Billie Joe” (1967) 1997: George Gershwin “An American in Paris” (1929) 2000: Stan Getz “Desafinado” (1962) 2000: Stan Getz “The Girl from Ipanema” (1964) 2000: Joao Gilberto “Chega de Saudade (No More Blues)” (1958) 2000: Dizzy Gillespie “Groovin' High” (1945) 2004: Dizzy Gillespie “A Night in Tunisia” (1946) 1999: Dizzy Gillespie “Manteca” (1948) 1998: Benny Goodman “Moon Glow” (1934) 2008: Benny Goodman “King Porter Stomp” (1935) 1982: Benny Goodman “Sing, Sing, Sing (With a Swing)” (1938) 1987: Benny Goodman “And the Angels Sing” (1939) 2008: Benny Goodman “Seven Come Eleven” (1940) 2017: Lesley Gore “You Don't Own Me” (1963) 2012: Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five “The Message” (1982) 1999: Al Green “Let’s Stay Together” (1971) 2011: Al Green “Take Me to the River” (1974) 2002: Arlo Guthrie “Alice's Restaurant” (1967) 2017: Arlo Guthrie “City of New Orleans” (1972) 1989: Woody Guthrie “This Land Is Your Land” (1944) H 1999: Merle Haggard “Mama Tried” (1968) 2017: Merle Haggard “Okie from Muskogee” (1969) 1982: Bill Haley & His Comets “We’re Gonna Rock Around the Clock” (1954) 1996: Lionel Hampton “Flying Home” (1940) 2019: W.C. Handy “St. Louis Blues” (1914) 1999: The Harmonicats “Peg O’ My Heart” (1947) 2008: Slim Harpo “I'm a King Bee” (1957) 2009: Wynonie Harris “Good Rockin' Tonight” (1948) 2001: Wilbert Harrison “Kansas City” (1959) 1974: Coleman Hawkins “Body and Soul” (1940) 1999: Edwin Hawkins Singers “Oh Happy Day” (1969) 1999: Isaac Hayes “Shaft (Theme from)” (1971) 2021: Fletcher Henderson “Copenhagen” (1924) 2000: The Jimi Hendrix Experience “Purple Haze” (1967) 2001: The Jimi Hendrix Experience “All Along the Watchtower” (1968) 2009: Jimi Hendrix “The Star Spangled Banner (live)” (1969) 2002: Woody Herman “At the Woodchoppers’ Ball” (1939) 2000: Woody Herman “Early Autumn” (1947) 1984: Woody Herman “Four Brothers” (1948) 2018: Billie Holiday “My Man (Mon Homme)” (1938) 1978: Billie Holiday “Strange Fruit” (1939) 2005: Billie Holiday “Embraceable You” (1944) 1989: Billie Holiday “Lover Man (Oh, Where Can You Be?)” (1945) 2010: Billie Holiday “Crazy He Calls Me” (1949) 2021: Billie Holiday “Solitude” (1952) 1998: Buddy Holly & the Crickets “That’ll Be the Day” (1957) 1999: Buddy Holly & the Crickets “Peggy Sue” (1957) 1999: John Lee Hooker “Boogie Chillen'“ (1949) 2016: John Lee Hooker “Boom Boom” (1962) 2005: Bob Hope “Thanks for the Memory” (1939) 2000: Lena Horne “Stormy Weather (Keeps Rainin' All the Time)” (1942) 2002: Johnny Horton “The Battle of New Orleans” (1959) 2013: Son House “My Black Mama” (1930) 2018: Whitney Houston “I Will Always Love You” (1992) 1999: Howlin' Wolf “Smokestack Lightning” (1956) 2011: Mississippi John Hurt “Frankie” (1928) 2017: Mississippi John Hurt “Stack O' Lee Blues” (1928) 1984: Walter Huston “September Song” (1939) I 2002: Janis Ian “Society's Child (Baby, I've Been Thinking)” (1967) 2008: Janis Ian “At Seventeen” (1975) 1998: The Impressions “People Get Ready” (1965) 1987: The Ink Spots “If I Didn't Care” (1939) 1999: The Isley Brothers “Shout (Parts 1 and 2)” (1959) 2010: The Isley Brothers “Twist and Shout” (1962) J 1999: The Jackson 5 “I Want You Back” (1969) 2011: The Jackson 5 “I’ll Be There” (1970) 2017: The Jackson 5 “ABC” (1970) 1998: Mahalia Jackson “Move on Up a Little Higher” (1948) 2010: Mahalia Jackson “His Eye Is on the Sparrow” (1951) 2012: Mahalia Jackson “Take My Hand, Precious Lord” (1956) 2008: Little Walter Jacobs “Juke” (1952) 1998: Emore James “I Believe I'll Dust My Broom” (1952) 2008: Etta James “The Wallflower (Roll with Me Henry)” (1955) 1999: Etta James “At Last” (1961) 2020: Skip James “Devil Got My Woman” (1931) 2008: Jan & Dean “Dead Man's Curve” (1964) 2019: El Jarocho “La Bamba” (1939) 1998: Jefferson Airplane “White Rabbit” (1967) 1999: Blind Lemon Jefferson “Matchbox Blues” (1927) 2016: Joan Jett & the Blackhearts “I Love Rock and Roll” (1981) 2013: Billy Joel “Piano Man” (1973) 2004: Billy Joel “Just the Way You Are” (1977) 1998: Elton John “Your Song” (1970) 2020: Elton John “Tiny Dancer” (2020) 2011: Blind Willie Johnson “Dark Was the Night, Cold Was the Ground” (1927) 2020: James P. Johnson “Carolina Shout” (1922) 1998: Robert Johnson “Crossroads (aka "Cross Road Blues")” (1936) 2014: Robert Johnson “Sweet Home Chicago” (1936) 2010: Al Jolson “You Made Me Love You (I Didn't Want to Do It)” (1913) 2004: Al Jolson “Rock-a-Bye Your Baby with a Dixie Melody” (1918) 1998: Al Jolson “Swanee” (1920) 2005: Al Jolson “California Here I Come” (1924) 2002: Al Jolson “Sonny Boy” (1928) 2011: Al Jolson “My Mammy” (1928) 1999: George Jones “She Thinks I Still Care” (1962) 2007: George Jones “He Stopped Loving Her Today” (1980) 2007: Isham Jones “It Had to Be You” (1924) 1995: Spike Jones & His City Slickers “Cocktails for Two” (1945) 2007: Spike Jones & His City Slickers “All I Want for Christmas Is My Tooth Front Teeth” (1948) 1999: Janis Joplin “Piece of My Heart” (1968) 2002: Janis Joplin “Me and Bobby McGee” (1971) 1998: Louis Jordan “Caldonia” (1945) 2008: Louis Jordan “Choo Choo Ch'Boogie” (1946) 2009: Louis Jordan “Let the Good Times Roll” (1946) 2013: Louis Jordan “Ain't Nobody Here But Us Chickens” (1946) 2021: Journey “Don’t Stop Believin’” (1981) 1998: Bill Justis “Raunchy” (1957) K 2009: Helen Kane “I Wanna Be Loved by You” (1928) 2006: Anton Karas “The Third Man Theme” (1950) 1999: Gene Kelly “Singin' in the Rain” (1952) 1985: Stan Kenton “Artistry in Rhythm” (1944) 2014: B.B. King “Three O'Clock Blues” (1951) 2004: B.B. King “Everyday I Have the Blues” (1955) 1998: B.B. King “The Thrill Is Gone” (1969) 2002: Ben E. King “Spanish Harlem” (1960) 1998: Ben E. King “Stand by Me” (1961) 2001: Carole King “You’ve Got a Friend” (1971) 2003: Carole King “It's Too Late” (1971) 1999: Freddie King “Hideaway” (1961) 1999: The Kingsmen “Louie Louie” (1963) 1998: The Kingston Trio “Tom Dooley” (1958) 1999: The Kinks “You Really Got Me” (1964) 2018: Gladys Knight & the Pips “I Heard It Through the Grapevine” (1967) 1999: Gladys Knight & the Pips “Midnight Train to Georgia” (1973) 2016: Kool & the Gang “Celebration” (1980) L 2003: Patti LaBelle “Lady Marmalade” (1974) 1998: Frankie Laine “That's My Desire” (1947) 2008: Gertrude Lawrence “Someone to Watch Over Me” (1927) 2007: Led Zeppelin “Whole Lotta Love” (1969) 2003: Led Zeppelin “Stairway to Heaven” (1971) 2002: Huddie “Leadbelly” Ledbetter “Goodnight Irene” (1933) 2016: Huddie “Leadbelly” Ledbetter “Rock Island Line” (1942) 2019: Brenda Lee “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” (1958) 1999: Brenda Lee “I'm Sorry” (1960) 1998: Peggy Lee “Fever” (1957) 1999: Peggy Lee “Is That All There Is?” (1969) 1999: John Lennon “Imagine” (1971) 2012: Furry Lewis “Kassie Jones” (1928) 1998: Jerry Lee Lewis “Great Balls of Fire” (1957) 1999: Jerry Lee Lewis “Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On” (1957) 2009: Ramsey Lewis “The In Crowd” (1965) 2007: Solomon Linda & the Evening Birds “Mbube” (1939) 2016: Little Eva “The Loco-Motion” (1962) 1998: Little Richard “Tutti Frutti” (1955) 1999: Little Richard “Long Tall Sally” (1956) 2002: Little Richard “Lucille” (1957) 2001: Julie London “Cry Me a River” (1955) 2002: The Lovin’ Spoonful “Do You Believe in Magic” (1965) 1999: The Lovin’ Spoonful “Summer in the City” (1966) 1999: Jimmie Lunceford “For Dancers Only” (1937) 2001: Frankie Lymon & the Teenagers “Why Do Fools Fall in Love?” (1956) 1998: Loretta Lynn “Coal Miner's Daughter” (1970) 2008: Lynyrd Skynyrd “Free Bird” (1973) 2009: Lynyrd Skynyrd “Sweet Home Alabama” (1974) M 2008: Jeanette MacDonald “Indian Love Call” (1936) 2020: Machito “Afro-Cuban Jazz Suite” (1950) 2007: Uncle Dave Macon “Keep My Skillet Good and Greasy” (1924) 2019: Miriam Makeba “Pata Pata” (1967) 2001: The Mamas & the Papas “California Dreamin'“ (1966) 2008: The Mamas & the Papas “Monday Monday” (1966) 2005: Henry Mancini “Peter Gunn” (1959) 1999: Henry Mancini with Audrey Hepburn “Moon River” (1961) 2003: Henry Mancini “The Days of Wine and Roses” (1963) 1999: Bob Marley & the Marleys “Get Up Stand Up” (1973) 2005: Bob Marley & the Marleys “No Woman, No Cry” (1974) 2007: Bob Marley & the Marleys “One Love/People Get Ready” (1977) 1999: Dean Martin “Everybody Loves Somebody” (1964) 2007: Mary Martin “My Heart Belongs to Daddy” (1939) 2011: The Marvelettes “Please Mr. Postman” (1961) 2018: Hugh Masekela “Grazing in the Grass” (1968) 1998: Johnny Mathis “Chances Are “( 1957) 2008: Johnny Mathis “It's Not for Me to Say” (1957) 2002: Johnny Mathis “Misty” (1959) 2019: Curtis Mayfield “Move on Up” (1970) 1999: Percy Mayfield “Please Send Me Someone to Love” (1950) 1999: John McCormack “Somewhere a Voice Is Calling” (1916) 2002: Don McLean “American Pie” (1971) 2017: Blind Willie McTell “Statesboro Blues” (1928) 2019: Edward Meeker “Take Me Out to the Ball Game” (1908) 2013: The Memphis Jug Band “Stealin' Stealin'“ (1928) 2021: Memphis Minnie & Kansas Joe McCoy “When the Levee Breaks” (1929) 1998: Johnny Mercer “Ac-Cent-Tchu-Ate the Positive” (1945) 2010: Johnny Mercer “Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah” (1946) 2008: Ethel Merman “You're the Top” (1934) 2006: Big Maceo Merriweather “Worried Life Blues” (1941) 2011: The Meters “Cissy Strut” (1969) 2004: Mickey & Sylvia “Love Is Strange” (1956) 2007: Emmett Miller & His Georgia Crackers “Lovesick Blues” (1928) 1983: Glenn Miller “In the Mood” (1939) 1991: Glenn Miller “Moonlight Serenade” (1939) 1996: Glenn Miller with Tex Beneke & the Four Modernaires…Chattanooga Choo Choo (1941) 1998: Roger Miller “Dang Me” (1964) 1999: Roger Miller “King of the Road” (1965) 1998: The Mills Brothers “Paper Doll” (1942) 2017: The Mills Brothers “You Always Hurt the One You Love” (1944) 2006: The Miracles “Shop Around” (1960) 1998: The Miracles “You've Really Got a Hold on Me” (1962) 2007: The Miracles “The Tracks of My Tears” (1965) 2002: The Miracles “The Tears of a Clown” (1970) 2008: The Mississippi Sheiks “Sitting on Top of the World” (1930) 1993: Thelonious Monk “Round Midnight” (1947) 2009: Bill Monroe “Mule Skinner Blues” (1940) 1998: Bill Monroe “Blue Moon of Kentucky” (1947) 2007: Patsy Montana & the Prairie Ramblers “I Want to Be a Cowboy's Sweetheart” (1936) 1999: The Moody Blues “Nights in White Satin” (1967) 2001: James Moody “Moody's Mood for Love” (1952) 2002: The Moonglows “Sincerely” (1955) 1998: Helen Morgan “Bill” (1928) 1999: Van Morrison & Them “Gloria” (1965) 2007: Van Morrison “Brown-Eyed Girl” (1967) 2010: Jelly Roll Morton “Kansas City Stomp” (1923) 2006: Billy Murray “Yankee Doodle Boy” (1905) 2008: Billy Murray “Give My Regards to Broadway” (1905) N 2011: Willie Nelson “On the Road Again” (1980) 2008: Willie Nelson “Always on My Mind” (1982) 2020: Willie Nelson & Merle Haggard “Pancho and Lefty” (1982) 2015: Aaron Neville “Tell It Like It Is” (1966) 1999: Harry Nilsson “Everybody's Talkin'“ (1968) 2017: Nirvana “Smells Like Teen Spirit” (1991) 2010: The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band “Mr. Bojangles” (1970) 2005: Ray Noble “The Very Thought of You” (1934) O 2006: The O’Jays “Love Train” (1973) 2016: The O’Jays “For the Love of Money” (1974) 1996: King Oliver “Chimes Blues” (1923) 2010: King Oliver “Dipper Mouth Blues” (1923) 1999: Roy Orbison “Only the Lonely” (1960) 2002: Roy Orbison “Crying” (1961) 1999: Roy Orbison “(Oh) Pretty Woman” (1964) 2006: Original Dixieland Jazz Band “The Darktown Strutters' Ball” (1917) 2008: The Orioles “Crying in the Chapel” (1953) 2013: Buck Owens “Act Naturally” (1963) 1999: Buck Owens “I've Got a Tiger by the Tail” (1965) P 1998: Patti Page “Tennessee Waltz” (1950) 2002: Charlie Parker “Billie's Bounce” (1945) 2019: Charlie Parker with Miles Davis & Dizzy Gillespie “Ko-Ko” (1945) 1989: Charlie Parker “Ornithology” (1946) 2014: Charlie Parker “Yardbird Suite” (1946) 2018: Parliament/Funkadelic “Flash Light” (1977) 2019: Dolly Parton “Coat of Many Colors” (1971) 2014: Dolly Parton “Jolene” (1973) 2007: Dolly Parton “I Will Always Love You” (1974) 1999: Charley Patton “Pony Blues” (1929) 2018: Billy Paul “Me and Mrs. Jones” (1972) 1979: Les Paul & Mary Ford “How High the Moon” (1951) 2005: Les Paul & Mary Ford “Vaya Con Dios (May God Be with You)” (1953) 1998: The Penguins “Earth Angel (Will You Be Mine)” (1954) 1986: Carl Perkins “Blue Suede Shoes” (1956) 2003: Peter, Paul & Mary “Blowin' in the Wind” (1963) 1998: Edith Piaf “La Vie En Rose” (1950) 1999: Wilson Pickett “In the Midnight Hour” (1965) 2000: Wilson Pickett “Mustang Sally” (1966) 1999: The Platters “Only You (And You Alone)” (1955) 2002: The Platters “The Great Pretender” (1955) 2019: The Platters “Smoke Gets in Your Eyes” (1958) 2008: The Police “Roxanne” (1978) 2007: Charlie Poole & His North Carolina Ramblers “Don't Let Your Deal Go Down Blues” (1925) 1999: Bud Powell Trio “Un Poco Loco” (1951) 2005: Dick Powell “Lullaby of Broadway” (1935) 1998: Elvis Presley “That's All Right, Mama” (1954) 1988: Elvis Presley “Hound Dog” (1956) 1995: Elvis Presley “Heartbreak Hotel” (1956) 2002: Elvis Presley “Don’t Be Cruel” (1956) 2017: Elvis Presley “Jailhouse Rock” (1957) 2007: Elvis Presley “Are You Lonesome Tonight?” (1960) 1999: Elvis Presley “Suspicious Minds” (1969) 1999: Ray Price “Crazy Arms” (1956) 1998: Procol Harum “A Whiter Shade of Pale” (1967) 1998: Professor Longhair “Tipitina” (1953) 2018: Public Enemy “Fight the Power” (1989) 2002: Tito Puente “Oye Como Va” (1953) Q 2004: Queen “Bohemian Rhapsody” (1975) 2009: Queen “We Will Rock You” (1977) 2009: Queen “We Are the Champions” (1977) 1999: Quintette of the Hot Club of France “Djangology” (1935) R 2004: Ma Rainey “See See Rider Blues” (1925) 2017: Bonnie Raitt “I Can't Make You Love Me” (1991) 1999: The Rascals “Groovin'“ (1967) 1998: Johnnie Ray “Cry” (1951) 2011: Otis Redding “I've Been Loving You Too Long” (1965) 2015: Otis Redding “Try a Little Tenderness” (1966) 1998: Otis Redding “(Sittin’ on) The Dock of the Bay” (1968) 2020: Blind Alfred Reed “How Can a Poor Man Stand Such Times and Live” (1930) 2015: Lou Reed “Walk on the Wild Side” (1972) 1999: Jim Reeves “He'll Have to Go” (1959) 1999: Martha Reeves & the Vandellas “Dancing in the Street” (1964) 2000: Django Reinhardt, “Nuages” (1940) 2017: R.E.M. “Losing My Religion” (1991) 1999: Charlie Rich “Behind Closed Doors” (1973) 2005: Harry Richman “Puttin' on the Ritz” (1930) 1998: The Righteous Brothers “You’ve Lost That Lovin’ Feelin’” (1964) 2000: The Righteous Brothers “Unchained Melody” (1965) 2019: Jeannie C. Riley “Harper Valley P.T.A.” (1968) 1998: Marty Robbins “El Paso” (1959) 2015: Paul Robeson “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot” (1926) 2006: Paul Robeson “Ol’ Man River” (1927) 1985: Jimmie Rodgers “Blue Yodel #1 (T for Texas)” (1928) 2007: Jimmie Rodgers “In the Jailhouse Now” (1928) 2007: Jimmie Rodgers “Blue Yodel #9 (Standing on the Corner)” (1930) 2021: Kenny Rogers “The Gambler” (1978) 2009: Roy Rogers “Happy Trails” (1948) 1998: The Rolling Stones “(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction” (1965) 2018: The Rolling Stones “Paint It Black” (1966) 2014: The Rolling Stones “Honky Tonk Women” (1969) 2019: Sonny Rollins Quartet featuring John Coltrane “Tenor Madness” (1956) 1999: The Ronettes “Be My Baby” (1963) 2004: David Rose “Holiday for Strings” (1943) 2014: Run-D.M.C. with Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler & Joe Perry “Walk This Way” (1986) 2018: Leon Russell “A Song for You” (1970) S 1999: Sam & Dave “Soul Man” (1967) 2009: Sam the Sham & the Pharoahs “Wooly Bully” (1965) 1998: Mongo Santamaria “Watermelon Man” (1963) 2009: Carlo Savina “The Godfather (Love Theme from)” (1972) 1984: Bidu Sayao “Bachianas Brasileiras No. 5 - Aria” (1945) 2017: Lalo Schifrin “Mission Impossible” (1968) 2014: Gil Scott-Heron “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised” (1970) 1999: Pete Seeger “We Shall Overcome” (1963) 2002: Pete Seeger “Where Have All the Flowers Gone” (1964) 2007: Ben Selvin “Happy Days Are Here Again” (1930) 2002: Del Shannon “Runaway” (1961) 1977: Artie Shaw “Begin the Beguine” (1938) 2001: Artie Shaw “Any Old Time” (1938) 2000: Artie Shaw “Frenesi” (1940) 1988: Artie Shaw “Stardust” (1941) 1999: The Shirelles “Will You Love Me Tomorrow” (1960) 2004: Carly Simon “You're So Vain” (1972) 2004: Simon & Garfunkel “The Sounds of Silence” (1965) 1999: Simon & Garfunkel “Mrs. Robinson” (1968) 1998: Simon & Garfunkel “Bridge Over Troubled Water” (1970) 2000: Nina Simone “I Loves You, Porgy” (1959) 2019: Nina Simone “To Be Young, Gifted, and Black” (1969) 1998: Frank Sinatra “The House I Live In” (1946) 2005: Frank Sinatra “One for My Baby and One More for the Road” (1949) 2004: Frank Sinatra “I've Got the World on a String” (1953) 1998: Frank Sinatra “I've Got You Under My Skin” (1956) 2008: Frank Sinatra “Strangers in the Night” (1966) 2000: Frank Sinatra “My Way” (1969) 2013: Frank Sinatra “New York New York (Theme from)” (1980) 2020: Nancy Sinatra “These Boots Are Made for Walkin’” (1965) 2016: Sir Douglas Quintet “She's About a Mover” (1965) 2008: Sister Sledge “We Are Family” (1979) 1999: Percy Sledge “When a Man Loves a Woman” (1966) 1998: Sly & the Family Stone “Dance to the Music” (1968) 2017: Sly & the Family Stone “Thank You Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin” (1969) 2006: Bessie Smith “Down Hearted Blues” (1923) 1993: Bessie Smith with Louis Armstrong “St. Louis Blues” (1925) 1983: Bessie Smith “Empty Bed Blues” (1928) 1983: Clarence “Pinetop” Smith “Pine Top's Boogie Woogie” (1929) 1982: Kate Smith “God Bless America” (1939) 1994: Mamie Smith “Crazy Blues” (1920) 1998: Sammi Smith “Help Me Make It Through the Night” (1971) 2000: Hank Snow “I'm Moving On” (1950) 2002: The Sons of the Pioneers “Tumbling Tumbleweeds” (1934) 1986: The Sons of the Pioneers “Cool Water” (1941) 1998: John Philip Sousa “The Stars and Stripes Forever” (1897) 2008: Dusty Springfield “The Look of Love” (1967) 1998: Jo Stafford “You Belong to Me” (1952) 2020: The Stanley Brothers & the Clinch Mountain Boys “I Am a Man of Constant Sorrow” (1951) 1999: The Staple Singers “Uncloudy Day” (1956) 2002: The Staple Singers “Respect Yourself” (1971) 1999: The Staple Singers “I'll Take You There” (1972) 1999: Edwin Starr “War” (1970) 1998: Kay Starr “Wheel of Fortune” (1952) 2013: W.H. Stepp “Bonaparte's Retreat” (1937) 2002: Steppenwolf “Born to Be Wild” (1968) 2017: Rod Stewart “Maggie May” (1971) 2013: Ernest Van (Pop) Stoneman “The Titanic” (1925) 1998: Barbra Streisand “People” (1964) 2008: Barbra Streisand “The Way We Were” (1973) 2014: The Sugarhill Gang “Rapper’s Delight” (1979) 1999: The Supremes “Where Did Our Love Go” (1964) 2001: The Supremes “Stop! In the Name of Love” (1965) 1999: The Supremes “You Keep Me Hangin' On” (1966) 2020: The Surfaris “Wipe Out” (1963) 2020: The Swan Silvertones “Oh Mary Don’t You Weep” (1959) T 1986: Art Tatum “Tea for Two” (1939) 1998: James Taylor “Fire and Rain” (1970) 2002: James Taylor “You’ve Got a Friend” (1971) 1998: The Temptations “My Girl” (1964) 1999: The Temptations “Papa Was a Rollin' Stone” (1972) 2016: Sister Rosetta Tharpe “This Train” (1939) 2014: Sister Rosetta Tharpe “Strange Things Happening Every Day” (1944) 2014: B.J. Thomas “Raindrops Keep Falling on My Head” (1969) 2021: Irma Thomas “Time Is on My Side” (1964) 2002: Rufus Thomas “Walking the Dog” (1963) 1999: Hank Thompson “The Wild Side of Life” (1952) 2013: Willie Mae “Big Mama” Thornton “Hound Dog” (1953) 2019: The Troggs “Wild Thing” (1966) 1977: Frankie Trumbauer “Singin' the Blues” (1927) 1998: Ernest Tubb “Walking the Floor Over You” (1941) 1995: Sophie Tucker “Some of These Days” (1911) 1998: Big Joe Turner “Shake, Rattle and Roll” (1954) 1999: Ike & Tina Turner “River Deep, Mountain High” (1966) 2003: Ikie & Tina Turner “Proud Mary” (1971) 2012: Tina Turner “What’s Love Got to Do with It?” (1984) 2007: The Turtles “Happy Together” (1967) 1999: Conway Twitty “Hello Darlin’” (1970) U-V 2021: U.S.A. for Africa “We Are the World” (1985) 2000: Ritchie Valens “La Bamba” (1958) 1998: Sarah Vaughan “If You Could See Me Now” (1946) 2019: Sarah Vaughan “Tenderly” (1947) 2006: The Ventures “Walk Don't Run” (1960) 1997: Victor Symphony Orchestra “An American in Paris” (1929) 2021: Village People “Y.M.C.A.” (1978) 1999: Gene Vincent & His Blue Caps “Be-Bop-A-Lula” (1956) W 2002: Junior Walker & the All Stars “Shotgun” (1965) 1991: T-Bone Walker “Call It Stormy Monday” (1947) 1984: Fats Waller “Ain’t Misbehavin’” (1929) 1999: Fats Waller “Honeysuckle Rose” (1935) 2015: Fats Waller “Jitterbug Waltz” (1942) 2014: War “Low Rider” (1975) 2000: Dionne Warwick “Don't Make Me Over” (1962) 1998: Dionne Warwick “Walk on By” (1964) 2008: Dionne Warwick “Alfie” (1967) 1999: Dinah Washington “Teach Me Tonight” (1954) 1998: Dinah Washington “What a Diff'rence a Day Makes” (1959) 2001: Dinah Washington “Unforgettable” (1959) 1998: Ethel Waters “Dinah” (1926) 2007: Ethel Waters “Am I Blue?” (1929) 2003: Ethel Waters “Stormy Weather (Keeps Rainin' All the Time)” (1933) 2010: Muddy Waters “I Feel Like Going Home” (1948) 2000: Muddy Waters “Rollin' Stone” (1950) 1998: Muddy Waters “Hoochie Coochie Man” (1954) 1999: Muddy Waters “Got My Mojo Working” (1957) 2006: Doc Watson “Black Mountain Rag” (1964) 2010: Weather Report “Birdland” (1977) 2006: The Weavers “Goodnight Irene” (1950) 1998: Kitty Wells “It Wasn't God Who Made Honky Tonk Angels” (1952) 1999: Mary Wells “My Guy” (1964) 2012: Bukka White “Fixin' to Die” (1940) 1998: Paul Whiteman “Whispering” (1920) 1974: Paul Whiteman with George Gershwin “Rhapsody in Blue” (1924) 2012: Paul Whtieman “Anything Goes” (1934) 1999: The Who “My Generation” (1965) 2018: Andy Williams “Moon River” (1962) 1981: Bert Williams “Nobody” (1906) 2015: Hank Williams “Honky Tonkin’” (1948) 1999: Hank Williams liams, Hank “I'm So Lonesome I Could Cry” (1949) 2011: Hank Williams “Lovesick Blues” (1949) 2001: Hank Williams “Hey Good Lookin’” (1951) 2002: Hank Williams “Jambalaya (On the Bayou)” (1952) 1983: Hank Williams “Your Cheatin’ Heart” (1953) 2011: Bob Wills “Steel Guitar Rag” (1936) 2015: Bob Wills “San Antonio Rose” (1939) 1998: Bob Wills “New San Antonio Rose” (1940) 2010: Dooley Wilson “As Time Goes By” (1942) 1999: Jackie Wilson “Lonely Teardrops” (1958) 1999: Jackie Wilson “Your Love Keeps Lifting Me Higher and Higher” (1967) 1999: Bill Withers “Ain't No Sunshine” (1971) 2007: Bill Withers “Lean on Me” (1972) 1998: Stevie Wonder “Superstition” (1972) 2002: Stevie Wonder “You Are the Sunshine of My Life” (1972) 2019: Link Wray & His Men “Rumble” (1958) 2021: Betty Wright “Clean Up Woman” (1971) 1999: Tammy Wynette “Stand by Your Man” (1968) X-Y-Z 1999: Frank Yankovic & His Yanks “Just Because” (1948) 2000: Faron Young “Hello Walls” (1961) 1999: Lester Young “Just You, Just Me” (1944) 2016: The Zombies “She's Not There” (1964) Resources/Related Links: Dave’s Music Database: “Grammy Hall of Fame: Albums” Dave’s Music Database: other awards and Hall of Fame inductees for songs Grammy Hall of Fame (official site with all albums and songs listed alphabetically by the title of the work) Grammy.com (12/21/2020). “GRAMMY Hall of Fame Welcomes 2021 Inductions” First posted 1/24/2019; last updated 12/21/2020.

Today in Music (1920): Paul Whiteman hit #1 with “The Japanese Sandman”

The Japanese Sandman Paul Whiteman

Writer(s): Richard A. Whiting (music), Ray Egan (words) (see lyrics here) First Charted: November 13, 1920 Peak: 12 PM, 2 GA (Click for codes to charts.) Sales (in millions): 2.0 US, 1.0 sheet music, 3.0 total Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, 0.29 video, -- streaming

Awards: Click on award for more details.

About the Song: “During the ’20s, transportation was still primitive enough that to most people the Orient was excitingly exotic and distant. Tin Pan Alley adapted authentic Far Eastern music to appeal to Americans, who accepted it as genuine.” TY2 “The song is about a sandman from Japan who exchanges yesterdays for tomorrows. By doing so…“he’ll bring you tomorrow, just to start a life anew.” WK “The first verse of the song asks us to stretch our imaginations ‘for the moment and come with me…over the western sea.’ There we will find a Japanese lady singing a lullyaby to her baby. The chorus continues by telling us the ‘Japanese Sandman’ is ‘sneaking on with the dew’ and ‘taking ‘every sorrow of the day that is through.’ This sandman is ‘just an old second hand man trading new days for old.’” TY2 Paul Whiteman’s instrumental recording of the song was the first to chart and the most successful, reaching #1 in 1920. “The Japanese Sandman” was the flip side of “Whispering,” Whiteman’s first chart entry. The songs “established Paul Whiteman and his orchestra as major show business personalities.” TY2 Whiteman was “the most popular bandleader of the pre-swing era” PM charting more than 200 songs from 1920 to 1954. Both songs went to #1 – a feat Whiteman would accomplish thirty more times. PM There were other charted versions by Nora Bayes (#7, 1921), Ben Selvin (#15, 1921), and Benny Goodman (#10, 1935). PM Although Whiteman’s version charted before Bayes, she first popularized the song on vaudeville. TY2 The song gained attention again in 1967 when it was featured in the movie musical Thoroughly Modern Millie, starring Julie Andrews. It has also been featured in Destination Tokyo (1940), Belles on Their Toes (1952), They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? (1969), Bringing Out the Dead (1999), and The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus. WK Resources: DJ David Jasen (2002). A Century of American Popular Music: 2000 Best-Loved and Remembered Songs (1899-1999). Routledge: Taylor & Francis, Inc. Page 108. TY2 Don Tyler (2007). Hit Songs, 1900-1955. McFarland & Company, Inc.: Jefferson, North Carolina. Pages 114-5. PM Joel Whitburn (1986). Pop Memories 1890-1954. Record Research, Inc: Menomonee Falls, WI. Pages 447, 533. WK Wikipedia Related Links: First posted 5/13/2025.

U.S. Biggest #1 Pop Songs in Chart History

USA’s Biggest #1 Pop Songs

This page has been updated and moved here.

Spin’s 100 Greatest Albums

First posted 4/30/2010; updated 12/10/2020.

Spin: Top 100 Albums

This is an aggregate of eight best-of lists from Spin magazine (details at bottom of page). The magazine was founded in 1985 by Bob Guccione, Jr. It stopped producing print issues in 2012, but continues to run as an online magazine. The focus is on less mainstream fare, including alternative rock, alternative country, college rock, electronica, grunge, hip-hop, new wave, punk, reggae, and world music. Also, check out Spin’s annual picks for album of the year. You can also see other publications’ picks for best albums of all time here. 1. Public Enemy It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back (1988) 2. Ramones Ramones (1976) 3. Nirvana Nevermind (1991) 4. Prince Sign ‘O’ the Times (1987) 5. OutKast Stankonia (2000) 6. N.W.A. Straight Outta Compton (1989) 7. Hüsker Dü New Day Rising (1985) 8. Nirvana In Utero (1993) 9. Smashing Pumpkins Siamese Dream (1993) 10. Radiohead OK Computer (1997) 11. The Smiths The Queen Is Dead (1986) 12. Velvet Underground & Nico Velvet Underground & Nico (1967) 13. Joy Division Unknown Pleasures (1979) 14. Pavement Slanted and Enchanted (1992) 15. Sonic Youth Daydream Nation (1988) 16. PJ Harvey Rid of Me (1993) 17. Guns N’ Roses Appetite for Destruction (1987) 18. De La Soul 3 Feet High and Rising (1989) 19. Radiohead Kid A (2000) 20. My Bloody Valentine Loveless (1991) 21. Black Flag Damaged (1981) 22. Minutemen Double Nickels on the Dime (1984) 23. Eric B. & Rakim Paid in Full (1987) 24. U2 Achtung Baby (1991) 25. Hole Live Through This (1994) 26. Pixies Surfer Rosa (1988) 27. Liz Phair Exile in Guyville (1993) 28. Sex Pistols Never Mind the Bollocks, Here’s the Sex Pistols (1977) 29. Sleater-Kinney Dig Me Out (1997) 30. Fugazi 13 Songs (1990) 31. Green Day Dookie (1994) 32. Dr. Dre The Chronic (1992) 33. Lucinda Williams Lucinda Williams (1988) 34. Beastie Boys Licensed to Ill (1986) 35. R.E.M. Automatic for the People (1992) 36. Eminem The Marshall Mathers LP (2000) 37. Rage Against the Machine The Battle of Los Angeles (1999) 38. Jesus and Mary Chain Psychocandy (1985) 39. A Tribe Called Quest The Low-End Theory (1991) 40. Boogie Down Productions Criminal Minded (1987) 41. Soundgarden Superunknown (1994) 42. Jeff Buckley Grace (1994) 43. The Pogues Rum, Sodomy, and the Lash (1985) 44. The Breeders Last Splash (1993) 45. Hüsker Dü Zen Arcade (1984) 46. R.E.M. Murmur (1983) 47. Wire Pink Flag (1977) 48. Run-D.M.C. Run-D.M.C. (1984) 49. Gang of Four Entertainment! (1979) 50. Buzzcocks Singles Going Steady (compilation: 1977-79, released 1979) 51. X-Ray Spex Germ-Free Adolescents (1978) 52. Beastie Boys Paul’s Boutique (1989) 53. Sinéad O’Connor The Lion and the Cobra (1987) 54. The Clash The Clash (1977) 55. The Stooges Fun House (1970) 56. Nine Inch Nails The Downward Spiral (1994) 57. Television Marquee Moon (1977) 58. Nas Illmatic (1994) 59. The Replacements Let It Be (1984) 60. The Replacements Tim (1985) 61. Beck Odelay (1996) 62. Public Image Ltd. Metal Box (aka “Second Edition”) (1979) 63. The Pixies Doolittle (1989) 64. Wu-Tang Clan Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) (1993) 65. The Feelies Crazy Rhythms (1980) 66. Meat Puppets Meat Puppets II (1984) 67. New Order Low-Life (1985) 68. Public Enemy Fear of a Black Planet (1990) 69. Guided by Voices Bee Thousand (1994) 70. Pere Ubu The Modern Dance (1978) 71. U2 The Joshua Tree (1987) 72. The Stooges The Stooges (1969) 73. The Notorious B.I.G. Ready to Die (1994) 74. The Mekons Fear and Whiskey (1985) 75. Run-D.M.C. Raising Hell (1986) 76. The Cure The Head on the Door (1985) 77. Metallica Master of Puppets (1986) 78. Elliott Smith Either/Or (1997) 79. Dinosaur Jr. You’re Living All Over Me (1987) 80. Jay-Z The Blueprint (2001) 81. Pavement Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain (1994) 82. Arcade Fire Funeral (2004) 83. The Descendents Milo Goes to College (1982) 84. Kanye West The College Dropout (2004) 85. Devo Q: Are We Not Men? A: We Are Devo (1978) 86. Oasis Definitely Maybe (1994) 87. Flipper Album Generic (1982) 88. Björk Post (1995) 89. PJ Harvey Stories from the City, Stories from the Sea (2000) 90. Tricky Maxinquaye (1995) 91. Pulp Different Class (1995) 92. The Strokes Is This It (2001) 93. Portishead Dummy (1994) 94. The Fall This Nation’s Saving Grace (1985) 95. DJ Shadow Endtroducing… (1996) 96. Lauryn Hill The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill (1998) 97. D’Angelo Voodoo (2000) 98. Belle & Sebastian If You’re Feeling Sinister (1996) 99. Beck Mellow Gold (1993) 100. Raekwon Only Built 4 Cuban Linx (1995) Resources and Related Links: April 1989: “The 25 Greatest Albums of All Time” 1990: “Top Ten College Cult Classic Albums” Dec. 1995: “100 Alternative Albums” 2000: “Best Albums That You’ve Never Heard Of” 2001: “The 50 Most Essential Punk Records” April 2003: “Most Influential Albums Not Recorded by the Beatles, Bob Dylan, Elvis, or the Rolling Stones” July 2005: “100 Greatest Albums 1985-2005” April 2010: “125 Best Albums of the Past 25 Years” Dec. 6, 2020: “The 35 Best Albums of the Last 35 Years”