Showing posts with label Francis Craig. Show all posts

Tuesday, September 7, 2021

Billboard: Jukebox Hits, 1940-1957

Billboard’s Jukebox Hits:

1940-1957

Billboard magazine launched its jukebox hits chart on January 6, 1940. It only ran until July 20, 1940, but then resumed on November 6, 1943 and ran until June 17, 1957. It tracked which songs were played most in jukeboxes across the country. The chart ran until 1957. These were the biggest #1 songs on that chart. All songs which spent three weeks or more at #1 are listed here. Ties are broken by songs’ overall Dave’s Music Database points.

See other chart-based lists here and specific Billboard lists here.

13 weeks:

Glenn Miller “In the Mood” (1939)
Patti Page “Tennessee Waltz” (1950)
Francis Craig with Bob Lamm “Near You” (1947)
The Ink Spots “The Gypsy” (1946)
Ted Weems with Elmo Tanner “Heartaches” (1947)
12 weeks:
The Weavers with Gordon Jenkins’ Orchestra “Goodnight Irene” (1950)
11 weeks:
Frankie Carle & Marjorie Hughes “Oh What It Seemed to Be” (1946)
Guy Lombardo “The Third Man Theme” (1950)
10 weeks:
Vaughn Monroe “Riders in the Sky (A Cowboy Legend)” (1949)
The Andrews Sisters with Vic Schoen’s Orchestra “Rum and Coca-Cola” (1945)
Guy Mitchell “Singing the Blues” (1956)
Tony Bennett with Percy Faith’s Orchestra “Because of You” (1951)
Kay Starr “Wheel of Fortune” (1952)
Patti Page “I Went to Your Wedding” (1952)
9 weeks:
Elvis Presley “Don’t Be Cruel” (1956) /
Elvis Presley “Hound Dog” (1956)
Elvis Presley “All Shook Up” (1957)
Dinah Shore & Her Harper Valley Boys “Buttons and Bows” (1948)
Les Paul & Mary Ford “How High the Moon” (1951)
Glenn Miller “Tuxedo Junction” (1940)
Perry Como “Till the End of Time” (1945)
Johnnie Ray & the Four Lads “Cry” (1951)
Les Paul with Mary Ford “Vaya Con Dios (May God Be with You)” (1953)
Andrews Sisters with Vic Shoen’s Orchestra “Shoo-Shoo Baby” (1943)
8 weeks:
Elvis Presley “Heartbreak Hotel” (1956)
Bing Crosby with John Scottt Trotter’s Orchestra “Swinging on a Star” (1944)
The Harmonicats “Peg O’ My Heart” (1947)
Bing Crosby & the Andrews Sisters “Don’t Fence Me In” (1944)
Johnny Mercer with the Pied Pipers “On the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe” (1945)
Perez “Prez” Prado “Cherry Pink and Apple Blossom White” (1955)
Perry Como with Hugo Winterhalter’s Orchestra “Wanted” (1954)
Red Foley “Chattanoogie Shoe Shine Boy” (1950)
The Crew-Cuts “Sh-Boom” (1954)
Frankie Carle with Marjorie Hughes “Rumors Are Flying” (1946)
Tony Bennett with Percy Faith’s Orchestra “Rags to Riches” (1953)
Rosemary Clooney “Come on-a My House” (1951)
7 weeks:
Bill Haley & the Comets “We’re Gonna Rock Around the Clock” (1954)
Les Brown with Doris Day “Sentimental Journey” (1945)
Tennessee Ernie Ford “Sixteen Tons” (1955)
Vaughn Monroe’s Orchestra “Ballerina” (1947)
The McGuire Sisters “Sincerely” (1954)
Patti Page “The Doggie in the Window” (1953)
Kitty Kallen with Jack Pleis’ Orchestra “Little Things Mean a Lot” (1954)
Evelyn Knight & the Stardusters “A Little Bird Told Me” (1948)
Teresa Brewer with Jack Pleis’ Orchestra “Till I Waltz Again with You” (1952)
Les Brown with Doris Day “My Dreams Are Getting Bigger All the Time” (1945)
Sammy Kaye with Billy Williams “The Old Lamplighter” (1946)
Eddie Fisher with Sally Sweetland & Hugo Winterhalter’s Orchestra “I'm Walking Behind You” (1953)
Jo Stafford “Make Love to Me!” (1954)
Ken Griffin “You Can’t Be True, Dear” (1948)
6 weeks:
Pee Wee Hunt “Twelfth Street Rag” (1948)
Mitch Miller “The Yellow Rose of Texas” (1955)
Percy Faith with Felicia Sanders “Where Is Your Heart (Song from “Moulin Rouge”)” (1953)
Harry James with Dick Haymes “I’ll Get by As Long As I Have You” (1941)
Eddy Howard “To Each His Own” (1946)
Frankie Laine & the Muleskinners “Mule Train” (1949)
Frankie Masters “Scatter-Brain” (1939)
Eddie Fisher with Hugo Winterhalter’s Orchestra “O Mein Papa (Oh My Papa)” (1953)
Kay Kyser with Gloria Wood “Woody Woodpecker” (1948)
Al Trace with Bob Vincent “You Call Everybody Darlin’” (1948)
Kay Starr with Hugo Winterhalter’s Orchestra “Rock and Roll Waltz” (1955)
Georgia Gibbs “Kiss of Fire” (1952)
The Ames Brothers with Hugo Winterhalter’s Orchestra “You You You” (1953)
Russ Morgan & the Skylarks “Cruising Down the River on a Sunday Afternoon” (1949)
Bing Crosby with the Andrews Sisters & Vic Shoen’s Orchestra “There'll Be a Hot Time in the Town of Berlin When the Yanks Go Marching In” (1944)
5 weeks:
Nat “King” Cole “Mona Lisa” (1950)
Vaughn Monroe “Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!” (1945)
Perry Como “Some Enchanted Evening” (1949)
Art Mooney “I’m Looking Over a Four-Leaf Clover” (1948)
Frankie Laine with Jud Conlon’s Rhythmaires “That Lucky Old Sun” (1949)
Peggy Lee with Dave Barbour’s Orchestra “Manana Is Soon Enough for Me” (1948)
Glenn Miller with Marion Hutton “The Woodpecker Song” (1940)
Rosemary Clooney with Buddy Cole “Hey There” (1954)
THe Merry Macs “Mairzy Doats” (1944)
Perry Como with Mitchell Ayres Orchestra “If (They Made Me a King)” (1951)
Tab Hunter “Young Love” (1956)
Bing Crosby with Jon Scott Trotter’s Orchestra “San Fernando Valley” (1944)
4 weeks:
The Chordettes “Mr. Sandman” (1954)
Nat “King” Cole “Too Young” (1951)
Tex Williams “Smoke! Smoke! Smoke! (That Cigarette)” (1947)
Vera Lynn with Ronald Shaw’s Orchestra “Auf Wiederseh'n Sweetheart” (1952)
Gogi Grant “The Wayward Wind” (1956)
Dean Martin “Memories Are Made of This” (1955)
Perry Como & the Ramblers with Mitchell Ayres’ Orchestra “Don't Let the Stars Get in Your Eyes” (1952)
Bing Crosby with John Scott Trotter’s Orchestra “Sierra Sue” (1940)
Joan Weber “Let Me Go, Lover!” (1954)
Pat Boone “I Almost Lost My Mind” (1956)
Sammy Kaye with Troy Alamo “Harbor Lights” (1950)
3 weeks:
Blue Barron & His Orchestra “Crusing Down the River on a Sunday Afternoon” (1949)
The Four Aces “Love is a Many Splendored Thing” (1955)
Vic Damone “You’re Breaking My Heart” (1949)
Bill Hayes “The Ballad of Davy Crockett” (1955)
Bing Crosby “Now Is the Hour (Māori Farewell Song)” (1948)
The Andrews Sisters with Gordon Jenkins’ Orchestra “I Can Dream, Can’t I?” (1949)
Frank Sinatra “Five Minutes More” (1946)
Margaret Whiting with Jimmy Wakely “Slipping Around” (1949)
Russ Morgan & the Skylarks “Forever and Ever” (1949)
Eileen Barton “If I Knew You Were Comin’ I’d’ve Baked a Cake” (1950)
Pee Wee King & His Golden West Cowboys “Slow Poke” (1951)
Joni James with Lew Douglas’ Orchestra “Why Don’t You Believe Me” (1952)
Rosemary Clooney with Percy Faith’s Orchestra “Half As Much” (1952)
The Mills Brothers with Hal McIntyre “The Glow-Worm” (1952)
The Three Suns “Peg O’ My Heart” (1947)
Freddy Martin with Stuart Wade “Managua, Nicaragua” (1947)
Jim Lowe “The Green Door” (1956)
Rosemary Clooney “This Ole House” (1954)
Tony Bennett with Percy Faith’s Orchestra “Cold Cold Heart” (1951)
The Fontane Sisters with Billy Vaughn’s Orchestra “Hearts of Stone” (1954)
Georgia Gibbs “Dance with Me Henry (Wallflower)” (1955)

Resources and Related Links:

Dave’s Music Database “Other Best-of Billboard lists”
Dave’s Music Database: “Other Chart-Based Lists”
Dave’s Music Database: “USA: #1 Pop Songs, 1890-present”

First posted 9/7/2021.

Monday, September 6, 2021

Billboard: Disc Jockey Hits, 1944-1958

Billboard’s Disc Jockey Hits:

1944-1958

Billboard magazine started its disc jockey hits chart in 1944. It tracked which songs were played the most on radio stations across the country. The chart ran until 1958 when it was merged with data from the best sellers and jukebox hits into the Billboard Hot 100. These, however, were the biggest #1 songs on the Disc Jockey Hits chart. All songs which spent three weeks or more at #1 are listed here. Ties are broken by songs’ overall Dave’s Music Database points.

See other chart-based lists here and specific Billboard lists here.

17 weeks:

Francis Craig with Bob Lamm “Near You” (1947)

12 weeks:
Vaughn Monroe “Riders in the Sky (A Cowboy Legend)” (1949)
Jo Stafford “You Belong to Me” (1952)
11 weeks:
Ted Weems with Elmo Tanner “Heartaches” (1947)
10 weeks:
Johnnie Ray & the Four Lads “Cry” (1951)
The McGuire Sisters “Sincerely” (1954)
Eileen Barton “If I Knew You Were Comin’ I’d’ve Baked a Cake” (1950)
9 weeks:
Les Paul & Mary Ford “How High the Moon” (1951)
Perry Como “Till the End of Time” (1945)
Guy Mitchell “Singing the Blues” (1956)
Percy Faith with Felicia Sanders “Where Is Your Heart (Song from “Moulin Rouge”)” (1953)
Kay Starr “Wheel of Fortune” (1952)
The Crew-Cuts “Sh-Boom” (1954)
Frankie Carle with Marjorie Hughes “Rumors Are Flying” (1946)
8 weeks:
Elvis Presley “Don’t Be Cruel” (1956)
Patti Page “Tennessee Waltz” (1950)
The Weavers with Gordon Jenkins’ Orchestra “Goodnight Irene” (1950)
Nat “King” Cole “Mona Lisa” (1950)
Nat “King” Cole with Frank DeVol’s Orchestra “Nature Boy” (1948)
Vaughn Monroe’s Orchestra “Ballerina” (1947)
Tonny Bennett with Percy Faith’s Orchestra “Because of You” (1951)
Kitty Kallen with Jack Pleis’ Orchestra “Little Things Mean a Lot” (1954)
Eddy Howard “To Each His Own” (1946)
Gogi Grant “Thw Wayward Wind” (1956)
Perry Como with Mitchell Ayres Orchestra “If (They Made Me a King)” (1951)
Eddy Howard “Sin (It’s No Sin)” (1951)
The Ames Brothers with Hugo Winterhalter’s Orchestra “You You You” (1953)
Rosemary Clooney “Come on-a My House” (1951)
Frankie Carle & Marjorie Hughes “Oh What It Seemed to Be” (1946)
Dinah Shore “The Gypsy” (1946)
7 weeks:
Les Brown with Doris Day “Sentimental Journey” (1945)
Elvis Presley “All Shook Up” (1957)
Bing Crosby & the Andrews Sisters “Don’t Fence Me In” (1944)
Pat Boone “Love Letters in the Sand” (1957)
The Chordettes “Mr. Sandman” (1954)
Russ Morgan & the Skylarks “Cruising Down the River on a Sunday Afternoon” (1949)
Frankie Laine with Jud Conlon’s Rhythmaires “That Lucky Old Sun” (1949)
Patti Page “The Doggie in the Window” (1953)
Peggy Lee with Dave Barbour’s Orchestra “Manana Is Soon Enough for Me” (1948)
Perry Como with Hugo Winterhalter’s Orchestra “Wanted” (1954)
Eddie Fisher with Hugo Winterhalter’s Orchestra “O Mein Papa (Oh My Papa)” (1953)
Tony Bennett with Percy Faith’s Orchestra “Rags to Riches” (1953)
Georgia Gibbs “Kiss of Fire” (1952)
6 weeks:
Tennessee Ernie Ford “Sixteen Tons” (1955)
Mitch Miller “The Yellow Rose of Texas” (1955)
Jo Mercer with the Pied Pipers “On the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe” (1945)
Vaughn Monroe “There! I’ve Said It Again” (1945)
Nat “King” Cole “I Love You for Sentimental Reasons” (1946)
The Four Aces “Love is a Many Splendored Thing” (1955)
Vera Lynn with Ronald Shaw’s Orchestra “Auf Wiederseh'n Sweetheart” (1952)
Frankie Laine & the Muleskinners “Mule Train” (1949)
Evelyn Knight & the Stardusters “A Little Bird Told Me” (1948)
Dean Martin “Memories Are Made of This” (1955)
Teresa Brewer with Jack Pleis’ Orchestra “Till I Waltz Again with You” (1952)
Pat Boone “April Love” (1957)
Kay Kyser with Gloria Wood “Woody Woodpecker” (1948)
Bing Crosby with Carmen Cavallaro’s Orchestra “I Can’t Begin to Tell You” (1945)
Joni James “Why Don’t You Believe Me” (1952)
Tab Hunter “Young Love” (1956)
Buddy Clark with Mitchell Ayres’ Orchestra “Peg O’ My Heart” (1947)
5 weeks:
Bill Haley & the Comets “We’re Gonna Rock Around the Clock” (1954)
The Everly Brothers “All I Have to Do Is Dream” (1958)
Elvis Presley “Love Me Tender” (1956)
Dinah Shore & Her Harper Valley Boys “Buttons and Bows” (1948)
Vaughn Monroe “Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!” (1945)
Perez “Prez” Prado “Cherry Pink and Apple Blossom White” (1955)
The Andrews Sisters with Gordon Jenkin’s Orchestra “I Can Dream, Can’t I?” (1949)
Margaret Whiting “A Tree in the Meadow” (1948)
Debbie Reynolds “Tammy” (1957)
Les Baxter “The Poor People of Paris” (1956)
Doris Day with Buddy Clark and George Siravo’s Orchestra “Love Somebody” (1948)
Patti Page with Harry Geller’s Orchestra “All My Love (Bolero)” (1950)
Phil Harris with Walter Scharf’s Orchestra “The Thing” (1950)
4 weeks:
Pee Wee Hunt “Twelfth Street Rag” (1948)
THe Everly Brothers “Wake Up Little Susie” (1957)
Doris Day “Secret Love” (1954)
Art Mooney “I’m Looking Over a Four-Leaf Clover” (1948)
Nat “King” Cole “Too Young” (1951)
Vic Damone “You’re Breaking My Heart” (1949)
Rosemary Clooney with Buddy Cole “Hey There” (1954)
Frank Sinatra “Five Minutes More” (1946)
Sheb Wooley “The Purple People Eater” (1958)
Joan Weber “Let Me Go, Lover!” (1954)
Laurie London “He’s Got the Whole World in His Hands” (1957)
Perry Como with Henri Rene’s Orchestra “No Other Love” (1953)
Jimmie Rodgers “Honeycomb” (1957)
The McGuire Sisters “Sugartime” (1957)
3 weeks:
Elvis Presley “Heartbreak Hotel” (1956)
Danny & The Juniors “At the Hop” (1957)
Les Paul with Mary Ford “Vaya Con Dios (May God Be with You)” (1953)
Elvis Presley “Let Me Be Your Teddy Bear” (1957)
The Platters “My Prayer (Avant de Mourir)” (1956)
Bill Hayes “The Ballad of Davy Crockett” (1955)
Perry Como & the Ramblers with Mitchell Ayres’ Orchestra “Don't Let the Stars Get in Your Eyes” (1952)
Spike Jones & His City Slickers with George Rock “All I Want for Christmas Is My Two Front Teeth” (1948)
Al Martino “Here in My Heart” (1952)
Les Brown with Doris Day “My Dreams Are Getting Bigger All the Time” (1945)
Eddie Fisher with Sally Sweetland & Hugo Winterhalter’s Orchestra “I'm Walking Behind You” (1953)
Morris Stoloff & His Orchestra “Moonglow and Theme from ‘Picnic’” (1956)
Jo Stafford “Make Love to Me!” (1954)

Resources and Related Links:

Dave’s Music Database “Other Best-of Billboard lists”
Dave’s Music Database: “Other Chart-Based Lists”
Dave’s Music Database: “USA: #1 Pop Songs, 1890-present”

First posted 9/6/2021.

Billboard: Best Sellers, 1940-1958

Billboard’s Best Sellers:

1940-1958

Billboard magazine started its best seller chart in 1940. It tracked the songs which sold the most according to surveys of stores which sold music. The chart ran until 1958 when it was merged, along with charts of the biggest DJ hits and jukebox hits, into the Billboard Hot 100.

These, however, were the biggest #1 songs on the Billboard Best Sellers chart from 1940 to 1958. All songs which spent four weeks or more at #1 are listed here. Ties are broken by songs’ overall Dave’s Music Database points.

See other chart-based lists here and specific Billboard lists here.

13 weeks:

Artie Shaw “Frenesi” (1940)
The Weavers with Gordon Jenkins’ Orchestra “Goodnight Irene” (1950)
12 weeks:
Tommy Dorsey & His Orchestra with Frank Sinatra & the Pied Pipers “I’ll Never Smile Again” (1940)
Francis Craig with Bob Lamm “Near You” (1947)
Ted Weems with Elmo Tanner “Heartaches” (1947)
11 weeks:
Elvis Presley “Don’t Be Cruel” (1956) /
Elvis Presley “Hound Dog” (1956)
Vaughn Monroe “Riders in the Sky (A Cowboy Legend)” (1949)
Johnnie Ray & the Four Lads “Cry” (1951)
Les Paul with Mary Ford “Vaya Con Dios (May God Be with You)” (1953)
Anton Karas “The Third Man Theme” (1950)
10 weeks:
Dinah Shore & Her Harper Valley Boys “Buttons and Bows” (1948)
The Ink Spots “The Gypsy” (1946)
Perry Como “Till the End of Time” (1945)
Vaughn Monroe’s Orchestra “Ballerina” (1947)
Percy Faith with Felicia Sanders “Where Is Your Heart (Song from “Moulin Rouge”)” (1953)
Perez “Prez” Prado “Cherry Pink and Apple Blossom White” (1955)
9 weeks:
Les Brown with Doris Day “Sentimental Journey” (1945)
Patti Page “Tennessee Waltz” (1950)
Bing Crosby with John Scottt Trotter’s Orchestra “Swinging on a Star” (1944)
Les Paul & Mary Ford “How High the Moon” (1951)
Guy Mitchell “Singing the Blues” (1956)
Kitty Kallen with Jack Pleis’ Orchestra “Little Things Mean a Lot” (1954)
Peggy Lee with Dave Barbour’s Orchestra “Manana Is Soon Enough for Me” (1948)
Kay Starr “Wheel of Fortune” (1952)
Vera Lynn with Ronald Shaw’s Orchestra “Auf Wiederseh'n Sweetheart” (1952)
Bing Corsby “Only Forever” (1940)
8 weeks:
Bill Haley & the Comets “We’re Gonna Rock Around the Clock” (1954)
Elvis Presley “Heartbreak Hotel” / “I Was the One” (1956)
Elvis Presley “All Shook Up” (1957)
Pee Wee Hunt “Twelfth Street Rag” (1948)
The Andrews Sisters with Vic Schoen’s Orchestra “Rum and Coca-Cola” (1945)
Bing Crosby & the Andrews Sisters “Don’t Fence Me In” (1944)
Tonny Bennett with Percy Faith’s Orchestra “Because of You” (1951)
Frankie Laine with Jud Conlon’s Rhythmaires “That Lucky Old Sun” (1949)
Patti Page “The Doggie in the Window” (1953)
Perry Como with Hugo Winterhalter’s Orchestar “Wanted” (1954)
Eddie Fisher with Hugo Winterhalter’s Orchestra “O Mein Papa (Oh My Papa)” (1953) Frankie Carle with Marjorie Hughes “Rumors Are Flying” (1946)
7 weeks:
Elvis Presley “Jailhouse Rock” (1957)
Tennessee Ernie Ford “Sixteen Tons” (1955)
Nat “King” Cole with Frank DeVol’s Orchestra “Nature Boy” (1948)
Jo Mercer with the Pied Pipers “On the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe” (1945)
The Chordettes “Mr. Sandman” (1954)
Jimmy Dorsey with Bob Eberly & Kitty Kallen “Besame Mucho (Kiss Me Much)” (1944)
Elvis Presley “Let Me Be Your Teddy Bear” (1957)
Evelyn Knight & the Stardusters “A Little Bird Told Me” (1948)
The Crew-Cuts “Sh-Boom” (1954)
Les Brown with Doris Day “My Dreams Are Getting Bigger All the Time” (1945)
Sammy Kaye with Billy Williams “The Old Lamplighter” (1946)
Russ Morgan & the Skylarks “Cruising Down the River on a Sunday Afternoon” (1949)
6 weeks:
Mitch Miller “The Yellow Rose of Texas” (1955)
The McGuire Sisters “Sincerely” (1954)
Frankie Carle & Marjorie Hughes “Oh What It Seemed to Be” (1946)
Tex Williams “Smoke! Smoke! Smoke! (That Cigarette)” (1947)
Frankie Laine & the Muleskinners “Mule Train” (1949)
Rosemary Clooney with Buddy Cole “Hey There” (1954)
Gogi Grant “Thw Wayward Wind” (1956)
Sheb Wooley “The Purple People Eater” (1958)
Kay Kyser with Gloria Wood “Woody Woodpecker” (1948)
Perry Como with Mitchell Ayres Orchestra “If (They Made Me a King)” (1951)
Tony Bennett with Percy Faith’s Orchestra “Rags to Riches” (1953)
Rosemary Clooney “Come on-a My House” (1951)
Tony Bennett with Percy Faith’s Orchestra “Cold Cold Heart” (1951)
5 weeks:
Elvis Presley “Love Me Tender” / “Any Way You Want Me” (1956)
Danny & The Juniors “At the Hop” (1957)
Nat “King” Cole “Mona Lisa” (1950)
Jo Stafford “You Belong to Me” (1952)
Vaughn Monroe “Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!” (1945)
Perry Como “Some Enchanted Evening” (1949)
Domenico Modugno “Volare (Nel Blu Dipinto Di Blue)” (1958)
The Champs “Tequila” (1958)
Pat Boone “Love Letters in the Sand” (1957)
Nat “King” Cole “Too Young” (1951)
Shep Fields with Hal Derwin “South of the Border (Down Mexico Way)” (1939)
Eddy Howard “To Each His Own” (1946)
Bill Hayes “The Ballad of Davy Crockett” (1955)
The Mills Brothers “You Always Hurt the One You Love” (1944)
Dean Martin “Memories Are Made of This” (1955)
Perry Como & the Ramblers with Mitchell Ayres’ Orchestra “Don't Let the Stars Get in Your Eyes” (1952)
Glen Gray with Eugenie Baird “My Heart Tells Me (Should I Believe My Heart?)” (1943)
Teresa Brewer with Jack Pleis’ Orchestra “Till I Waltz Again with You” (1952)
Bing Crosby with John Scott Trotter’s Orchestra “I Love You” (1944)
Patti Page “I Went to Your Wedding” (1954)
Elvis Presley “Don’t” (1958)
Tab Hunter “Young Love” (1956)
Leroy Anderson & His “Pops” Concert Orchestra “Blue Tango” (1951)
4 weeks:
The Everly Brothers “All I Have to Do Is Dream” (1958)
Bing Crosby with John Scott Trotter’s Orchestra “I’ll Be Seeing You” (1944)
The Harmonicats “Peg O’ My Heart” (1947)
Roger Williams “Autumn Leaves” (1955)
Harry James with Dick Haymes “I’ll Get by As Long As I Have You” (1941)
Vic Damone “You’re Breaking My Heart” (1949)
The Andrews Sisters with Gordon Jenkin’s Orchestra “I Can Dream, Can’t I?” (1949)
Dinah Shore “I’ll Walk Alone” (1944)
Red Foley “Chattanoogie Shoe Shine Boy” (1950)
Teresa Brewer with the Dixieland All Stars “Music! Music! Music!” (1950)
Les Baxter “The Poor People of Paris” (1956)
Joni James with Lew Douglas’ Orchestra “Why Don’t You Believe Me” (1952)
Phil Harris with Walter Scharf’s Orchestra “The Thing” (1950)
Nelson Riddle & His Orchestra “Lisbon Antigua” (1955)
Stan Freberg with Daws Butler & June Foray “St. George and the Dragonet” (1953)

Resources and Related Links:

Dave’s Music Database “Other Best-of Billboard lists”
Dave’s Music Database: “Other Chart-Based Lists”
Dave’s Music Database: “USA: #1 Pop Songs, 1890-present”

First posted 9/6/2021.

Billboard: Biggest #1 Pop Songs, 1890-1958

Billboard’s Biggest #1 Pop Songs:

1890-1958

The Billboard Hot 100 chart was launched on August 4, 1958. It has become the industry standard for tracking the biggest pop hits in the United States. However, prior to 1958, Billboard had been doing charts as far back as 1890 which tracked pop hits in terms of sheet music sales, radio airplay, in-store sales, and jukebox plays. These are the biggest #1 songs according to Billboard from 1890 until the inception of the Hot 100 chart. All songs which spent eight weeks or more are listed here. Ties are broken by songs’ overall Dave’s Music Database points.

See other chart-based lists here.

17 weeks:

Francis Craig with Bob Lamm “Near You” (1947)
14 weeks:
Bing Crosby with the Ken Darby Singers “White Christmas” (1942)

13 weeks:
Glenn Miller “In the Mood”
Gene Austin “My Blue Heaven”
Patti Page “Tennessee Waltz” (1950)
Ben Selvin “Dardanella” (1920)
Artie Shaw “Frenesi” (1940)
The Weavers with Gordon Jenkins’ Orchestra “Goodnight Irene” (1950)
Harry James with Helen Forrest “I’ve Heard That Song Before” (1943)
The Ink Spots “The Gypsy” (1946)
Ted Weems with Elmo Tanner “Heartaches” (1947)

12 weeks:
Tommy Dorsey & His Orchestra with Frank Sinatra & the Pied Pipers “I’ll Never Smile Again” (1940)
The Mills Brothers “Paper Doll” (1943)
Vernon Dalhart “The Prisoner’s Song” (1925)
Vaughn Monroe “Riders in the Sky (A Cowboy Legend)” (1949)
Jo Stafford “You Belong to Me” (1952)
Al Jolson “Sonny Boy” (1928)

11 weeks:
Elvis Presley “Don’t Be Cruel” (1956) /
Elvis Presley “Hound Dog” (1956)
Leo Reisman & His Orchestra with Fred Astaire & Ginger Rogers “Cheek to Cheek” (1935)
Paul Whiteman’s Orchestra “Whispering” (1920)
Al Jolson “April Showers” (1922)
Byron Harlan “School Days (When We Were a Couple of Kids)” (1907)
American Quartet with Billy Murray “Casey Jones” (1910)
Haydn Quartet “Put on Your Old Grey Bonnet” (1909)
Johnnie Ray & the Four Lads “Cry” (1951)
Arthur Collins “The Preacher and the Bear” (1905)
Paul Whiteman & His Orchestra with Franklyn Baur “Valencia (A Song of Spain)” (1926)
Les Paul with Mary Ford “Vaya Con Dios (May God Be with You)” (1953)
Henry Burr “Just a Baby’s Prayer at Twilight (For Her Daddy Over There)” (1918)
Anton Karas “The Third Man Theme” (1950)
Frankie Carle & Marjorie Hughes “Oh What It Seemed to Be” (1946)
Len Spencer “Arkansaw Traveler” (1902)
Guy Lombardo “The Third Man Theme” (1950)

10 weeks:
Arthur Collins & Byron Harlan “Alexander’s Ragtime Band” (1911)
Leo Reisman’s Orchestra with Fred Astaire “Night and Day” (1932)
Billy Murray “You’re a Grand Old Flag (aka “The Grand Old Rag”)” (1906)
Ella Fitzgerald with Chick Webb & His Orchestra “A-Tisket, A-Tasket” (1938)
Haydn Quartet “Sweet Adeline (You’re the Flower of My Heart)” (1904)
Bing Crosby with George Stoll’s Orchestra “Pennies from Heaven” (1936)
George J. Gaskin “After the Ball” (1893)
Dinah Shore & Her Harper Valley Boys “Buttons and Bows” (1948)
Byron Harlan “My Gal Sal” (1907)
Nick Lucas “Tip-Toe Thru the Tulips with Me” (1929)
The Andrews Sisters with Vic Schoen’s Orchestra “Rum and Coca-Cola” (1945)
Bing Crosby with Lani McIntire & His Hawaiians “Sweet Leilani” (1937)
Perry Como “Till the End of Time” (1945)
Rudy Vallee & His Connecticut Yankees “Stein Song (University of Maine)” (1930)
Ted Lewis & His Band “In a Shanty in Old Shanty Town” (1932)
Guy Mitchell “Singing the Blues” (1956)
Jimmy Dorsey & His Orchestra with Bob Eberly & Helen O’Connell “Amapola (Pretty Little Poppy)” (1941)
George J. Gaskin “On the Banks of the Wabash” (1897)
Dan Quinn “The Band Played On” (1895)
Vaughn Monroe’s Orchestra “Ballerina” (1947)
Percy Faith with Felicia Sanders “Where Is Your Heart (Song from “Moulin Rouge”)” (1953)
The McGuire Sisters “Sincerely” (1955)
Tonny Bennett with Percy Faith’s Orchestra “Because of You” (1951)
Perez “Prez” Prado “Cherry Pink and Apple Blossom White” (1955)
Glenn Miller Orchestra with Ray Eberle & The Modernaires “Moonlight Cocktail” (1942)
Kay Starr “Wheel of Fortune” (1952)
George W. Johnson “The Laughing Song” (1891)
George J. Gaskin “My Old New Hampshire Home” (1898)
Eileen Barton “If I Knew You Were Comin’ I’d’ve Baked a Cake” (1950)
Patti Page “I Went to Your Wedding” (1952)
9 weeks:
American Quartet “Over There” (1917)
Al Jolson “Swanee” (1920)
Glenn Miller with Tex Beneke & the Four Modernaires “Chattanooga Choo Choo” (1941)
Les Brown with Doris Day “Sentimental Journey” (1945)
Billy Murray with the Haydn Quartet “By the Light of the Silvery Moon” (1910)
Ada Jones & Billy Murray “Shine on, Harvest Moon” (1909)
Billy Murray “Meet Me in St. Louis, Louis” (1904)
Larry Clinton with Bea Wain “Deep Purple” (1939)
Henry Burr with Albert Campbell “Till We Meet Again” (1919)
Bing Crosby with John Scottt Trotter’s Orchestra “Swinging on a Star” (1944)
Byron Harlan “Wait Till the Sun Shines, Nellie” (1906)
Les Paul & Mary Ford “How High the Moon” (1951)
Glenn Miller “Tuxedo Junction” (1940)
George Olsen with Joe Morrison “The Last Round-Up” (1933)
Billy Murray “Harrigan” (1907)
Dan Quinn “Daisy Bell (A Bicycle Built for Two)” (1893)
Bert Williams “Nobody” (1906)
Henry Burr “Beautiful Ohio” (1919)
Dan Quinn “The Sidewalks of New York” (1895)
Kitty Kallen with Jack Pleis’ Orchestra “Little Things Mean a Lot” (1954)
Peggy Lee with Dave Barbour’s Orchestra “Manana Is Soon Enough for Me” (1948)
Vera Lynn with Ronald Shaw’s Orchestra “Auf Wiederseh'n Sweetheart” (1952)
Andrews Sisters with Vic Shoen’s Orchestra “Shoo-Shoo Baby” (1943)
Bing Corsby “Only Forever” (1940)
The Crew-Cuts “Sh-Boom” (1954) Frankie Carle with Marjorie Hughes “Rumors Are Flying” (1946)
8 weeks:
Bill Haley & the Comets “We’re Gonna Rock Around the Clock” (1954)
Elvis Presley “Heartbreak Hotel” (1956)
Elvis Presley “All Shook Up” (1957)
Billy Murray “Yankee Doodle Boy” (1905)
Arthur Collins “Bill Bailey, Won’t You Please Come Home” (1902)
American Quartet “Moonlight Bay” (1912)
Pee Wee Hunt “Twelfth Street Rag” (1948)
Al Jolson “Rock-a-Bye Your Baby with a Dixie Melody” (1918)
The Harmonicats “Peg O’ My Heart” (1947)
Nat “King” Cole “Mona Lisa” (1950)
John McCormack “It’s a Long, Long Way to Tipperary” (1915)
Tennessee Ernie Ford “Sixteen Tons” (1955)
Henry Burr “I Wonder Who’s Kissing Her Now” (1909)
Nat “King” Cole with Frank DeVol’s Orchestra “Nature Boy” (1948)
Paul Whiteman “Three O’Clock in the Morning” (1922)
John Philip Sousa “The Stars and Stripes Forever” (1897)
Bing Crosby & the Andrews Sisters “Don’t Fence Me In” (1944)
Len Spencer “Ta-Ra-Ra Boom-De-Ay” (1892)
Jo Mercer with the Pied Pipers “On the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe” (1945)
Gene Austin with Nat Shilkret’s Orchestra “Ramona” (1928)
Al Dexter & His Troops “Pistol Packin’ Mama” (1943)
George J. Gaskin “When You Were Sweet Sixteen” (1900)
Kay Kyser with Harry Babbitt & Julie Conway “Jingle Jangle Jingle” (1942)
Frankie Laine with Jud Conlon’s Rhythmaires “That Lucky Old Sun” (1949)
Patti Page “The Doggie in the Window” (1953)
Larry Clinton with Bea Wain “My Reverie” (1938)
Sammy Kaye “Daddy” (1941)
Eddy Howard “To Each His Own” (1946)
Rudy Vallee “Honey” (1929)
Paul Whiteman with Jack Fulton “In a Little Spanish Town ('Twas on a Night Like This)” (1927)
George J. Gaskin “Oh Promise Me” (1893)
Perry Como with Hugo Winterhalter’s Orchestar “Wanted” (1954)
Red Foley “Chattanoogie Shoe Shine Boy” (1950)
Frankie Masters “Scatter-Brain” (1939)
Gogi Grant “The Wayward Wind” (1956)
George J. Gaskin “Sweet Rosie O’Grady” (1897)
Eddie Fisher with Hugo Winterhalter’s Orchestra “O Mein Papa (Oh My Papa)” (1953)
George J. Gaskin “The Fatal Wedding” (1893)
Perry Como with Mitchell Ayres Orchestra “If (They Made Me a King)” (1951)
Leo Reisman & Harold Arlen “Stormy Weather (Keeps Rainin' All the Time)” (1933)
Eddy Howard “Sin (It’s No Sin)” (1951)
Tony Bennett with Percy Faith’s Orchestra “Rags to Riches” (1953)
Freddy Martin with Jack Fina “Piano Concerto in B Flat” (1941)
The Ames Brothers with Hugo Winterhalter’s Orchestra “You You You” (1953)
Rosemary Clooney “Come on-a My House” (1951)
Frank Sinatra “Oh What It Seemed to Be” (1946)
Dinah Shore “The Gypsy” (1946)

Resources and Related Links:

Dave’s Music Database “Other Best-of Billboard lists”
Dave’s Music Database: “Other Chart-Based Lists”
Dave’s Music Database: “USA: #1 Pop Songs, 1890-present”

First posted 9/6/2021.

Monday, December 7, 2020

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

USA’s Biggest #1 Pop Songs

This page has been updated and moved here.

Sunday, November 3, 2019

Billboard 1940-1958 (Pre-Hot 100 Era): Top 100

First posted 11/3/2019.

In 1958, Billboard magazine introduced the Hot 100 chart which consolidated information from sales, airplay, and jukebox plays. In the 18 preceding that, there were separate charts for each of those three. This list shows which songs did the best on those three charts. Songs are listed by total combined weeks on the three charts with codes indicating how many weeks on each of the three charts. Ties are broken by songs’ overall status in Dave’s Music Database.

BS = Best Sellers
DJ = Most Played by Disc Jockeys
JB = Most Played on Jukeboxes

42 weeks:

1. Francis Craig with Bob Lamm “Near You” (1947) BS: 12, DJ: 17, JB: 13

36 weeks:

2. Ted Weems with Elmo Tanner “Heartaches” (1947) BS: 12, DJ: 11, JB: 13

33 weeks:

3. Vaughn Monroe “Riders in the Sky (A Cowboy Legend)” (1949) BS: 11, DJ: 12, JB: 10
4. The Weavers with Gordon Jenkins’ Orchestra “Goodnight Irene” (1950) BS: 13, DJ: 8, JB: 12

30 weeks:

5. Patti Page “Tennessee Waltz” (1950) BS: 9, DJ: 8, JB: 13
6. Johnnie Ray & the Four Lads “Cry” (1951) BS: 11, DJ: 10, JB: 9

28 weeks:

7. Elvis Presley “Don’t Be Cruel” (1956) BS: 11, DJ: 8, JB: 9
8. Perry Como “Till the End of Time” (1945) BS: 10, DJ: 9, JB: 9
9. Guy Mitchell “Singing the Blues” (1956) BS: 9, DJ: 9, JB: 10
10. Kay Starr “Wheel of Fortune” (1952) BS: 9, DJ: 9, JB: 10

27 weeks:

11. Les Paul & Mary Ford “How High the Moon” (1951) BS: 9, DJ: 9, JB: 9

26 weeks:

12. Tony Bennett “Because of You” (1951) BS: 8, DJ: 8, JB: 10

25 weeks:

13. The Ink Spots “The Gypsy” (1946) BS: 10, DJ: 2, JB: 13
14. Vaughn Monroe “Ballerina” (1947) BS: 10, DJ: 8, JB: 7
15. Percy Faith “Where Is Your Heart (Song from “Moulin Rouge”)” (1953) BS: 10, DJ: 9, JB: 6
16. Frankie Carle with Marjorie Hughes “Rumors Are Flying” (1946) BS: 8, DJ: 9, JB: 8

24 weeks:

17. Elvis Presley “All Shook Up” (1957) BS: 8, DJ: 7, JB: 9
18. Dinah Shore “Buttons and Bows” (1948) BS: 10, DJ: 5, JB: 9
19. Kitty Kallen “Little Things Mean a Lot” (1954) BS: 9, DJ: 8, JB: 7
20. The Crew-Cuts “Sh-Boom” (1954) BS: 7, DJ: 9, JB: 8

23 weeks:

21. Les Brown with Doris Day “Sentimental Journey” (1945) BS: 9, DJ: 7, JB: 7
22. Bing Crosby & the Andrews Sisters “Don’t Fence Me In” (1944) BS: 8, DJ: 7, JB: 8
23. Les Paul & Mary Ford “Vaya Con Dios (May God Be with You)” (1953) BS: 11, DJ: 3, JB: 9
24. The McGuire Sisters “Sincerely” (1954) BS: 6, DJ: 10, JB: 7
25. Perez “Prez” Prado “Cherry Pink and Apple Blossom White” (1955) BS: 10, DJ: 5, JB: 8
26. Perry Como “Wanted” (1954) BS: 8, DJ: 7, JB: 8

22 weeks:

27. Patti Page “The Doggie in the Window” (1953) BS: 8, DJ: 7, JB: 7
28. Rosemary Clooney “Come on-a My House” (1951) BS: 6, DJ: 8, JB: 8

21 weeks:

29. Johnny Mercer & the Pied Pipers “On the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe” (1945) BS: 7, DJ: 6, JB: 8
30. Peggy Lee “Manana Is Soon Enough for Me” (1948) BS: 9, DJ: 7, JB: 5
31. Eddie Fisher “O Mein Papa (Oh My Papa)” (1953) BS: 8, DJ: 7, JB: 6
32. Tony Bennett “Rags to Riches” (1953) BS: 6, DJ: 7, JB: 8

20 weeks:

33. Bill Haley & the Comets “We’re Gonna Rock Around the Clock” (1954) BS: 8, DJ: 5, JB: 7
34. Elvis Presley “Hound Dog” (1956): BS: 11, JB: 9
35. Tennessee Ernie Ford “Sixteen Tons” (1955) BS: 7, DJ: 6, JB: 7
36. Frankie Laine with Jud Conlon’s Rhythmaires “That Lucky Old Sun” (1949) BS: 8, DJ: 7, JB: 5
37. Evelyn Knight & the Stardusters “A Little Bird Told Me” (1948) BS: 7, DJ: 6, JB: 7

19 weeks:

38. Elvis Presley “Heartbreak Hotel” (1956) BS: 6, DJ: 3, JB: 8
39. Jo Stafford “You Belong to Me” (1952) BS: 5, DJ: 12, JB: 2
40. Eddy Howard “To Each His Own” (1946) BS: 5, DJ: 8, JB: 6
41. Vera Lynn “Auf Widerseh’n Sweetheart” (1952) BS: 9, DJ: 6, JB: 4
42. Perry Como “If (They Made Me a King)” (1951) BS: 6, DJ: 8, JB: 5

18 weeks:

43. Nat “King” Cole “Mona Lisa” (1950) BS: 5, DJ: 8, JB: 5
44. Pee Wee Hunt Orchestra “Twelfth Street Rag” (1948) BS: 8, DJ: 4, JB: 6
45. The Andrews Sisters “Rum and Coca Cola” (1945) BS: 8, JB: 10
46. Mitch Miller “The Yellow Rose of Texas” (1955) BS: 6, DJ: 6, JB: 6
47. The Chordettes “Mr. Sandman” (1954) S: 7, DJ: 7, JB: 4
48. Frankie Laine & the Muleskinners “Mule Train” (1949) BS: 6, DJ: 6, JB: 6
49. Gogi Grant “The Wayward Wind” (1956) BS: 6, DJ: 8, JB: 4,
50. Kay Kyser with Gloria Wood “Woody Woodpecker” (1948) BS: 6, DJ: 6, JB: 6
51. Teresa Brewer “TilL I Waltz Again with You” (1952) BS: 5, DJ: 6, JB: 7

17 weeks:

52. Bing Crosby with the Williams Brothers Quartet “Swinging on a Star” (1944) BS: 9, JB: 8
53. Frankie Carle with Marjorie Hughes “Oh What It Seemed to Be” (1946) BS: 6, JB: 11
54. Les Brown with Doris Day “My Dreams Are Getting Bigger All the Time” (1945) BS: 7: DJ: 3, JB: 7

16 weeks:

55. Patti Page “I Went to Your Wedding” (1952) BS: 5, DJ: 1, JB: 10
56. Tab Hunter “Young Love” (1956) BS: 5, DJ: 6, JB: 5

15 weeks:

57. Nat “King” Cole “Nature Boy” (1948) BS: 7, DJ: 8
58. Vaughn Monroe “Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!” (1945) BS: 5, DJ: 5, JB: 5
59. Rosemary Clooney “Hey There” (1954) BS: 6, DJ: 4, JB; 5
60. Eileen Barton with the New Yorkers “If I Knew You Were Comin’ I’d’ve Baked a Cake” (1950) BS: 2, DJ: 10, JB: 3
61. Sammy Kaye with Billy Williams “The Old Lamplighter” (1946) BS: 7, DJ: 1, JB: 7
62. Dean Martin “Memories Are Made of This” (1955) BS: 5, DJ: 6, JB: 4

14 weeks:

63. Red Foley “Chattanoogie Shoe Shine Boy” (1950) BS: 4, DJ: 2, JB: 8
64. The Ames Brothers “You, You, You” (1953) DJ: 8, JB: 6

13 weeks:

65. Glenn Miller “In the Mood” (1939) JB: 13
66. Artie Shaw “Frenesi” (1940) BS: 13
67. Shep Fields with Hal Derwin “South of the Border (Down Mexico Way)” (1939) JB: 13
68. Nat “King” Cole “Too Young” (1951) BS: 5, DJ: 4, JB: 4
69. Joni James “Why Don’t You Believe Me” (1952) BS: 4, DJ: 6, JB: 3
70. Georgia Gibbs “Kiss of Fire” (1952) DJ: 7, JB: 6
71. Russ Morgan & the Skylarks “Crusing Down the River on a Sunday Afternoon” (1949) BS: 7, JB: 6
72. Jo Stafford “Make Love to Me!” (1954) BS: 3, DJ: 3, JB: 7

12 weeks:

73. Tommy Dorsey with Frank Sinatra “I’ll Never Smile Again” (1940) BS: 12
74. The Harmonicats “Peg O’ My Heart” (1947) BS: 4, JB: 8
75. Perry Como “Some Enchanted Evening” (1949) BS: 5, DJ: 2, JB: 5
76. Art Mooney “I’m Looking Over a Four-Leaf Clover” (1948) BS: 3, DJ: 4, JB: 5
77. Pat Boone “Love Letters in the Sand” (1957) BS: 5, DJ: 7
78. Blue Barron & His Orchestra “Crusing Down the River on a Sunday Afternoon” (1949) BS: 2, DJ: 7, JB: 3
79. The Andrews Sisters “I Can Dream, Can’t I?” (1949) BS: 4, DJ: 5, JB: 3
80. Perry Como & the Ramblers “Don’t Let the Stars Get in Your Eyes” (1952) BS: 5, DJ: 3, JB: 4
81. Eddie Fisher “I’m Walking Behind You” (1953) BS: 2, DJ: 3, JB: 7

11 weeks:

82. Elvis Presley “Love Me Tender” (1956) BS: 5, DJ: 5, JB: 1
83. Anton Karas “The Third Man Theme” (1950) BS: 11
84. The Four Aces “Love Is a Many Splendored Thing” (1955) BS: 2, DJ: 6, JB: 3
85. Tex Williams “Smoke! Smoke! Smoke! That Cigarette” (1947) BS: 6, DJ: 1, JB: 4
86. Vic Damone “You’re Breaking My Heart” (1949) BS: 4, DJ: 4, JB: 3
87. Bill Hayes “The Ballad of Davy Crockett” (1955) BS: 5, DJ: 3, JB: 3
88. Eddy Howard “Sin (It’s No Sin)” (1951) BS: 2, DJ: 8, JB: 1
89. Les Baxter “The Poor People of Paris” (1956) BS: 4, DJ: 5, JB: 2
90. Guy Lombardo “The Third Man Theme” (1950) JB: 11
91. Phil Harris “The Thing” (1950) BS: 4, DJ: 5, JB: 2

10 weeks:

92. Elvis Presley “Let Me Be Your Teddy Bear” (1957) BS: 7, DJ: 3
93. Harry James with Dick Haymes “I’ll Get By As Long As I Have You” (1941) BS: 4, JB: 6
94. Sheb Wooley “The Purple People Eater” (1958) BS: 6, DJ: 4
95. Joan Weber “Let Me Go, Lover!” (1954) BS: 2, DJ: 4, JB: 4

9 weeks:

96. Elvis Presley “Jailhouse Rock” (1957) BS: 7, DJ: 2
97. The Everly Brothers “All I Have to Do Is Dream” (1958) BS: 4, DJ: 5
98. Glenn Miller “Tuxedo Junction” (1940) JB: 9
99. The Andrews Sisters “Shoo-Shoo Baby” (1943) JB: 9
100. Frank Sinatra “Five Minutes More” (1956) BS: 2, DJ: 4, JB: 3
101. Bing Crosby “Only Forever” (1940) BS: 9
102. Tony Bennett “Cold, Cold Heart” (1951) BS: 6, JB: 3

Wednesday, November 21, 2012

Grammy Hall of Fame Inductees for 2013

image from kfwbarn.com

In 1973, the Recording Academy (more widely known as the Grammys) established a Hall of Fame to, as it says on their website, “honor recordings of lasting qualitative or historical significance that are at least 25 years old.” ^GH On November 21, the 2013 class was inducted, marking the 40th anniversary of the Grammy Hall of Fame. ^UT The full list now comes to 933 entries. ^UT

Neil Portnow, the President and CEO of the Recording Academy, echoed the Grammy’s mission by calling this new batch of recordings “memorable for being both culturally and historically significant.” ^HP Inductees include both albums (in italics) and songs (in quotation marks). Here are the 2013 Grammy Hall of Fame inductees:

AC/DC Back in Black (1980)
James Brown “I Got You (I Feel Good)” (1965)
Ray Charles “Hit the Road Jack” (1961)
John Coltrane and Johnny Hartman John Coltrane and Johnny Hartman (1963)
Francis Craig & His Orchestra “Near You” (1947)
The Drifters “On Broadway” (1963)
Bob Dylan “The Times They Are A-Changin’” (1964)
Joe Falcon “Allons À Lafayette (Lafayette)” (1928)
Lester Flatt, Earl Scruggs, & the Foggy Mountain Boys Foggy Mountain Banjo (1961)
Carols Gardel “El Día Que Me Quieras” (1935)
Son House “My Black Mama (Parts 1 & 2)” (1930)
Whitney Houston Whitney Houston (1985)
Billy Joel “Piano Man” (1973)
Piano Man
Elton John Elton John (1970)
Louis Jordan “Ain’t Nobody Here But Us Chickens” (1946)
Little Richard Here’s Little Richard (1957)
Memphis Jug Band “Stealin’ Stealin’” (1928)
Charles Mingus Mingus Ah Um (1959)
Paul McCartney & Wings Band on the Run (1973)
Buck Owens “Act Naturally” (1963)
Richard Pryor That N*****’s Crazy (1974)
Frank Sinatra “Theme from ‘New York New York’” (1980)
W.H. Stepp “Bonaparte’s Retreat” (1937)
Ernest V. “Pop” Stoneman “The Titanic” (1924)
Willie Mae “Big Mama” Thornton “Hound Dog” (1953)
Lennie Tristano Sextet Crosscurrents (1949)
Various Artists Lost in the Stars (original Broadway cast, 1949)

Resources and Related Links:

^GH Grammy.org Grammy Hall of Fame (inductees from 1973-2012)
^HP Huffington Post Grammy Hall of Fame 2013, 21 November 2012.
^UT USA Today Grammy Hall of Fame to enshrine 27 iconic recordings by Elysa Gardner, 21 November 2012.

Saturday, August 30, 1997

Today in Music (1947): Francis Craig's "Near You" Begins 17 Week Run at #1

Near You

Francis Craig with Bob Lamm

Writer(s): Francis Craig (music), Kermit Goell (words) (see lyrics here)

First Charted: August 9, 1947

Peak: 1¹⁷ BB, 1¹² BA, 1¹⁷ DJ, 1¹³ JB, 1¹² GA, 1⁶ HP, 1¹⁷ SM, 1⁴ AU (Click for codes to charts.)

Sales (in millions): 2.5 US, -- UK, 2.5 world (includes US + UK)

Airplay/Streaming (in millions): -- radio, 0.66 video, -- streaming

Awards:

Click on award for more details.

About the Song:

It shouldn’t be a surprise that with 17 weeks at #1, Francis Craig’s “Near You” was ranked by Billboard magazine as the #1 song of 1947. ^WK That, however, wasn’t the song’s most significant achievement. Those 17 weeks also make “Near You” the biggest #1 pop song in Billboard history. In fact, Craig also held the record for more than 60 years for the artist with the most consecutive weeks at #1. He was surpassed in 2009 by the Black Eyed Peas – who took TWO songs to accomplish the feat with their back-to-back #1’s for “Boom Boom Pow” (12 weeks) and “I Gotta Feeling”(14 weeks). ^WK

Astonishingly, though, it was one of only two chart hits for Craig. When “Near You” charted, he was a has-been orchestra leader closing in on his 50th birthday. Francis Craig was a Nashville-based pianist and composer who had led bands since the 1920s, ^PM including a band at the city’s Hermitage Hotel which he’d led for 20 years. ^TY1 He was also a staff member of a Nashville radio station for 25 years, and was on NBC for 12 years ^TY1 with a Sunday night network program.

However his dance-band format was out of style in post World War II. Still, he decided to record his theme song, “Red Rose”, for Bullet Records. ^WK Needing a B-side, ^TY1 he also recorded “Near You”. He had written the melody as a gift for his grandchildren and was given an assist on the lyrics by New Yorker Kermit Goell. ^WK Blind singer and trumpeter Bob Lamm contributed the vocals. ^WK With 2.5 million copies sold, it was the first major hit on an independent label. ^PM

In 1977, George Jones and Tammy Wynette took the song back to the top – as a #1 country song. In 1959, Jerry Lee Lewis recorded an instrumental version of the song. ^WK Others who recorded the song included the Andrews Sisters (#4), Nat “King” Cole, Larry Green (#3), Elliot awrence (#9), Alvino Rey (#9), Andy Williams, and Roger Williams (#10, 1958). ^WK Milton Berle used “Near You” as his closer on his Texaco Star Theater. It became his theme song for years afterward. ^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 144.
^TY1 Don Tyler (1985). Hit Parade 1920-1955. Quill: New York, NY. Page 132.
^CPM Joel Whitburn (1999). A Century of Pop Music. Record Research, Inc.: Menomonee Falls, WI. Page 66.
^PM Joel Whitburn (1986). Pop Memories 1890-1954. Record Research, Inc: Menomonee Falls, WI. Page 102.
^WK Wikipedia.org

Saturday, December 2, 1995

Mariah Carey and Boyz II Men debuted at #1 with "One Sweet Day"