The Most Popular Song the Year You Were Born — History Facts

1940s

Billboard unveiled its first music chart in July 1940, and the song “I’ll Never Smile Again” — which featured a young Frank Sinatra on vocals — topped the chart for the first 12 weeks. From 1940 through 1943, Billboard only took into account retail sales for determining the top song, but later years saw the introduction of charts that tracked other metrics, such as total jukebox plays and radio play. Throughout the 1940s, orchestral bandleaders such as Tommy Dorsey, Artie Shaw, and Glenn Miller dominated the music scene in terms of retail sales and on-air playtime. Here’s a look at the most popular Billboard songs from the 1940s based on total sales, the one metric that was used throughout the decade. 

1940 — “I’ll Never Smile Again” by Tommy Dorsey and His Orchestra with Frank Sinatra and the Pied Pipers
1941 — “Frenesi” by Artie Shaw and His Orchestra
1942 — “Moonlight Cocktail” by Glenn Miller and His Orchestra
1943 — “I’ve Heard That Song Before” by Harry James and His Orchestra with Helen Forrest
1944 — “Swinging on a Star” by Bing Crosby with John Scott Trotter and His Orchestra and the Williams Brothers Quartet 
1945 — “Till the End of Time” by Perry Como with Russ Case and His Orchestra
1946 — “The Gypsy” by the Ink Spots
1947 — “Heartaches” by Ted Weems and His Orchestra with Elmo Tanner
1948 — “Mañana (Is Soon Enough for Me)” by Peggy Lee with Dave Barbour and the Brazilians
1949 — “Riders in the Sky (A Cowboy Legend)” by Vaughn Monroe and His Orchestra

1950s

The early 1950s continued many of the musical trends from the 1940s, as bandleaders and musical standards continued to dominate the top of the charts — that is, until Elvis Presley showed up and revolutionized the music scene. Elvis topped the charts in both 1956 and 1957, the two years that preceded the first-ever Hot 100 ranking. In 1958, the weekly Hot 100 chart debuted with Ricky Nelson’s “Poor Little Fool” in the No. 1 spot, though it was “Volare” by Domenico Modugno that ended up being the best-performing song that year, based on the number of weeks it spent on the chart, the number of records sold, and how much airplay it received.

1950 — “Goodnight Irene” by Gordon Jenkins and His Orchestra and the Weavers
1951 — “How High the Moon” by Les Paul and Mary Ford
1952 — “Cry” by Johnnie Ray and the Four Lads
1953 — “The Song From Moulin Rouge (Where Is Your Heart)” by Percy Faith and His Orchestra featuring Felicia Sanders
1954 — “Little Things Means a Lot” by Kitty Kallen with Jack Pleiss and His Orchestra 
1955 — “Cherry Pink and Apple Blossom White” by Pérez Prado and His Orchestra
1956 — “Don’t Be Cruel” by Elvis Presley
1957 — “All Shook Up” by Elvis Presley
1958 — “Volare (Nel Blu Dipinto Di Blue)” by Domenico Modugno
1959 — “The Battle of New Orleans” by Johnny Horton