The Best of 40s Pop Music
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Looking for a trip down memory lane? Check out our blog post on the best of 40s pop music! From big band hits to crooner classics, we’ve got all the tunes you’ll need to take a stroll down memory lane.
The Best of 40s Pop Music
The 1940s was a decade of great change with regards to pop music. A new generation of singers and songwriters emerged, and a new sound began to take shape. The best of 40s pop music includes a wide range of styles and genres, from swing and big band to jazz and blues. In this article, we’ll take a look at some of the best of 40s pop music.
The Andrews Sisters
The Andrews Sisters were an American close harmony singing group of the swing and boogie-woogie eras. The group consisted of three sisters: contralto LaVerne Sophia (July 6, 1911 – May 8, 1967), soprano Maxene Anglyn (January 3, 1916 – October 21, 1995), and mezzo-soprano Patricia Marie “Patty” (February 16, 1918 – January 30, 2013). Throughout their long career, the sisters sold over 75 million records (the last official count released by MCA Records in 1979) and were awarded six gold records. Their 1941 hit “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy” can be considered an early Disco record.
Bing Crosby
Bing Crosby was one of the most popular and successful musical artists of the 40s. He had a string of hits including “White Christmas” and “Don’t Fence Me In.” He won an Academy Award for his role in the 1944 film Going My Way.
Frank Sinatra
Frank Sinatra was an American singer, actor, and producer who was one of the most popular and influential musical artists of the 20th century. He is one of the best-selling music artists of all time, having sold more than 150 million records worldwide. Sinatra’s career spanned six decades, from his beginnings in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey to his work with Columbia Records in the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s, which included collaborations with Nelson Riddle, George Martin and Quincy Jones. His great success continued into the 1980s with albums such as Duets and Frank Sinatra Has a Cold, and ended with his final album, One More for the Road.
The Best of 40s Pop Music
The best of 40s pop music includes a wide variety of popular songs that were released in the 1940s. This decade saw the rise of many different genres of music, including jazz, blues, and country. Some of the most popular artists of the time included Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra, and Nat King Cole. There were also a number of popular female singers, such as Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday. The best of 40s pop music is a reflection of the diverse range of music that was being produced at the time.
The Andrews Sisters
The Andrews Sisters were an American close harmony singing group of the swing and boogie-woogie eras. The group consisted of three sisters: contralto LaVerne Sophia (July 6, 1911 – May 8, 1967), soprano Maxene Angelyn (January 3, 1916 – October 21, 1995), and mezzo-soprano Patricia Marie “Patty” (February 16, 1918 – January 30, 2013). Throughout their long career, the sisters sold well over 75 million records (the last official count released by MCA Records in the 1980s) and earned numerous gold and platinum discs. They had twelve songs enter the Billboard’s Top 40; several of their biggest hits were “Bei Mir Bist Du Schön” (1937), “Beat Me Daddy Eight to the Bar” (1940), their signature US wartime hit “Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy” (1941), and “Rumors Are Flying” (1942).
Bing Crosby
Bing Crosby was one of the most popular and influential multimedia stars of the 20th century. His career in radio, film, and television spanned more than 50 years. Crosby was a major player in the development of the pop music genre and he is credited with helping to shape the sound of modern popular music.
Born Harry Lillis Crosby in 1903, Bing began his career as a jazz singer in the 1920s. He found success as a solo artist with his crooning style and soon became one of the most popular entertainers in America. In the 1930s, he began appearing in films and his popularity only grew from there. By the 1940s, he was one of the biggest names in Hollywood and his hits like “White Christmas” and “Swinging on a Star” were being heard around the world.
Crosby’s appeal crossed all demographics and he remained popular into the 1950s and 1960s thanks to his regular appearances on television. He passed away in 1977 but his impact on pop music is still felt today. Some of Bing’s most famous songs include “Too-Ra-Loo-Ra-Loo-Ral (That’s an Irish Lullaby),” “Blue Skies,” “Summertime,” “Don’t Fence Me In,” and “What’s New?”
Frank Sinatra
Frank Sinatra is often considered the most important figure in the history of popular music. He was a dominant force in the music industry for over three decades and his influence is still felt today. He popularized a new style of singing that revolutionized pop music and redefined the American standard. His career spanned several genres, including jazz, big band, pop, and broadcast radio. He was also an accomplished actor, appearing in over fifty films.
Sinatra was born in Hoboken, New Jersey, on December 12th, 1915. His father, Marty Sinatra, was a professional boxer and singer who had emigrated from Sicily. His mother, Dolly Sinatra, was a local political activist who later ran for office. Sinatra began singing professionally in his teens and found success with his first band, the Hoboken Four. He later joined Harry James’s orchestra and toured with the group for several years before signing a contract with Columbia Records in 1943.
He released his first album, The Voice of Frank Sinatra, in 1945. The album was a critical and commercial success, cementing Sinatra’s place as one of the most popular singers of the day. He followed this success with a string of hits including “Nancy (with the Laughing Face),” “I’ve Got You Under My Skin,” “One for My Baby (and One More for the Road),” “My Way,” and “New York, New York.” In addition to his solo work, Sinatra also recorded several albums with The Rat Pack, a group of entertainers that included Sammy Davis Jr., Dean Martin, and Humphrey Bogart.
Sinatra’s popularity continued into the 1970s and 1980s with successful albums like Duets (1993) and Duets II (1994). He continued to perform live until shortly before his death on May 14th 1998. His impact on popular music is still felt today; he is often cited as an influence by contemporary artists across all genres.
