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Songs from the Year 1946
| Other Years: | 1900s | 1910s | 1920s | 1930s | 1940s | 1942 | 1943 | 1944 | 1945 | 1946 | 1947 | 1948 | 1949 | 1950 | 1950s | 1960s | 1970s | 1980s | 1990s | 2000s |
This page lists the top songs of 1946 in the source charts. The way that the various charts are combined to reach this final list is described on the in the site generation page.
Between 1920 and 1940 there are few available charts (at least that we can find), hence these results should be treated with caution since, with few exceptions, they are based on fairly subjective charts.
During this era music was dominated by a number of "Big Bands" and songs could be attributed to the band leader, the band name, the lead singer or a combination of the them. It is common, for example, to see the same song listed with three different artists. And, just to stop us from getting bored, the success of a song was tied to the sales of sheet music, so a popular song would often be perfomed by many different combinations of singers and bands and the contemporary charts would list the song, without clarifying whose version was the major hit. Where we have found such issues we have attempted to consolidate the entries using the most widely accepted value for the artist in each case.
| # | Artist | Song Title | Year | Chart Entries |
| 1 | Frank Sinatra | Five Minutes More | 1946 | US Billboard 1 - Aug 1946 (22 weeks), US 1940s 1 - Aug 1946 (18 weeks), US 1 for 2 weeks - Sep 1946, Australia 1 for 1 month - May 1947, DZE 8 of 1946, POP 10 of 1946, Europe 11 of the 1940s (1946), US BB 15 of 1946, Brazil 32 of 1946, RYM 43 of 1946 |
| 2 | Perry Como | Prisoner of Love | 1946 | US Billboard 1 - Mar 1946 (21 weeks), US 1940s 1 - Mar 1946 (19 weeks), US 1 for 3 weeks - May 1946, Australia 1 for 2 months - Feb 1947, DZE 9 of 1946, US BB 10 of 1946, POP 17 of 1946, Brazil 71 of 1946, Europe 93 of the 1940s (1946) |
| 3 | Johnny Mercer | Personality | 1946 | US Billboard 1 - Jan 1946 (15 weeks), US 1940s 1 - Jan 1946 (16 weeks), US BB 1 of 1946, US 1 for 1 week - Mar 1946, POP 2 of 1946, RYM 78 of 1945, Brazil 79 of 1946 |
| 4 | The Ink Spots | The Gypsy | 1946 | US Billboard 1 - May 1946 (23 weeks), US 1940s 1 - May 1946 (18 weeks), US 1 for 10 weeks - May 1946, DZE 1 of 1946, US BB 7 of 1946, POP 9 of 1946, Brazil 30 of 1946 |
| 5 | Freddy Martin | Symphony | 1946 | US Billboard 1 - Dec 1945 (17 weeks), US 1940s 1 - Dec 1945 (15 weeks), US 1 for 2 weeks - Jan 1945, Australia 1 for 2 months - Oct 1946, US BB 9 of 1946, POP 15 of 1946, Brazil 53 of 1946 |
| 6 | Vaughn Monroe | Let it Snow! Let it Snow! Let it Snow! | 1946 | US Billboard 1 - Dec 1945 (14 weeks), US 1940s 1 - Dec 1945 (15 weeks), US 1 for 5 weeks - Jan 1946, US BB 4 of 1946, POP 4 of 1946, DZE 7 of 1946, Europe 48 of the 1940s (1946), Brazil 61 of 1946 |
| 7 | The Ink Spots | To Each His Own | 1946 | US Billboard 1 - Aug 1946 (14 weeks), US 1940s 1 - Sep 1946 (11 weeks), US 1 for 1 week - Sep 1946, Australia 1 for 1 month - Apr 1947, US BB 8 of 1946, POP 24 of 1946, Europe 92 of the 1940s (1946) |
| 8 | Freddy Martin | To Each His Own | 1946 | US Billboard 1 - Aug 1946 (17 weeks), US 1940s 1 - Aug 1946 (12 weeks), US 1 for 2 weeks - Aug 1946, Australia 1 for 1 month - Apr 1947, POP 24 of 1946, Brazil 74 of 1947 |
| 9 | Nat King Cole | (I Love You) For Sentimental Reasons | 1946 | US Billboard 1 - Nov 1946 (25 weeks), US 1940s 1 - Nov 1946 (12 weeks), US 1 for 1 week - Feb 1947, US BB 3 of 1946, POP 13 of 1946, RYM 15 of 1946, Brazil 22 of 1947 |
| 10 | Frankie Carle | Rumors Are Flying | 1946 | US Billboard 1 - Sep 1946 (18 weeks), US 1940s 1 - Sep 1946 (16 weeks), US 1 for 8 weeks - Oct 1946, DZE 3 of 1946, US BB 13 of 1946, POP 21 of 1946, Brazil 66 of 1947 |
| 11 | Nat King Cole | The Christmas Song (Merry Christmas to You) | 1946 | Grammy Hall of Fame in 1974 (1946), POP 1 of 1946, US Billboard 3 - Nov 1946 (7 weeks), Scrobulate 4 of christmas, US 1940s 7 - Dec 1946 (2 weeks), RYM 8 of 1946, UK 51 - Dec 1991 (4 weeks), Acclaimed 1457 (1946) |
| 12 | Sammy Kaye | The Old Lamplighter | 1946 | US Billboard 1 - Nov 1946 (17 weeks), US 1940s 1 - Nov 1946 (14 weeks), US 1 for 7 weeks - Dec 1946, DZE 5 of 1946, POP 14 of 1946, Brazil 46 of 1947 |
| 13 | Eddy Howard | To Each His Own | 1946 | US Billboard 1 - Jun 1946 (24 weeks), US 1940s 1 - Jul 1946 (19 weeks), US 1 for 5 weeks - Aug 1946, DZE 4 of 1946, Brazil 56 of 1946, Europe 95 of the 1940s (1946) |
| 14 | Kay Kyser | Ole Buttermilk Sky | 1946 | US Billboard 1 - Sep 1946 (19 weeks), US 1940s 1 - Nov 1946 (12 weeks), US 1 for 2 weeks - Dec 1946, DZE 10 of 1946, US BB 14 of 1946, POP 23 of 1946 |
| 15 | Betty Hutton | Doctor, Lawyer, Indian Chief | 1946 | US Billboard 1 - Dec 1945 (20 weeks), US 1940s 1 - Dec 1945 (19 weeks), US 1 for 1 week - Mar 1946, US BB 11 of 1946, POP 22 of 1946, Brazil 59 of 1946 |
| 16 | Sammy Kaye | I'm a Big Girl Now | 1946 | US Billboard 1 - Mar 1946 (15 weeks), US 1940s 1 - Apr 1946 (11 weeks), US 1 for 1 week - Apr 1946, US BB 12 of 1946, POP 19 of 1946, Brazil 92 of 1946 |
| 17 | Frankie Carle | Oh! What it Seemed to Be | 1946 | US Billboard 1 - Jan 1946 (20 weeks), US 1940s 1 - Feb 1946 (17 weeks), US 1 for 6 weeks - Mar 1946, DZE 2 of 1946, POP 18 of 1946 |
| 18 | Frank Sinatra | Oh! What it Seemed to Be | 1946 | US Billboard 1 - Feb 1946 (17 weeks), US 1940s 2 - Mar 1946 (11 weeks), US BB 2 of 1946, POP 18 of 1946, Brazil 78 of 1946, RYM 78 of 1946 |
| 19 | Louis Jordan | Choo Choo Ch'Boogie | 1946 | Grammy Hall of Fame in 2008 (1946), RYM 1 of 1946, POP 5 of 1946, US Billboard 7 - Aug 1946 (16 weeks), US 1940s 8 - Aug 1946 (5 weeks) |
| 20 | Perry Como | Surrender | 1946 | US Billboard 1 - Jun 1946 (17 weeks), US 1940s 1 - Jul 1946 (16 weeks), US 1 for 1 week - Aug 1946 |
| 21 | Perry Como | They Say It's Wonderful | 1946 | Australia 1 for 2 months - Jul 1947, US Billboard 4 - Jun 1946 (13 weeks), US 1940s 4 - Jun 1946 (8 weeks), Europe 29 of the 1940s (1946) |
| 22 | Nat King Cole | (Get Your Kicks On) Route 66 | 1946 | Grammy Hall of Fame in 2002 (1946), RYM 3 of 1946, US Billboard 11 - Aug 1946 (8 weeks), Acclaimed 1456 (1946) |
| 23 | Freddy Martin | Bumble Boogie | 1946 | US BB 2 of 1948, POP 2 of 1948, US Billboard 7 - May 1946 (6 weeks), US 1940s 7 - May 1946 (2 weeks) |
| 24 | Bing Crosby | Symphony | 1946 | Australia 1 for 2 months - Oct 1946, US Billboard 3 - Jan 1946 (12 weeks), US 1940s 3 - Dec 1945 (12 weeks) |
| 25 | Hoagy Carmichael | Huggin' & Chalkin' | 1946 | US Billboard 1 - Nov 1946 (15 weeks), US 1940s 2 - Dec 1946 (13 weeks), DZE 10 of 1947 |
| 26 | Dinah Shore | The Gypsy | 1946 | US Billboard 1 - Apr 1946 (21 weeks), US 1940s 2 - May 1946 (15 weeks), Brazil 38 of 1946 |
| 27 | Bing Crosby & The Jesters | Sioux City Sue | 1946 | Australia 1 for 1 month - Dec 1946, US Billboard 3 - Apr 1946 (16 weeks), US 1940s 6 - Apr 1946 (6 weeks) |
| 28 | Sammy Kaye | Laughing On The Outside (Crying On the Inside) | 1946 | Australia 1 for 1 month - Jan 1947, US Billboard 3 - May 1946 (11 weeks), US 1940s 7 - May 1946 (4 weeks) |
| 29 | Frank Sinatra | The House I Live In | 1946 | Grammy Hall of Fame in 1998 (1946), RYM 4 of 1945, US Billboard 22 - Jan 1946 (1 week) |
| 30 | The Ink Spots | Prisoner of Love | 1946 | Australia 1 for 2 months - Feb 1947, US Billboard 9 - Jun 1946 (11 weeks), US 1940s 10 - Jun 1946 (1 week) |
| 31 | Frank Sinatra | They Say It's Wonderful | 1946 | US Billboard 2 - May 1946 (14 weeks), US 1940s 8 - Jun 1946 (6 weeks), POP 20 of 1946, RYM 79 of 1946 |
| 32 | Lionel Hampton | Hey! Ba-Ba-Re-Bop | 1946 | RYM 4 of 1946, POP 8 of 1946, US Billboard 9 - Mar 1946 (8 weeks), US 1940s 9 - Apr 1946 (3 weeks) |
| 33 | Dizzy Gillespie | Night in Tunisia | 1946 | Grammy Hall of Fame in 2004 (1946), RYM 13 of 1948, Acclaimed 1463 (1946) |
| 34 | Stan Kenton | Shoo-Fly Pie & Apple Pan Dowdy | 1946 | US BB 5 of 1946, US Billboard 6 - Mar 1946 (11 weeks), US 1940s 8 - Mar 1946 (4 weeks), POP 16 of 1946 |
| 35 | Bing Crosby & The Andrews Sisters | South America, Take It Away | 1946 | US Billboard 2 - Aug 1946 (19 weeks), US 1940s 2 - Aug 1946 (17 weeks), Europe 22 of the 1940s (1946) |
| 36 | Charlie Parker | Ornithology | 1946 | Grammy Hall of Fame in 1989 (1946), Scrobulate 49 of jazz, Acclaimed 1591 (1946) |
| 37 | Louis Jordan | Let the Good Times Roll | 1946 | Grammy Hall of Fame in 2009 (1946), RYM 2 of 1946 |
| 38 | Bing Crosby & The Jesters | McNamara's Band | 1946 | US BB 6 of 1946, POP 6 of 1946, US Billboard 10 - Mar 1946 (4 weeks), Europe 16 of the 1940s (1945) |
| 39 | Spike Jones | Hawaiian War Chant (Ta-Hu-Wa-Hu-Wai) | 1946 | US Billboard 8 - Aug 1946 (1 week), US 1940s 8 - Aug 1946 (1 week), POP 12 of 1946, RYM 37 of 1946 |
| 40 | Frank Sinatra | The Coffee Song | 1946 | US Billboard 6 - Sep 1946 (12 weeks), US 1940s 10 - Oct 1946 (1 week), RYM 38 of 1946, UK 39 - Nov 1961 (3 weeks) |
| 41 | Dinah Shore | You Keep Coming Back Like a Song | 1946 | Australia 1 for 1 month - Jun 1947, US Billboard 5 - Nov 1946 (3 weeks) |
| 42 | Tex Beneke | Five Minutes More | 1946 | Australia 1 for 1 month - May 1947, US 1940s 6 - Sep 1946 (12 weeks) |
| 43 | Bing Crosby | You Keep Coming Back Like a Song | 1946 | Australia 1 for 1 month - Jun 1947, US Billboard 12 - Nov 1946 (6 weeks) |
| 44 | Bing Crosby | They Say It's Wonderful | 1946 | Australia 1 for 2 months - Jul 1947, US Billboard 12 - Jun 1946 (4 weeks) |
| 45 | Dixie Hummingbirds | Amazing Grace | 1946 | Grammy Hall of Fame in 2000 (1946), RYM 20 of 1946 |
| 46 | Sarah Vaughan | If You Could See Me Now | 1946 | Grammy Hall of Fame in 1998 (1946), RYM 21 of 1946 |
| 47 | The Modernaires & Paula Kelly | To Each His Own | 1946 | US Billboard 3 - Aug 1946 (14 weeks), US 1940s 5 - Aug 1946 (6 weeks), Brazil 94 of 1947 |
| 48 | Tony Martin | To Each His Own | 1946 | US Billboard 4 - Jul 1946 (16 weeks), US 1940s 4 - Aug 1946 (12 weeks), RYM 94 of 1946 |
| 49 | Django Reinhardt & Stephane Grappelli | Nuages | 1946 | Grammy Hall of Fame in 2000 (1946), Acclaimed 1872 (1946) |
| 50 | Hoagy Carmichael & Cass Daley | Ole Buttermilk Sky | 1946 | US Billboard 2 - Oct 1946 (19 weeks), US 1940s 2 - Nov 1946 (12 weeks) |
| 51 | Les Brown | You Won't Be Satisfied (Until You Break My Heart) | 1946 | US Billboard 4 - Jan 1946 (15 weeks), US 1940s 5 - Mar 1946 (8 weeks), Brazil 100 of 1946 |
| 52 | Ella Fitzgerald & Louis Jordan | Stone Cold Dead in the Market (He Had It Coming) | 1946 | RYM 5 of 1946, US Billboard 7 - Jul 1946 (6 weeks), US 1940s 9 - Jul 1946 (2 weeks) |
| 53 | Perry Como | I'm Always Chasing Rainbows | 1946 | US Billboard 5 - Feb 1946 (8 weeks), US 1940s 7 - Feb 1946 (7 weeks), Europe 34 of the 1940s (1945) |
| 54 | Frank Sinatra | Day By Day | 1946 | US Billboard 5 - Feb 1946 (10 weeks), US 1940s 10 - Mar 1946 (1 week), RYM 78 of 1946 |
| 55 | Louis Jordan | Buzz Me | 1946 | US Billboard 9 - Jan 1946 (2 weeks), US 1940s 9 - Jan 1946 (1 week), RYM 12 of 1945 |
| 56 | Xavier Cugat | South America, Take It Away | 1946 | US Billboard 6 - Aug 1946 (13 weeks), US 1940s 9 - Sep 1946 (3 weeks), Brazil 93 of 1947 |
| 57 | Freddy Martin | Doin' What Comes Naturally | 1946 | US Billboard 2 - Jun 1946 (13 weeks), US 1940s 4 - Jul 1946 (8 weeks) |
| 58 | Tony Martin | Rumors Are Flying | 1946 | US Billboard 9 - Oct 1946 (7 weeks), US 1940s 9 - Nov 1946 (3 weeks), RYM 95 of 1946 |
| 59 | Dinah Shore | Laughing On The Outside (Crying On the Inside) | 1946 | US Billboard 3 - Apr 1946 (12 weeks), US 1940s 3 - Apr 1946 (9 weeks) |
| 60 | Eddy Howard | (I Love You) For Sentimental Reasons | 1946 | US Billboard 2 - Nov 1946 (20 weeks), US 1940s 6 - Jan 1947 (5 weeks) |
| 61 | Kay Kyser | The Old Lamplighter | 1946 | US Billboard 3 - Nov 1946 (13 weeks), US 1940s 3 - Nov 1946 (11 weeks) |
| 62 | Johnny Mercer | Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah | 1946 | US Billboard 8 - Dec 1946 (8 weeks), RIAA 67, RYM 99 of 1946 |
| 63 | Dinah Shore | Doin' What Comes Naturally | 1946 | US Billboard 3 - Jun 1946 (14 weeks), US 1940s 4 - Jun 1946 (11 weeks) |
| 64 | Sammy Kaye | The Gypsy | 1946 | US Billboard 3 - May 1946 (17 weeks), US 1940s 4 - May 1946 (10 weeks) |
| 65 | Lionel Hampton | Hamp's Walkin' Boogie | 1946 | Peel list 2 of 1946, RYM 30 of 1946 |
| 66 | Tino Rossi | Petit Papa Noel | 1946 | France (Historical) 1 of the 1940s (1946), Global 33 (5 M sold) - 1946 |
| 67 | Louis Jordan | That's Chick's Too Young to Fry | 1946 | RYM 1 of 1946 |
| 68 | Helen Forrest & Dick Haymes | Oh! What it Seemed to Be | 1946 | US Billboard 4 - Mar 1946 (11 weeks), US 1940s 4 - Mar 1946 (9 weeks) |
| 69 | Tex Beneke | Hey! Ba-Ba-Re-Bop | 1946 | US Billboard 4 - May 1946 (9 weeks), US 1940s 4 - May 1946 (9 weeks) |
| 70 | Andy Russell | Laughing On The Outside (Crying On the Inside) | 1946 | US Billboard 4 - May 1946 (12 weeks), US 1940s 4 - May 1946 (7 weeks) |
| 71 | Isaura Garcia & Os Namorados da Lua | De Conversa em Conversa | 1946 | Brazil 1 of 1946 |
| 72 | Freddy Martin | One-Zy, Two-Zy (I Love You-Zy) | 1946 | US Billboard 4 - Mar 1946 (9 weeks), US 1940s 6 - Mar 1946 (6 weeks) |
| 73 | Margaret Whiting | Guilty | 1946 | US Billboard 4 - Dec 1946 (17 weeks), US 1940s 6 - Mar 1947 (3 weeks) |
| 74 | The Andrews Sisters & Les Paul | Rumors Are Flying | 1946 | US Billboard 4 - Oct 1946 (13 weeks), US 1940s 6 - Oct 1946 (8 weeks) |
| 75 | Charlie Spivak | Oh! What it Seemed to Be | 1946 | US Billboard 5 - Mar 1946 (7 weeks), US 1940s 5 - Mar 1946 (7 weeks) |
| 76 | Betty Jane Rhodes | Rumors Are Flying | 1946 | US Billboard 5 - Sep 1946 (11 weeks), US 1940s 5 - Nov 1946 (6 weeks) |
| 77 | Arthur 'Big Boy' Crudup | That's Alright Mama | 1946 | Peel list 4 of 1946, RYM 8 of 1947 |
| 78 | Alveno Rey | Cement Mixer (Put-ti Put-ti) | 1946 | US Billboard 5 - Apr 1946 (9 weeks), US 1940s 6 - May 1946 (6 weeks) |
| 79 | Hal Derwin | The Old Lamplighter | 1946 | US Billboard 5 - Nov 1946 (10 weeks), US 1940s 6 - Dec 1946 (2 weeks) |
| 80 | Tex Beneke | A Gal in Calico | 1946 | US Billboard 6 - Dec 1946 (8 weeks), US 1940s 6 - Jan 1947 (4 weeks) |