Best Albums of the 1940s

« View best albums of the 1930sView best albums of the 1950s »

Listed below are the best albums of the 1940s as calculated from their overall rankings in over 53,000 greatest album charts.

Best albums by year or decade

Decade:

Year:

1940s decade summary

Year	Albums The number of albums from each year featuring in the greatest album charts.	Score Total rank score for each year (made up of the total rank score from all albums in that year)	Top Ranked Album The top ranked album from each year and where it ranks in the overall chart.
1940	69	1,777	Dust Bowl Ballads - Volume 1 (3,756th)by Woody Guthrie
1941	75	1,348	The Midnight Special (And Other ... (4,445th)by Lead Belly
1942	75	756	Her Second Album Of Piano Solos ... (8,699th)by Hazel Scott
1943	77	601	Songs By Lead Belly: Accompanied... (8,836th)by Lead Belly
1944	76	1,294	An Album Of Outstanding Arrangem... (4,977th)by Glenn Miller
1945	79	1,093	Merry Christmas (5,380th)by Bing Crosby
1946	102	1,817	The Voice Of Frank Sinatra (6,619th)by Frank Sinatra
1947	102	1,741	Teddy Wilson - Billie Holiday (5,207th)by Teddy Wilson And His Orchestra F...
1948	102	1,452	Chansons Des Cafés De Paris (5,924th)by Édith Piaf
1949	104	1,988	Bird Blows The Blues (6,204th)by Charlie Parker
Total	861	13,868

The best artists of the 1940s were Woody Guthrie, Nat King Cole, Lead Belly, Duke Ellington, Charlie Parker, Josh White, Louis Jordan, The King Cole Trio, The Original Broadway Cast and Hazel Scott.

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21.

Calypso

Lord Invader And Lord Beginner With Felix And His Internationals

Year of Release:

1946

Appears in:

11 charts

Rank Score:

134

Rank in 1946:

Rank in 1940s:

Overall Rank:

9,006

Average Rating:

69 (8 votes)

Comments:

22.

Empress Of The Blues

Bessie Smith

Year of Release:

1940

Appears in:

19 charts

Rank Score:

133

Rank in 1940:

Rank in 1940s:

Overall Rank:

9,047

Average Rating:

72 (23 votes)

Comments:

23.

8 To The Bar (Two Piano Boogie Woogie For Dancing)

Pete Johnson & Albert Ammons

Year of Release:

1941

Appears in:

17 charts

Rank Score:

131

Rank in 1941:

Rank in 1940s:

Overall Rank:

9,190

Average Rating:

72 (16 votes)

Comments:

24.

Blues

Lonnie Johnson

Year of Release:

1947

Appears in:

15 charts

Rank Score:

129

Rank in 1947:

Rank in 1940s:

Overall Rank:

9,291

Average Rating:

73 (9 votes)

Comments:

25.

Stravinsky: Petrouchka; Scenes De Ballet

Igor Stravinsky / The Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra Of New York

Year of Release:

1948

Appears in:

10 charts

Rank Score:

121

Rank in 1948:

Rank in 1940s:

Overall Rank:

9,779

Average Rating:

74 (9 votes)

Comments:

26.

Up Swing

Tommy Dorsey / Glenn Miller / Benny Goodman / Artie Shaw

Year of Release:

1944

Appears in:

13 charts

Rank Score:

115

Rank in 1944:

Rank in 1940s:

Overall Rank:

10,213

Average Rating:

70 (8 votes)

Comments:

27.

Mahler: Symphony No. 5

Bruno Walter / New York Philharmonic

Year of Release:

1947

Appears in:

10 charts

Rank Score:

114

Rank in 1947:

Rank in 1940s:

Overall Rank:

10,285

Average Rating:

73 (7 votes)

Comments:

28.

You're My Thrill

Doris Day

Year of Release:

1949

Appears in:

17 charts

Rank Score:

114

Rank in 1949:

Rank in 1940s:

Overall Rank:

10,301

Average Rating:

72 (17 votes)

Comments:

29.

Kiss Me Kate

The Original Broadway Cast

Year of Release:

1949

Appears in:

9 charts

Rank Score:

114

Rank in 1949:

Rank in 1940s:

Overall Rank:

10,308

Average Rating:

70 (12 votes)

Comments:

30.

Black, Brown And Beige (1945)

Duke Ellington

Year of Release:

1945

Appears in:

13 charts

Rank Score:

110

Rank in 1945:

Rank in 1940s:

Overall Rank:

10,647

Average Rating:

70 (11 votes)

Comments:

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Total albums: 319. Page 3 of 32

Best Albums of the 1940s composition

Year	Albums	%

1940	29	3%
1941	29	3%
1942	24	2%
1943	24	2%
1944	25	3%
1945	26	3%
1946	38	4%
1947	40	4%
1948	39	4%
1949	45	5%

Artist	Albums	%

Various Artists	11	3%
Josh White	7	2%
Bing Crosby	6	2%
The Original Broadway Cast	6	2%
Sir Thomas Beecham / The London Philharmonic Orchestra	6	2%
Almanac Singers	5	2%
Woody Guthrie	5	2%
Show all

Country	Albums	%

	248	78%
	20	6%
	14	4%
	7	2%
	6	2%
	5	2%
	2	1%
Show all

Compilation?	Albums	%
No	302	95%
Yes	17	5%

Soundtrack?	Albums	%
No	313	98%
Yes	6	2%

« View best albums of the 1930sView best albums of the 1950s »

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