We continue our popular and successful series devoted to the biggest chart records of each calendar year in the early chart era as we focus on 1946, the sixth full calendar year of the Billboard Best Sellers chart – the chart was launched in July 1940 – and the second year to feature both a Most Played in Juke Boxes and Most Played by Disc Jockeys charts as well. This great value 98-track 4-CD set comprises every record which peaked in the Top 10 of the Best Sellers and Disc Jockey charts during the year, plus those which reached the Top 7 of the Disc Jockey chart - the DJ chart often had several records tied at each position. For reasons of space, it excludes those records were still in the chart at the start of the year, but which peaked in the Top 10 in 1945, and so are included in our existing 1945 collection.

It was a big year for crooners Frank Sinatra, who had seven Top 10 hits, and Perry Como, who had six, while the top female singer was Dinah Shore with four - they all had No. 1s during the year. Other artists who made No. 1 included newcomers Eddy Howard and Frankie Carle, who both had long runs at the top, and successful bandleaders Sammy Kaye and Freddy Martin while the Ink Spots had the longest stay at No. 1 with “The Gypsy”. As usual, there were also many highly collectable lesser-known records by some artists we don’t hear too much about these days. It makes for an intriguing and very entertaining musical snapshot of a as the world dealt with the aftermath of WWII. It includes a 15,000+ word booklet with a commentary on every record as well as full discographical and chart information.

REVIEWS

“Another volume of the ongoing series reminds us once again of the wealth of good popular music that abounded in the immediate post war years. As usual, this is a four CD set,comprising 98 tracks, together with a 48 page booklet detailing all the recordings and as such is a well-nigh indispensable record of a year full of good things. A review of this sort of compilation would read like a who’s who of the post war era so the best thing to do is to acquire this set and luxuriate in its many highlights.” – Gerry Stonestreet (In Tune Issue 338)