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	1,778	Dust Bowl Ballads - Volume 1 (3,752nd)by Woody Guthrie
1941	75	1,348	The Midnight Special (And Other ... (4,443rd)by Lead Belly
1942	75	756	Her Second Album Of Piano Solos ... (8,690th)by Hazel Scott
1943	77	601	Songs By Lead Belly: Accompanied... (8,817th)by Lead Belly
1944	76	1,295	An Album Of Outstanding Arrangem... (4,955th)by Glenn Miller
1945	79	1,093	Merry Christmas (5,358th)by Bing Crosby
1946	102	1,816	The Voice Of Frank Sinatra (6,607th)by Frank Sinatra
1947	102	1,741	Teddy Wilson - Billie Holiday (5,194th)by Teddy Wilson And His Orchestra F...
1948	102	1,453	Chansons Des Cafés De Paris (5,903rd)by Édith Piaf
1949	104	1,989	Bird Blows The Blues (6,202nd)by Charlie Parker
Total	861	13,871

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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71.

Dance Parade

Count Basie

Year of Release:

1949

Appears in:

13 charts

Rank Score:

Rank in 1949:

Rank in 1940s:

Overall Rank:

16,558

Average Rating:

69 (7 votes)

Comments:

72.

Billie Holiday Vol. 1

Billie Holiday

Year of Release:

1947

Appears in:

9 charts

Rank Score:

Rank in 1947:

Rank in 1940s:

Overall Rank:

16,825

Average Rating:

73 (6 votes)

Comments:

73.

Volume 3

The King Cole Trio

Year of Release:

1948

Appears in:

9 charts

Rank Score:

Rank in 1948:

Rank in 1940s:

Overall Rank:

16,944

Average Rating:

68 (8 votes)

Comments:

74.

Work Songs Of The U.S.A.

Lead Belly

Year of Release:

1942

Appears in:

12 charts

Rank Score:

Rank in 1942:

Rank in 1940s:

Overall Rank:

17,009

Average Rating:

69 (8 votes)

Comments:

75.

The Andrews Sisters

Year of Release:

1946

Appears in:

8 charts

Rank Score:

Rank in 1946:

Rank in 1940s:

Overall Rank:

17,022

Average Rating:

71 (8 votes)

Comments:

76.

Boogie Woogie In Blue

Harry "The Hipster" Gibson

Year of Release:

1944

Appears in:

10 charts

Rank Score:

Rank in 1944:

Rank in 1940s:

Overall Rank:

17,071

Average Rating:

73 (7 votes)

Comments:

77.

Blues On Parade

Woody Herman And His Orchestra

Year of Release:

1940

Appears in:

9 charts

Rank Score:

Rank in 1940:

Rank in 1940s:

Overall Rank:

17,285

Average Rating:

70 (8 votes)

Comments:

78.

Oklahoma!

The Original Broadway Cast

Year of Release:

1943

Appears in:

12 charts

Rank Score:

Rank in 1943:

Rank in 1940s:

Overall Rank:

17,492

Average Rating:

71 (11 votes)

Comments:

79.

Starlight Serenades

Glenn Miller

Year of Release:

1949

Appears in:

6 charts

Rank Score:

Rank in 1949:

Rank in 1940s:

Overall Rank:

17,874

Average Rating:

71 (4 votes)

Comments:

80.

Favorites

Fats Waller

Year of Release:

1944

Appears in:

9 charts

Rank Score:

Rank in 1944:

Rank in 1940s:

Overall Rank:

18,423

Average Rating:

69 (6 votes)

Comments:

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Total albums: 319. Page 8 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%
The Original Broadway Cast	6	2%
Sir Thomas Beecham / The London Philharmonic Orchestra	6	2%
Bing Crosby	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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Best Albums of the 1950s
1. Kind Of Blue by Miles Davis
2. Mingus Ah Um by Charles Mingus
3. Time Out by The Dave Brubeck Quartet
4. Blue Train by John Coltrane
5. Elvis Presley by Elvis Presley
6. In The Wee Small Hours by Frank Sinatra
7. Here's Little Richard by Little Richard
8. The Shape Of Jazz To Come by Ornette Coleman
9. Art Blakey And The Jazz Messengers by Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers
10. Berry Is On Top by Chuck Berry
11. Lady In Satin by Billie Holiday
12. Songs For Swingin' Lovers! by Frank Sinatra
13. Brilliant Corners by Thelonious Monk
14. Somethin' Else by Cannonball Adderley
15. Saxophone Colossus by Sonny Rollins
16. Chet Baker Sings by Chet Baker
17. The "Chirping" Crickets by The Crickets
18. Buddy Holly by Buddy Holly
19. Birth Of The Cool by Miles Davis
20. Moanin' In The Moonlight by Howlin' Wolf