Best Albums of the 1940s

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
YearAlbums 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.
1940701,807
1941751,358
194275789
194378604
1944781,296
1945801,115
19461041,852
19471061,762
19481061,467
19491081,994
Total88014,043

The best artists of the 1940s were Woody Guthrie, Nat King Cole, Lead Belly, Duke Ellington, Charlie Parker, Josh White, The King Cole Trio, Bing Crosby, Louis Jordan and Frank Sinatra.
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Collector's summary (top 321)Log in or register to discover the great albums that are missing from your music collection!
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Buy album United States
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Year of Release:
1946
Appears in:
Rank Score:
11
Rank in 1946:
Rank in 1940s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
  • Amazon
  • eBay
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
  • #Sponsored
Year of Release:
1943
Appears in:
Rank Score:
11
Rank in 1943:
Rank in 1940s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
  • Amazon
  • eBay
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
  • #Sponsored
Year of Release:
1944
Appears in:
Rank Score:
10
Rank in 1944:
Rank in 1940s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
  • Amazon
  • eBay
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
  • #Sponsored
Year of Release:
1947
Appears in:
Rank Score:
10
Rank in 1947:
Rank in 1940s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
  • Amazon
  • eBay
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
  • #Sponsored
Year of Release:
1943
Appears in:
Rank Score:
10
Rank in 1943:
Rank in 1940s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
  • Amazon
  • eBay
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
  • #Sponsored
Year of Release:
1942
Appears in:
Rank Score:
10
Rank in 1942:
Rank in 1940s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
  • Amazon
  • eBay
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
  • #Sponsored
Year of Release:
1945
Appears in:
Rank Score:
10
Rank in 1945:
Rank in 1940s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
  • Amazon
  • eBay
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
  • #Sponsored
Year of Release:
1948
Appears in:
Rank Score:
10
Rank in 1948:
Rank in 1940s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
  • Amazon
  • eBay
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
  • #Sponsored
Year of Release:
1946
Appears in:
Rank Score:
10
Rank in 1946:
Rank in 1940s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Buy album United States
  • Amazon
  • eBay
  • iTunes
  • Spotify
  • #Sponsored
Year of Release:
1940
Appears in:
Rank Score:
10
Rank in 1940:
Rank in 1940s:
Overall Rank:
Average Rating:
Comments:
Total albums: 321. Page 25 of 33

Best Albums of the 1940s composition

Year Albums %


1940 29 3%
1941 30 3%
1942 24 2%
1943 24 2%
1944 25 3%
1945 26 3%
1946 38 4%
1947 40 4%
1948 40 4%
1949 45 5%
Country Albums %


United States 250 78%
Mixed Nationality 20 6%
United Kingdom 14 4%
France 7 2%
Spain 6 2%
Cuba 5 2%
Russia 2 1%
Show all
Compilation? Albums %
No 303 94%
Yes 18 6%
Soundtrack? Albums %
No 315 98%
Yes 6 2%
Best Artists of 1969
1. The Beatles
2. Led Zeppelin
3. King Crimson
4. The Rolling Stones
5. The Velvet Underground
6. Nick Drake
7. Creedence Clearwater Revival
8. Frank Zappa
9. Neil Young
10. Neil Young & Crazy Horse
11. Miles Davis
12. The Who
13. Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band
14. The Band
15. The Kinks
16. Crosby, Stills & Nash
17. The Stooges
18. Fairport Convention
19. Sly & The Family Stone
20. Scott Walker
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