The Year in Music: 1941

1941 provided an Indian summer in the midst of the Great Depression and before World War II. Joe DiMaggio and Ted Williams thrilled Americans throughout the baseball season and big band music dominated. The music continued to own the market until 1946 when dramatic changes occurred. Here are some of the top hits of 1941.

Chattanooga Choo-Choo (Glenn Miller)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-XQybKMXL-k

A String of Pearls (Glenn Miller)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sLTDo08giGk

Green Eyes (Jimmy Dorsey)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=neyj54oSHC0

Amapola (Jimmy Dorsey)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xx6I1dFnZnQ

God Bless This Child (Billie Holiday)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z_1LfT1MvzI

Blueberry Hill (Gene Autry)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eQzt0263Kj0

Take the “A” Train (Duke Ellington)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=guYlCLmX59c&ob=av2n

　

Glenn Miller: Chattanooga Choo Choo (1941)

This appeared in the film Sun Valley Serenade in 1941. It was #1 the weekend of December 7, 1941. The war informed our view of pop culture and music during the 40s. However, the Big Band Era was brief. Bebop snobs took over sending popular music into an abyss for a decade.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kIQq1j1-AQU

Joltin' Joe DiMaggio by The Les Brown Orchestra (1941)

In 1941, Joe DiMaggio hit in 56 consecutive baseball games. In honor of his accomplishment, Alan Courtney and Ben Homer wrote "Joltin' Joe DiMaggio" which was recorded by the Les Brown Orchestra. Betty Bonney provided the vocals. Since 1941, Pete Rose has come closest to DiMaggio when he hit in 44 straight in 1978.

Lyrics:

http://www.baseball-almanac.com/poetry/joltinjoedimaggio.shtml

and the song:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1q6odQuCxFU

White Christmas by Bing Crosby (1941)

The greatest selling single of all time. Should be no surprise as soldiers were shipping off to the Far East and Europe. Crosby performed it for the first time on Christmas Day 1941 and recorded the song in May 29, 1942.  In October, it hit #1 and stayed there into 1943. Crosby's single has sold over 50 million copies.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aShUFAG_WgM