1946 in music

This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1946. Events[edit] January 6 – A somewhat revised and streamlined revival of Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein II's Show Boat opens on Broadway at the Ziegfeld Theatre, the same theatre at which the original production played back in 1927. This production features newly designed sets and costumes, new, more extended choreography, and a new song, Nobody Else But Me, by Kern and Hammerstein. January 24 – Igor Stravinsky's Symphony in Three Movements premièred by the New York Philharmonic, conducted by the composer. February – Kathleen Ferrier's recording contract with Columbia Records expires, and she transfers to Decca. February 8 – Béla Bartók's Piano Concerto No. 3 is premiered posthumously by György Sándor with Eugene Ormandy conducting the Philadelphia Orchestra August - Singer Doris Day leaves Les Brown's band and begins solo career. September 11 - The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra holds its first rehearsal. Al Jolson rerecords his old hits for the soundtrack of his Columbia biopic The Jolson Story (released October 10 in the United States), and becomes a superstar to the post-war generation as well B. B. King begins working as a professional musician in Memphis, Tennessee. Chet Atkins makes his first appearance at the Grand Ole Opry. Georgia Gibbs signs with the Majestic label. Bill Haley's professional musical career begins as a member of The Down Homers. His earliest known recordings are made during a Down Homers radio performance, but will not be released until 2006.

Albums released

 * 1) Spirituals Paul Robeson

Biggest hit songs
The following songs achieved the highest chart positions in the limited set of charts available for 1946.

Published popular music

 * "Ain't Nobody Here But Us Chickens" w.m. Alex Kramer & Joan Whitney
 * "Ain't That Just Like A Woman?" w.m. Fleecie Moore & Claude Demetrius
 * "All I Want For Christmas (Is My Two Front Teeth)" w.m. Don Gardner
 * "All The Cats Join In" A. Wilder, Ray Gilbert, E. Sauter
 * "Along With Me" w.m. Harold Rome Introduced by Danny Scholl and Paula Bane in the musical Call Me Mister
 * "The 'Ampstead Way" w. Johnny Burke m. Jimmy Van Heusen
 * "The Anniversary Song" w.m. Al Jolson & Saul Chaplin
 * "Anything You Can Do" w.m. Irving Berlin
 * "Aren't You Kind Of Glad We Did?" w. Ira Gershwin m. George Gershwin. Introduced by Dick Haymes and Betty Grable in the 1947 film The Shocking Miss Pilgrim
 * "Blue Moon of Kentucky" w.m. Bill Monroe
 * "Bumble Boogie" m. Jack Fina
 * "Changing My Tune" w. Ira Gershwin m. George Gershwin. Introduced by Betty Grable in the film The Shocking Miss Pilgrim.
 * "The Christmas Song" w. Robert Wells m. Mel Tormé
 * "Coax Me A Little Bit" w. Charles Tobias m. Nat Simon
 * "The Coffee Song" w.m. Bob Hilliard & Dick Miles
 * "Come Rain Or Come Shine" w. Johnny Mercer m. Harold Arlen
 * "Country Style" w. Johnny Burke m. Jimmy Van Heusen
 * "A Couple Of Song And Dance Men" w.m. Irving Berlin
 * "Do You Know What It Means To Miss New Orleans?" w.m. Eddie DeLange & Louis Alter. Introduced by Billie Holiday & Louis Armstrong in the 1947 film New Orleans.
 * "Doin' What Comes Natur'lly" w.m. Irving Berlin
 * "Everybody's Got A Laughing Place" Allie Wrubel
 * "The Face on the Dime" w.m. Harold Rome. Introduced by Lawrence Winters in the musical revue Call Me Mister.
 * "Fantasy In F" m. John Serry, Sr.
 * "Feudin' And Fightin' " w. Al Dubin & Burton Lane m. Burton Lane
 * "Five Minutes More" w. Sammy Cahn m. Jule Styne
 * "For You, For Me, For Evermore" w. Ira Gershwin m. George Gershwin. Introduced by Dick Haymes in the 1947 film The Shocking Miss Pilgrim
 * "A Gal In Calico" w. Leo Robin m. Arthur Schwartz. Introduced by Jack Carson, Sally Sweetland dubbing for Martha Vickers, and Dennis Morgan in the film The Time, the Place and the Girl.
 * "The Girl That I Marry" w.m. Irving Berlin. Introduced by Ray Middleton in the musical Annie Get Your Gun and performed by Howard Keel in the 1950 film version.
 * "Golden Earrings" w. Jay Livingston & Ray Evans m. Victor Young
 * "The House Of Blue Lights" w.m. Don Raye & Freddie Slack
 * "How Are Things In Glocca Morra?" w. E. Y. Harburg m. Burton Lane
 * "Huggin' And Chalkin' " w.m. Clancy Hayes & Kermit Goell
 * "I Got Lost In His Arms" w.m. Irving Berlin. Introduced by Ethel Merman in the musical Annie Get Your Gun.
 * "I Got The Sun In The Morning" w.m. Irving Berlin. Introduced by Ethel Merman in the musical Annie Get Your Gun and performed by Betty Hutton in the 1950 film version.
 * "I Guess I'll Get The Papers" w.m. Hughie Prince & Hal Kanner
 * "If This Isn't Love" w. E. Y. Harburg m. Burton Lane
 * "If You Smile at Me" w.m. Cole Porter. Introduced by Victoria Cordova in the musical Around the World
 * "I'm A Lonely Little Petunia" w.m. John N. Kamano, William E. Faber & Maurice Merl
 * "I'm An Indian Too" w.m. Irving Berlin
 * "It's A Good Day" w.m. Peggy Lee & Dave Barbour
 * "It's A Pity To Say Goodnight" w.m. Billy Reid
 * "Laughing On The Outside" w. Ben Raleigh m. Bernie Wayne
 * "Legalise My Name" w. Johnny Mercer m. Harold Arlen
 * "Let The Good Times Roll" w.m. Fleecie Moore & Sam Theard
 * "Linda" w.m. Jack Lawrence
 * "Lost In The Stars" w. Maxwell Anderson m. Kurt Weill
 * "Managua, Nicaragua" w. Albert Gamse m. Irving Fields
 * "Military Life" aka "The Jerk Song" w.m. Harold Rome from the musical revue Call Me Mister
 * "Moonshine Lullaby" w.m. Irving Berlin
 * "Mr. Jackson from Jacksonville" m.w. Louis Armstrong, Claude Demetrius, Fritz Pollard
 * "My Defenses Are Down" w.m. Irving Berlin
 * "My Heart Is A Hobo" w. Johnny Burke m. Jimmy Van Heusen
 * "My Sugar Is So Refined" w. Sylvia Dee m. Sidney Lippman
 * "Old Devil Moon" w. E. Y. Harburg m. Burton Lane
 * "The Old Lamp-Lighter" w. Charles Tobias m. Nat Simon
 * "The Old Soft Shoe" w. Nancy Hamilton m. Morgan Lewis. Introduced by Ray Bolger in the revue Three to Make Ready.
 * "Ole Buttermilk Sky" w.m. Hoagy Carmichael
 * "On The Boardwalk In Atlantic City" w. Mack Gordon m. Josef Myrow
 * "One-zy Two-zy" w.m. Dave Franklin & Irving Taylor
 * "Open The Door, Richard" w. "Dusty" Fletcher & John Mason m. Jack McVea & Dan Howell
 * "Put The Blame On Mame" w.m. Allan Roberts & Doris Fisher. Introduced by Anita Ellis dubbing for Rita Hayworth in the film Gilda.
 * "A Rainy Night In Rio" w. Leo Robin m. Arthur Schwartz. Introduced by Dennis Morgan, Jack Carson, Janis Paige and Sally Sweetland dubbing for Martha Vickers in the film The Time, the Place and the Girl
 * "The Red Ball Express" w.m. Harold Rome. Introduced by Lawrence Winters in the musical revue Call Me Mister.
 * "(Get Your Kicks On) Route 66" w.m. Bobby Troup
 * "Rumors Are Flying" w.m. Bennie Benjamin & George David Weiss
 * "Sooner Or Later" w. Ray Gilbert m. Charles Wolcott
 * "South America, Take It Away" w.m. Harold Rome Introduced by Betty Garrett in the musical revue Call Me Mister.
 * "Stella by Starlight" w. Ned Washington m. Victor Young
 * "Stone Cold Dead in de Market" w.m. Wilmoth Houdini
 * "A Sunday Kind of Love" w.m. Barbara Belle, Anita Leonard, Stan Rhodes & Louis Prima
 * "Tenderly" w. Jack Lawrence m. Walter Gross
 * "That's All Right" w.m. Arthur Crudup
 * "There's Good Blues Tonight" Edna Osser, Glenn Osser
 * "There's No Business Like Show Business" w.m. Irving Berlin
 * "They Say It's Wonderful" w.m. Irving Berlin
 * "The Things We Did Last Summer" w. Sammy Cahn m. Jule Styne
 * "Time After Time" w. Sammy Cahn m. Jule Styne
 * "To Each His Own" w. Ray Evans m. Jay Livingston
 * "Uncle Remus Said" w.m. Johnny Lange, Hy Heath & Eliot Daniel
 * "Valse" m. Tchaikovsky arr. John Serry, Sr.
 * "La vie en rose" w. (Eng) Mack David (Fr) Édith Piaf m. Louiguy
 * "When I Walk with You" w. John Latouche m. Duke Ellington. Introduced by Alfred Drake and Jet MacDonald in the musical ''Beggar's Holiday
 * "Who Do You Love, I Hope" w.m. Irving Berlin
 * "A Woman's Prerogative" w. Johnny Mercer m. Harold Arlen
 * "You Call Everybody Darling" w.m. Sam Martin, Ben Trace & Clem Watts
 * "You Can't Get A Man With A Gun" w.m. Irving Berlin
 * "You Make Me Feel So Young" w. Mack Gordon m. Josef Myrow
 * "Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah" w. Ray Gilbert m. Allie Wrubel

Premieres
1Radio premiere. The Overture was subsequently withdrawn from Britten's catalogue, and it didn't receive its concert premiere until 1983, by the Chicago Symphony conducted by Raymond Leppard.

Compositions

 * Malcolm Arnold – Symphony for Strings, Op. 13
 * Arno Babadzhanian – Polyphonic Piano Sonata
 * Benjamin Britten – Young Person's Guide to the Orchestra
 * Aaron Copland – Symphony No. 3
 * George Crumb – Poem; Seven Songs for voice and piano
 * Gottfried von Einem – Dantons Tod
 * Don Gillis – Symphony No. 5½, A Symphony for Fun
 * Ruth Gipps – Symphony No. 2
 * Jesús Guridi – Sinfonía Pirenaica
 * Karl Amadeus Hartmann – Symphony No. 2 "Adagio"
 * Herbert Howells – Gloucester Service
 * Erich Wolfgang Korngold – Cello Concerto
 * Bohuslav Martinů – Symphony No. 5, H.310; Toccata e Due Canzoni; String Quartet No. 6, H.312
 * Peter Mennin – Symphony No. 3
 * Vincent Persichetti – Symphony No. 3
 * Edmund Rubbra – Cello Sonata, Op. 60
 * Roger Sessions – Symphony No. 2, Piano Sonata No. 2
 * Igor Stravinsky – Concerto in D for Strings
 * Michael Tippett – Little Music for string orchestra
 * Heitor Villa-Lobos – String Quartet No. 10
 * William Walton – String Quartet No. 2

Opera

 * Benjamin Britten – The Rape of Lucretia – chamber opera opened at Glyndebourne on July 12 with Kathleen Ferrier in the title rôle
 * Gian Carlo Menotti - The Medium

Musical theater

 * Annie Get Your Gun (Irving Berlin) – Broadway production opened at the Imperial Theatre on May 16 and ran for 1147 performances
 * Around the World ( Music and Lyrics: Cole Porter Book: Orson Welles) Broadway production opened at the Adelphi Theatre on May 31 and ran for 75 performances
 * Beggar's Holiday opened at the Broadway Theatre on December 26 and ran for 111 performances
 * Burlesque Broadway revival opened at the Belasco Theatre on December 25 and ran for 439 performances
 * Call Me Mister Broadway revue opened at the National Theatre on April 18 and ran for 734 performances
 * Lute Song ( music: Raymond Scott lyrics Bernie Hanighen) Broadway production opened at the Plymouth Theatre on February 6 and ran for 146 performances
 * Show Boat (Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein II) – Broadway revival opened at the Ziegfeld Theatre on January 5 and ran for 418 performances
 * Song of Norway London production opened at the Palace Theatre on March 7 and ran for 526 performances
 * St. Louis Woman Broadway production opened at the Martin Beck Theatre on March 30 and ran for 113 performances
 * Sweetest And Lowest London revue opened at the Ambassadors Theatre on May 9 and ran for 791 performances
 * Three to Make Ready Broadway revue opened at the Adelphi Theatre (New York) on March 7 and ran for 327 performances.
 * Yours Is My Heart Broadway production opened on September 5 at the Shubert Theatre and ran for 36 performances

Musical films

 * The Bamboo Blonde starring Frances Langford
 * Breakfast in Hollywood starring Tom Breneman, Bonita Granville, Billie Burke and Zasu Pitts and featuring Andy Russell, The King Cole Trio and Spike Jones and his City Slickers. Directed by Harold D. Schuster.
 * Cinderella Jones starring Joan Leslie, Robert Alda, S.Z. Sakall and Edward Everett Horton. Directed by Busby Berkeley.
 * Do You Love Me released May 17, starring Maureen O'Hara, Dick Haymes and featuring Harry James and his Music Makers.
 * Doll Face starring Vivian Blaine and Dennis O'Keefe and featuring Perry Como and Carmen Miranda. Directed by Lewis Seiler.
 * Earl Carroll Sketchbook starring Constance Moore, William Marshall and Edward Everett Horton
 * Easy to Wed starring Esther Williams, Van Johnson, Lucille Ball and Keenan Wynn. Directed by Eddie Buzzell.
 * Gaiety George released July 22 starring Richard Greene and Ann Todd.
 * The Harvey Girls
 * Holiday In Mexico starring Jane Powell, José Iturbi, Walter Pidgeon, Roddy McDowall, Ilona Massey and Xavier Cugat. Directed by George Sidney.
 * The Jolson Story
 * London Town released September 30 starring Sid Fields, Greta Gynt, Petula Clark, Kay Kendall and Sonny Hale and featuring Tessie O'Shea and Beryl Davis.
 * No Leave, No Love starring Van Johnson, Pat Kirkwood, Keenan Wynn and Marie Wilson, and featuring Xavier Cugat & his Orchestra and Guy Lombardo and his Orchestra. Directed by Charles Martin.
 * Song Of The South
 * St. Louis Woman
 * Susie Steps Out starring David Bruce, Cleatus Caldwell and Margaret Dumont. Directed by Reginald Le Borg.
 * Sweetheart of Sigma Chi starring Phil Regan, Elyse Knox and Phil Brito and featuring Frankie Carle & his Orchestra
 * Swing Parade of 1946 starring Gale Storm, Phil Regan and The Three Stooges and featuring Connee Boswell and Louis Jordan. Directed by Phil Karlson.
 * Tars and Spars starring Janet Blair, Alfred Drake and Sid Caesar.
 * Three Little Girls in Blue starring June Haver, George Montgomery, Vivian Blaine, Celeste Holm and Vera Ellen. Directed by Bruce Humberstone.
 * Till the Clouds Roll By
 * The Time, the Place and the Girl released on December 28 starring Dennis Morgan, Jack Carson, Janis Paige and Martha Vickers.
 * Ziegfeld Follies starring Fred Astaire, Lucille Ball, Lucille Bremer, Fanny Brice, Judy Garland, Kathryn Grayson, Lena Horne, Gene Kelly and Red Skelton. Directed by Vincente Minnelli.

Births

 * January 3 – John Paul Jones (Led Zeppelin)
 * January 4 – Arthur Conley, soul singer
 * January 6 – Syd Barrett (Pink Floyd) (died 2006)
 * January 7
 * Jann Wenner, publisher of Rolling Stone magazine
 * Andy Brown, drummer (The Fortunes)
 * January 8 – Robby Krieger (The Doors)
 * January 10 – Aynsley Dunbar, drummer (Jefferson Starship) (Journey)
 * January 11
 * Tony Kaye (Yes)
 * Naomi Judd, country singer and songwriter
 * January 16 - Katia Ricciarelli, operatic soprano
 * January 19 – Dolly Parton, country singer and songwriter
 * January 22 – Malcolm McLaren, impresario and founder of the Sex Pistols (d. 2010)
 * January 26 – Deon Jackson, soul singer
 * January 27 - Nedra Talley (The Ronettes)
 * January 28 – Rick Allen (Box Tops)
 * January 31 – Terry Kath (Chicago)
 * February 1 – Carol Neblett operatic soprano
 * February 6 – Kate McGarrigle, folk singer-songwriter (d. 2010)
 * February 7 – Sammy Johns, country singer-songwriter
 * February 13 - Colin Matthews, composer
 * February 17 – Dodie Stevens, pop singer
 * February 20 – Jerome Geils of The J. Geils Band
 * February 23 – Rusty Young (Poco)
 * February 24 – Jiří Bělohlávek (BBC Symphony Orchestra)
 * March 1 – Tony Ashton (Ashton, Gardner and Dyke) (d. 2001)
 * March 6
 * David Gilmour (Pink Floyd)
 * Tony Klatka (Blood, Sweat & Tears)
 * March 7
 * Peter Wolf (The J. Geils Band)
 * Matthew Fisher (Procol Harum)
 * March 8 – Randy Meisner (Poco) (Eagles)
 * March 12 – Liza Minnelli, singer and actress
 * March 15 – Howard E. Scott (War)
 * March 17 – Harold Ray Brown (War)
 * March 19
 * Paul Atkinson (The Zombies) (d. 2004)
 * Ruth Pointer (The Pointer Sisters)
 * March 21 – Ray Dorset (Mungo Jerry)
 * March 22 – Harry Vanda (The Easybeats)
 * March 24 – Colin Petersen, drummer (Bee Gees)
 * March 27 – Andy Bown, (The Herd) (Status Quo) (Pink Floyd)
 * March 30 – Dave Ball (The Turtles)
 * April 1 – Ronnie Lane, singer, songwriter and guitarist (The Faces) (d. 1997)
 * April 3 – Dee Murray (Elton John Band)
 * April 4 – Dave Hill (Slade)
 * April 11 – Bob Harris, DJ
 * April 13
 * Al Green, soul singer
 * Jim Pons (The Turtles, The Mothers of Invention)
 * April 15 - Marsha Hunt, singer and novelist
 * April 16 – Pēteris Vasks, Latvian composer
 * April 17 – Bill Kreutzmann (Grateful Dead)
 * April 18
 * Lenny Baker (Sha Na Na)
 * Skip Spence (Jefferson Airplane, Moby Grape)
 * May 1 – Jerry Weiss (Blood, Sweat & Tears)
 * May 2 – Lesley Gore, singer (d. 2015)
 * May 9 – Clint Holmes, English-American singer-songwriter and game show host
 * May 10
 * Dave Mason (Traffic)
 * Donovan, folk singer
 * Graham Gouldman, singer and songwriter (10cc)
 * May 11 – Plume Latraverse, Canadian singer-songwriter and guitarist
 * May 16 – Robert Fripp, guitarist, composer and record producer
 * May 20 - Cher, singer and actress
 * May 24 – Steve Upton (Wishbone Ash)
 * June 1 – Jody Stecher, American singer
 * June 3 – Eddie Holman, American singer and minister
 * June 5 – Freddie Stone (Sly and the Family Stone)
 * June 10 – Millie Small, singer
 * June 11 – John Lawton (Uriah Heep)
 * June 15
 * Noddy Holder, English vocalist (Slade)
 * Demis Roussos, Greek singer (d. 2015)
 * June 18 – Maria Bethania, Brazilian singer (sister of Caetano Veloso)
 * June 25
 * Ian McDonald, musician and record producer (King Crimson) (Foreigner)
 * Allen Lanier (Blue Öyster Cult) (d. 2013)
 * June 30
 * Billy Brown (The Moments)
 * Iain Matthews, singer and songwriter
 * July 9 – Bon Scott (AC/DC) (d. 1980)
 * July 15 – Linda Ronstadt, singer
 * July 18 – Tim Lynch (The Flamin' Groovies)
 * July 19 – Alan Gorrie (Average White Band)
 * July 21 – Barry Whitwam (Herman's Hermits)
 * July 22
 * Mireille Mathieu, singer
 * Stephen M. Wolownik, American musicologist (d. 2000)
 * July 23 – Andy Mackay, saxophonist, oboist, and composer
 * July 24 – Alan Whitehead (Marmalade)
 * July 28
 * Jonathan Edwards, folk musician and songwriter
 * Suzanne Stephens, clarinetist and basset-hornist
 * July 30 – Jeffrey Hammond-Hammond (Jethro Tull)
 * July 31
 * Bob Welch (Fleetwood Mac)
 * Gary Lewis (Gary Lewis & The Playboys)
 * August 1
 * Boz Burrell, English singer-songwriter and guitarist (King Crimson) (Bad Company) (d. 2006)
 * Rick Coonce, American drummer (The Grass Roots) (d. 2011)
 * August 10 – Peter Karrie, star of West End musical productions
 * August 14 – Larry Graham (Sly and the Family Stone)
 * August 15 - Jimmy Webb, songwriter
 * August 19 – Beat Raaflaub, conductor
 * August 23 – Keith Moon, drummer (The Who) (d. 1978)
 * September 1
 * Gregg Errico (Sly and the Family Stone)
 * Barry Gibb, singer and songwriter (Bee Gees)
 * September 4
 * Gary Duncan (Quicksilver Messenger Service)
 * Greg Elmore (Quicksilver Messenger Service)
 * September 5
 * Freddie Mercury, lead singer (Queen) (d. 1991)
 * Loudon Wainwright III, singer-songwriter, humorist, and actor
 * Dean Ford, singer (Marmalade)
 * September 9
 * Billy Preston, singer and musician (d. 2006)
 * Bruce Palmer (Buffalo Springfield) (d. 2004)
 * Doug Ingle (Iron Butterfly)
 * September 14 – Pete Agnew (Nazareth)
 * September 18 – Alan "Bam" King (Ace)
 * September 19 – John Coghlan, drummer (Status Quo)
 * September 24 – Jerry Donahue (Fairport Convention)
 * September 28 – Helen Shapiro, singer
 * September 30 – Sylvia Peterson, singer (The Chiffons)
 * October 10
 * John Prine, singer-songwriter
 * Willard White, opera singer
 * October 11 – Gary Mallaber (Steve Miller Band)
 * October 13 – Dorothy Moore, singer
 * October 14
 * Justin Hayward, guitarist, singer and songwriter (The Moody Blues)
 * Dan McCafferty (Nazareth)
 * October 15 - Richard Carpenter (The Carpenters)
 * October 18 – Howard Shore, film composer
 * October 19 – Keith Reid (Procol Harum)
 * October 21 – Lee Loughnane (Chicago)
 * October 22 – Eddie Brigati (Young Rascals)
 * October 24 – Jerry Edmonton (Steppenwolf)
 * October 26 – Keith Hopwood (Herman's Hermits)
 * October 29 – Peter Green, guitarist and singer
 * October 30
 * René Jacobs, conductor and Countertenor singer
 * Chris Slade (AC/DC)
 * November 1 – Ric Grech, vocalist & multi-instrumentalist (Blind Faith) (Family), bassist (Traffic) (d. 1990)
 * November 5
 * Herman Brood, Dutch rock 'n' roll artist (d. 2001)
 * Gram Parsons, country musician (d. 1973)
 * November 8 – Roy Wood, singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist (The Move) (Electric Light Orchestra) (Wizzard)
 * November 11 – Chip Hawkes, vocalist and guitarist (The Tremeloes)
 * November 17 – Martin Barre, guitarist (Jethro Tull)
 * November 19 – Joe Correro Jr., drummer (Paul Revere and The Raiders)
 * November 20 – Duane Allman, lead & slide guitarist (The Allman Brothers Band) (d. 1971)
 * November 22 – Aston Barrett, reggae musician
 * November 29 – Eamonn Campbell, guitarist & mandolin player (The Dubliners)
 * December 1 – Gilbert O'Sullivan, singer-songwriter
 * December 5
 * José Carreras, opera singer
 * Andy Kim, singer
 * December 6 - Emílio Santiago (d. 2013)
 * December 10 – Walter Orange (The Commodores)
 * December 12 – Clive Bunker (Jethro Tull)
 * December 14 – Jane Birkin, UK actress and singer
 * December 15 – Carmine Appice (Vanilla Fudge, Cactus)
 * December 16
 * Benny Andersson, singer-songwriter (ABBA)
 * Trevor Pinnock, conductor and harpsichordist
 * December 17 – Jim Bonfanti, vocalist (Raspberries)
 * December 21 – Carl Wilson (The Beach Boys) (died 1998)
 * December 22 – Rick Nielsen (Cheap Trick)
 * December 23 – Edita Gruberova, opera singer
 * December 24 – Jan Akkerman, guitarist (Focus)
 * December 25 – Jimmy Buffett, singer, songwriter, author, businessman, and film producer
 * December 27 – Lenny Kaye (Patti Smith Group)
 * December 28 – Edgar Winter, multi-instrumentalist and singer
 * December 29 – Marianne Faithfull, singer and actress
 * December 30 – Patti Smith, poet, singer and songwriter

Deaths

 * January 7 – Adamo Didur, operatic bass, 77
 * January 10 – Harry Von Tilzer, songwriter, 73
 * January 18 – Lew Pollack, US composer, 50
 * February 2 – Eduard Bass, singer and cabaret director, 58
 * February 15 – Putney Dandridge, jazz musician, 44
 * February 20 – Hugh Allen, organist and choral conductor, 76
 * April 5 – Vincent Youmans, US composer, 47
 * May 25 – Patty Hill, co-writer of "Happy Birthday to You", 78
 * June 1 – Leo Slezak, operatic tenor, 72
 * July 14 – Riley Puckett, country musician, 52 (blood poisoning)
 * July 20 – Tricky Sam Nanton, trombonist, 42
 * August 8 - Maria Barrientos, coloratura soprano, 63
 * August 24 – Antonio Paoli, operatic tenor, 75
 * August 31 – Paul von Klenau, Danish composer and conductor, 63
 * September 3 – Moriz Rosenthal, pianist, 83
 * September 4 – Paul Lincke, composer, 79
 * September 16 – Mamie Smith, vaudeville singer, dancer, pianist and actress, 63
 * October 9 - Enrica Clay Dillon, American opera singer, opera director, and voice teacher, 65
 * October 12 – Giuseppe Adami, opera librettist, 67
 * October 16 – Sir Granville Bantock, composer, 78
 * November 5 – Zygmunt Stojowski, composer and pianist, 76
 * November 14 – Manuel de Falla, composer, 69
 * December 6 – Maximilian Steinberg, composer and teacher, 63
 * December 28 – Carrie Jacobs-Bond, US songwriter, 84
 * December 30 – Charles Wakefield Cadman, composer, 65
 * date unknown - Teddy Brown, xylophone player (born 1900)