1954 in music

Events

Frank Sinatra wins the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor in From Here To Eternity, 1953; resuscitating his singing career in the process
Bing Crosby received a Best Actor nomination for his work in The Country Girl
January 14 - First documented use of the abbreviated term "Rock 'n' Roll" to promote Alan Freed's Rock 'n' Roll Jubillee, held at St. Nicholas Arena in New York, New York. Previously the genre term was just called "Rock and Roll"
March 12 - Arnold Schoenberg's opera Moses und Aron premiered in Hamburg (given a staged premiere on June 6 in Zurich) (^*)
April 12 - Bill Haley and His Comets record "Rock Around the Clock" in New York City for Decca Records.
May 10 - "Rock Around the Clock" released as the b-side to "Thirteen Women (and Only One Man in Town)". The song is only a moderate success until it is featured in the film Blackboard Jungle the next year.
July 5 - Elvis Presley has his first commercial recording session at Sun Studios in Memphis, Tennessee. He sang That's All Right (Mama) and Blue Moon of Kentucky.
October 16 - Elvis Presley makes his first appearance on a radio program in Shreveport, Louisiana called the Louisiana Hayride.
Fall - A cover version of Big Joe Turner's "Shake, Rattle and Roll" by Bill Haley and His Comets becomes the first internationally popular rock and roll recording.
Record companies deliver 7 inch 45 rpm record singles to radio stations instead of 78s
Pat Boone begins his recording career at Republic Records
Les Paul commissions Ampex to build the first eight track tape recorder, at his own expense
The Drifters form
The Everly Brothers form
The Isley Brothers form
Carl Perkins' musical career begins

Albums released

And I Thought About You - Patti Page
Clap Yo' Hands - The Four Lads
Crew Cut Capers - The Crew Cuts
Favorite Songs - The Ames Brothers
Guy Mitchell Sings - Guy Mitchell
In The Wee Small Hours - Frank Sinatra
Irving Berlin Favorites - Eddie Fisher
It Must Be True - The Ames Brothers
Louis Armstrong And The Mills Brothers - Louis Armstrong & The Mills Brothers
Louis Armstrong Plays W. C. Handy - Louis Armstrong
The Man That Got Away - Georgia Gibbs
Meet The Mills Brothers - The Mills Brothers
Mr. Rhythm - Frankie Laine
My Heart's In The Highland - Jo Stafford
Old Masters - Bing Crosby
RCA Thesaurus - JOHN SERRY SR soloist/arr. with The Bel-Cordions for RCA
Romance On The Range - Patti Page
Some Fine Old Chestnuts - Bing Crosby
Song Souvenirs - Patti Page
Songs For Young Lovers - Frank Sinatra
Souvenir Album - The Mills Brothers
Swing Easy - Frank Sinatra
Till I Waltz Again With You - Teresa Brewer

No. 1 hit singles

These singles reached the top of Billboard magazine's charts in 1954.

First week	Number of weeks	Title	Artist
January 2, 1954	8	"Oh My Papa"	Eddie Fisher
February 27, 1954	2	"Secret Love"	Doris Day
March 13, 1954	1	"Make Love To Me"	Jo Stafford
March 20, 1954	1	"Secret Love"	Doris Day
March 27, 1954	2	"Make Love To Me"	Jo Stafford
April 10, 1954	7	"Wanted"	Perry Como
May 29, 1954	10	"Little Things Mean A Lot"	Kitty Kallen
August 7, 1954	7	"Sh-Boom"	Crew-Cuts
September 25, 1954	6	"Hey There"	Rosemary Clooney
November 6, 1954	1	"This Ole House"	Rosemary Clooney
November 13, 1954	3	"I Need You Now"	Eddie Fisher
December 4, 1954	7	"Mr. Sandman"	The Chordettes

Top hits on record

A-I

"Am I A Toy Or A Treasure" - Kay Starr
"Answer Me, My Love" - Nat King Cole
"Back Where I Belong" - Frankie Laine & Jo Stafford
"Baubles, Bangles & Beads" - Georgia Gibbs
"Baubles, Bangles & Beads" - Peggy Lee
"The Christmas Song" - Nat King Cole (a new version; original release was in 1946)
"Cross Over The Bridge" - Patti Page
"Darling, Je Vous Aime Beaucoup" - Nat King Cole
"Ebb Tide" - Roy Hamilton
"Goodnight, Sweetheart, Goodnight" - The McGuire Sisters
"Hearts Of Stone" - The Fontane Sisters
"How Did He Look?" - Georgia Gibbs
"I Cried" - Patti Page
"I Need You Now" - Eddie Fisher
"I Speak To The Stars" - Doris Day
"I Took Him From You" - The DeJohn Sisters
"If I Give My Heart To You" - Doris Day
"If I Give My Heart To You" - Denise Lor
"If You Love Me (Really Love Me)" - Kay Starr
"In the Chapel in the Moonlight" - Kitty Kallen
"In the Beginning" - Frankie Laine
"In The Mood" - Glenn Miller
"In the Wee Small Hours" - Frank Sinatra

L-S

"Let Me Go, Lover" - Joan Weber
"Little Things Mean A Lot" - Kitty Kallen
"Make Love to Me" - Jo Stafford
"The Man That Got Away" - Georgia Gibbs
"The Man Upstairs" - Kay Starr
"Melancholy Baby" - Georgia Gibbs
"Melody of Love" - Frank Sinatra & Ray Anthony
"Mr. Sandman" - Chordettes
"Money Burns A Hole In My Pocket" - Dean Martin
"Muskrat Ramble" - Matys Brothers
"My Friend" - Frankie Laine
"My Sin" - Georgia Gibbs
"Oh! My Pa-Pa" - Eddie Fisher
"Opus One" - The Mills Brothers
"Out Of Nowhere" - Frankie Laine
"Rain, Rain, Rain" - Frankie Laine & The Four Lads
"Secret Love" - Doris Day
"Sh-Boom" - Crew-Cuts
"Sincerely" - McGuire Sisters
"Smile" - Nat King Cole
"Someone to Watch Over Me" - Frank Sinatra
"Such A Night" - Johnnie Ray
"Sway" - Dean Martin

T-Y

Top R&B and Country hits on record

"Bimbo" - Jim Reeves
"Goodnight Sweetheart Goodnight" - Spaniels
"Gypsy Heart" - Jim Reeves
"Hearts Of Stone" - Jewels
"I'm Your Hoochie Coochie Man" - Muddy Waters
"Shake Rattle And Roll" - Joe Turner
"That's All Right" - Elvis Presley
"The Things That I Used To Do" - Guitar Slim
"Work With Me Annie" - Hank Ballard & the Midnighters

Published popular music

Classical music

Jean Barraqué - Sequence
Arnold Bax - Autumn Legend
Boris Blacher - Viola Concerto
Pierre Boulez - Le Marteau sans Maître
George Crumb - String Quartet
Mario Davidovsky - Concertino for Percussion and String Orchestra
Ernő Dohnányi - American Rhapsody
Gerald Finzi - Cello Concerto opus 40 in A minor
Armstrong Gibbs - Dale and Fell
Howard Hanson - Symphony No. 5 (Sinfonia Sacra)
Alexander Karamanov - Symphony No. 1
Aram Khachaturian - Spartacus, ballet
György Ligeti - String Quartet No. 1
Peter Mennin - Canzona for Strings
Darius Milhaud - West Point Suite
Walter Piston - Symphony No. 5
Edmund Rubbra - Sixth Symphony and Viola Concerto
Roger Sessions - Idyll of Theocritus
Igor Stravinsky - In Memoriam Dylan Thomas
Virgil Thomson - Concerto for Flute, Strings, Harp and Percussion
Henri Tomasi - Concerto for Horn
Eduard Tubin - Symphony No. 6
Edgar Varèse - Déserts (1950-54)
Stefan Wolpe - Symphony for 24 Instruments

Opera

Musical theater

The Pajama Game (Richard Adler and Jerry Ross) - Broadway production

Musical films

Brigadoon
Carmen Jones
Casanova's Big Night starring Bob Hope
Deep In My Heart starring José Ferrer
The French Line starring Jane Russell
Lucky Me starring Doris Day, Robert Cummings and Phil Silvers
New Faces
Red Garters starring Rosemary Clooney, Jack Carson and Guy Mitchell
Rhapsody starring Elizabeth Taylor
River of No Return starring Marilyn Monroe
Rose Marie starring Ann Blyth and Howard Keel
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers starring Jane Powell, Howard Keel and Julie Newmar.
A Star Is Born
The Student Prince starring Ann Blyth and Edmund Purdom with Mario Lanza dubbing for Purdom.
There's No Business Like Show Business
Top Banana starring Phil Silvers
White Christmas starring Bing Crosby, Danny Kaye, Rosemary Clooney and Vera Ellen

Musical television

Babes in Toyland
Lady in the Dark ^{Note: as of June 2005 this article only cover the original 1941 Broadway version of this musical.}

Births

January-April

January 16 - Cheryl Bentyne, The Manhattan Transfer
January 25 - Richard Finch, K.C. and the Sunshine Band
February 1 - Mike Campbell, Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers
February 18 - John Travolta, Saturday Night Fever
February 19 - Jimmy Pursey, Sham 69
February 20 - Jon Brant, Cheap Trick
February 26 - Michael Bolton, singer, songwriter
February 27 - Neal Schon, Journey
March 10 - Tina Charles, singer
March 15 - Jon King, Gang Of Four
March 16 - Julian Marshall, Marshall Hain
March 24 - Steve Diggle, The Buzzcocks
March 25 - Helen Terry, singer
March 27 - Wally Stocker, The Babys
March 28 - Reba McEntire
March 31 - Tony Brock, The Babys
April 5 - Peter Case
April 13 - Jimmy Destri, Blondie
April 17 - Michael Sembello
April 28 - Michael Daugherty, American composer

May-December

May 1 - Ray Parker, Jr.
May 20 - Jimmie Henderson, Black Oak Arkansas
May 31 - Vicki Sue Robinson, US disco singer. (+2000)
June 3 - Dan Hill
June 8 - Greg Ginn, punk guitarist and member of Black Flag
June 13 - Robert Donaldson, Bo Donaldson & The Heywoods
June 15 - Terri Gibbs
August 11 - Joe Jackson, British singer
August 17 - Eric Johnson
August 25 - Elvis Costello
September 14 - Barry Cowsill
September 17 - Joël-François Durand, French composer
October 3 - Stevie Ray Vaughan (+1990)
October 9 - James Fearnley, The Pogues
October 12 - Michael Roe, guitarist, lead singer of The 77s
October 21 - Eric Faulkner, Bay City Rollers
November 4 - Chris Difford, Squeeze
November 9 - Dennis Stratton, Iron Maiden
November 10 - Mario Cipollina, Huey Lewis & The News
November 14 - Yanni
November 23 - Bruce Hornsby
December 6 - Edward Tudor-Pole
December 11 - Jermaine Jackson, The Jackson 5
December 25 - Annie Lennox, Eurythmics
December 25 - Robin Campbell, UB40
Marty Dieckmeyer, Daniel Amos
Marc Ribot, guitarist, Sam Phillips, Elvis Costello, others

Deaths

March 3 - Noel Gay, English songwriter
March 27 - Carl Fischer, American composer and jazz pianist, aged 41. Fischer was best known for his work as Frankie Laine's accompanist and musical director, and for standard "We'll Be Together Again," which he and Laine wrote.
May 19 - Charles Ives, American composer
May 31 - Pedro Elías Gutiérrez
August 17 - Billy Murray, US singer
October 27 - Franco Alfano, composer and pianist
November 11 - J. Rosamond Johnson, US composer and singer
November 30 - Wilhelm Furtwängler, conductor
August 24 - Fred Rose, songwriter, music publisher

External Charts

Pop Culture Madness 1954 Pop Music Chart

1954 in music

1954 en musique | 1954 - muzyka | 1954 в музыке | Musikåret 1954

Gourt Home::Gourt :: 1954 in music

Events

Albums released

No. 1 hit singles

Top hits on record

A-I

L-S

T-Y

Top R&B and Country hits on record

Published popular music

A-G

H

I-L

M-P

R-T

W-Y

Classical music

Opera

Musical theater

Musical films

Musical television

Births

January-April

May-December

Deaths

External Charts