1947 in music

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Musicians including Thelonious Monk and Roy Eldridge in New York City in 1947

Events

• August 7 – Carlo Bergonzi makes his professional debut as Schaunard in La Bohème at the Arena Argentina in Catania.
• October – Enrico De Angelis leaves Quartetto Cetra to join the army. Lucia Mannucci replaces him.
• Jack Brymer becomes principal clarinettist of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.
• Patti Page signs with Mercury.
• Frankie Laine earns the first of his 21 gold records.
• Kay Starr signs with Capitol.
• George Jones begins performing.
• Ernesto Bonino embarks on his Latin American tour.
• The Amadeus Quartet is founded, as the Brainin Quartet.

Albums released

• Glenn Miller Masterpieces, Vol. 2 – Glenn Miller
• Music Out of the Moon – Les Baxter
• The Jolson Album Vol. 1 – Al Jolson

Biggest hit songs

The following songs achieved the highest chart positions in the limited set of charts available for 1947.

#	Artist	Title	Year	Country	Chart Entries
1	Francis Craig	Near You	1947		US 1940s 1 – Sep 1947, US 1 for 12 weeks Sep 1947, US BB 6 of 1947, POP 14 of 1947, Europe 85 of the 1940s, RIAA 355
2	James Baskett	Zip-a-Dee-Doo-Dah	1947		US BB 1 of 1947, Oscar in 1947, POP 1 of 1947, AFI 47
3	Vaughn Monroe	Ballerina	1947		US 1940s 1 – Nov 1947, US 1 for 10 weeks Dec 1947, US BB 7 of 1947, POP 7 of 1947, Europe 56 of the 1940s
4	Ted Weems	Heartaches	1947		US 1940s 1 – Mar 1947, US 1 for 12 weeks Mar 1947, US BB 11 of 1947, POP 20 of 1947
5	Perry Como	Chi-Baba, Chi-Baba (My Bambino Go to Sleep)	1947		US 1940s 1 – Jun 1947, US 1 for 3 weeks Jun 1947, US BB 13 of 1947, POP 21 of 1947

Top hit records

• "Across The Alley From The Alamo" – The Mills Brothers
• "All Of Me" – Frankie Laine
• "Almost Like Being In Love" – Jo Stafford
• "Always" – Frank Sinatra
• "The Anniversary Song" recorded by:
  • Al Jolson
  • Tex Beneke and the Glenn Miller Orchestra
  • Guy Lombardo
  • Dinah Shore
  • Andy Russell
• "Anything You Can Do" – The Andrews Sisters, Bing Crosby & Dick Haymes
• "April Showers" – Al Jolson
• "Autumn in New York" – Jo Stafford
• "Ballerina" – Vaughn Monroe
• "But Beautiful" – Frankie Laine
• "Chi-Baba, Chi-Baba" – Perry Como
• "Civilization", recorded by
  • The Andrews Sisters and Danny Kaye
  • Louis Prima
  • Jack Smith
  • Ray McKinley
  • Woody Herman
• "Daddy-O (I’m Gonna Teach You Some Blues") – Dinah Shore
• "The Darktown Poker Club" – Phil Harris
• "Do It Again" – Jane Russell
• "Feudin' And Fightin'" – Dorothy Shay
• "Fool That I Am" – Georgia Gibbs
• "Frankie And Johnny" – Guy Lombardo & Kenny Gardner
• "Galway Bay" – Bing Crosby
• "Golden Earrings" – Peggy Lee
• "Haunted Heart" – Jo Stafford
• "Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas" – Frank Sinatra
• "Heartaches" – Ted Weems
• "How Are Things In Glocca Morra?" – Dick Haymes
• "Huggin' And Chalkin'" – Hoagy Carmichael
• "I Wish I Didn't Love You So" – Vaughn Monroe
• "If I Loved You" – Jo Stafford
• "In the Still of the Night" – Jo Stafford
• "Inspiration Point" – Frankie Laine
• "It Only Happens Once" – Frankie Laine
• "Let Me Sing And I'm Happy" – Al Jolson
• "I've Got A Crush On You" – Frank Sinatra
• "Ivy" – Jo Stafford
• "Linda" – Buddy Clark & The Ray Noble Orchestra
• "Loaded Pistols, Loaded Dice" – Phil Harris
• "The Lonesome Road" – Dinah Shore
• "Mam'selle", recorded by
  • Frankie Laine
  • Art Lund
  • Frank Sinatra
  • Dick Haymes
  • Dennis Day
  • The Pied Pipers
• "Make Believe" – Jo Stafford
• "Managua, Nicaragua" – Freddy Martin
• "Mean To Me" – Frank Sinatra
• "Near You", recorded by
  • The Andrews Sisters
  • Francis Craig
• "Nevertheless" – Frankie Laine
• "Night And Day" – Frank Sinatra
• "Peg O' My Heart", recorded by
  • Buddy Clark
  • The Harmonicats
  • The Three Suns
• "Put 'Em In A Box" – Frankie Laine
• "Put Yourself In My Place, Baby" – Frankie Laine
• "Serenade of the Bells"
  • Jo Stafford
  • Sammy Kaye
  • Kay Kyser
• "Shine" – Frankie Laine
• "Sincerely Yours" – The Ink Spots
• "Singing The Blues" – Frankie Laine
• "Smoke! Smoke! Smoke! (That Cigarette)" – Tex Williams
• "The Spaniard That Blighted My Life – Al Jolson & Bing Crosby
• "A Sunday Kind Of Love" – Frankie Laine
• "That Ain't Right" – Frankie Laine
• "Too Fat Polka" – Arthur Godfrey
• "We'll Be Together Again" – Frankie Laine
• "When You Were Sweet Sixteen" – Perry Como
• "The Whiffenpoof Song" – Bing Crosby
• "You Do", recorded by
  • Bing Crosby
  • Vic Damone
  • Vaughn Monroe
  • Dinah Shore
  • Margaret Whiting

Published popular music

• "Across the Alley From the Alamo" w.m. Joe Green
• "Afraid to Fall in Love" w. Ralph Blane m. Harry Warren. Introduced by Mickey Rooney and Gloria DeHaven in the 1948 film Summer Holiday
• "Ah, But It Happens" w. William Dunham m. Walter Kent
• "Almost Like Being in Love" w. Alan Jay Lerner m. Frederick Loewe. Introduced by David Brooks and Marion Bell in the musical Brigadoon. Performed in the 1954 film version by Gene Kelly.
• "And Mimi" w.m. Jimmy Kennedy & Nat Simon
• "Apalachicola F.L.A." w. Johnny Burke m. Jimmy Van Heusen. Introduced by Bob Hope and Bing Crosby in the film Road to Rio
• "An Apple Blossom Wedding" w.m. Jimmy Kennedy & Nat Simon
• "April in Portugal" w. Jose Galhardo (Port) Jimmy Kennedy (Eng) m. Raul Ferrão
• "Autumn Leaves" ("Les Feuilles Mortes") w.(Eng) Johnny Mercer (Fr) Jacques Prévert m. Joseph Kosma
• "Ballerina" w.m. Bob Russell & Carl Sigman
• "Beg Your Pardon" w.m. Francis Craig & Beasley Smith
• "Big Brass Band from Brazil" w.m. Bob Hilliard & Carl Sigman
• "Bloop Bleep" w.m. Frank Loesser
• "Blue Shadows on the Trail" w. Johnny Lange m. Elliot Daniel
• "Bouquet of Roses" w.m. Steve Nelson & Bob Hilliard
• "Busy Doing Nothing" w. Johnny Burke m. Jimmy Van Heusen
• "But Beautiful" w. Johnny Burke m. Jimmy Van Heusen
• "Buttons and Bows" w.m. Jay Livingston & Ray Evans
• "Chi-Baba, Chi-Baba" w.m. Mack David, Jerry Livingston & Al Hoffman
• "Cigarettes, Whisky, And Wild, Wild Women" w.m. Tim Spencer
• "Civilization" w.m. Bob Hilliard & Carl Sigman. Introduced by Elaine Stritch in the revue Angel in the Wings
• "Clancy Lowered the Boom" w.m. Hy Heath & Johnny Lange
• "Come to Me, Bend to Me" w. Alan Jay Lerner m. Frederick Loewe
• "Come to the Mardi Gras" w. (Eng) Ervin Drake & Jimmy Shirl (Port) Max Bulhoes & Milton De Oliviera m. Max Bulhoes & Milton De Oliviera
• "Confess" w.m. Bennie Benjamin & George David Weiss
• "Cuanto Le Gusta" w. Ray Gilbert m. Gabriel Ruiz
• "Don't Smoke in Bed" w.m. Willard Robison
• "Don't Telephone, Don't Telegraph, Tell a Woman" w.m. Al Stewart & Tex Williams
• "Down by the Station" adapted from a children's song by Lee Ricks & Slim Gaillard
• "Down the Old Spanish Trail" Kenneth Leslie-Smith & Jimmy Kennedy
• "The Dream of Olwen" w. Winifred May m. Charles Williams
• "The Egg and I", w. Bert Kalmar, Al Jolson, and Harry Akst m. Harry Ruby
• "Everybody Loves Somebody" w. Irving Taylor m. Ken Lane
• "Everybody's Gonna Have A Wonderful Time Up There" Lee Roy Abernathy
• "Ev'ry Day I Love You" w. Sammy Cahn m. Jule Styne
• "A Fella with an Umbrella" w.m. Irving Berlin
• "For Every Man There's a Woman" w. Leo Robin m. Harold Arlen. Introduced by Tony Martin in the 1948 film Casbah
• "Four Brothers" by Jimmy Giuffre
• "Fun And Fancy Free" w.m. Bennie Benjamin & George David Weiss
• "Galway Bay" w.m. Dr Arthur Colahan
• "The Gentleman Is A Dope" w. Oscar Hammerstein II m. Richard Rodgers
• "Good Rockin' Tonight" w.m. Roy Brown
• "Haunted Heart" w. Howard Dietz m. Arthur Schwartz
• "The Heather On The Hill" w. Alan Jay Lerner m. Frederick Loewe
• "Here Comes Santa Claus" w.m. Gene Autry & Oakley Haldeman
• "Here I'll Stay" w. Alan Jay Lerner m. Kurt Weill
• "Hooray For Love" w. Leo Robin m. Harold Arlen. Introduced by Tony Martin and Yvonne DeCarlo in the 1948 film Casbah
• "A Hundred And Sixty Acres" w.m. David Kapp
• "Hurry On Down" w.m. Nellie Lutcher
• "I Like'em Fat Like That" w.m. Claude Demetrius, Louis Jordan, J. Mayo Williams
• "I Still Get Jealous" w. Sammy Cahn m. Jule Styne
• "I Tipped My Hat And Slowly Rode Away" w.m. Larry Marks & Dick Charles
• "I Wish I Didn't Love You So" w.m. Frank Loesser
• "Ichabod" Don Raye & Gene De Paul
• "If You Stub Your Toe On The Moon" w. Johnny Burke m. Jimmy Van Heusen
• "I'll Dance At Your Wedding" w. Herb Magidson m. Ben Oakland
• "I'll Go Home With Bonnie Jean" w. Alan Jay Lerner m. Frederick Loewe
• "I'm My Own Grandpa" w.m. Dwight Latham & Moe Jaffe
• "It Only Happens When I Dance With You" w.m. Irving Berlin
• "It Takes a Long, Long Train With a Red Caboose" w.m. Larry Marks & Dick Charles
• "It Was Written in the Stars" w. Leo Robin m. Harold Arlen
• "It's a Most Unusual Day" w. Harold Adamson m. Jimmy McHugh
• "It's Magic" w. Sammy Cahn m. Jule Styne
• "Ivy" w.m. Hoagy Carmichael
• "Kokomo, Indiana" w. Mack Gordon m. Josef Myrow
• "Laroo Laroo Lilli Bolero" w. Sylvia Dee & Elizabeth Moore m. Sidney Lippman
• "Lazy Countryside" w.m. Bobby Worth
• "Life Gets Tee-jus, Don't It" w.m. Carson Robison
• "A Little Bird Told Me" w.m. Harvey O. Brooks
• "Look To The Rainbow" w. E.Y. Harburg m. Burton Lane
• "Love Is Where You Find It" w. Earl K. Brent m. Nacio Herb Brown
• "Love Somebody" w.m. Joan Whitney & Alex Kramer
• "The Maharajah Of Magador" w.m. Lewis Harris & John Jacob Loeb
• "Mam'selle" w. Mack Gordon m. Edmund Goulding
• "Mañana (Is Soon Enough for Me)" w.m. Peggy Lee & Dave Barbour
• "Maybe It's Because I'm A Londoner" w.m. Hubert Gregg
• "Maybe You'll Be There" w. Sammy Gallop m. Rube Bloom
• "Nature Boy" w.m. eden ahbez
• "Near You" w. Kermit Goell m. Francis Craig
• "The Night Has A Thousand Eyes" w. Buddy Bernier m. Jerome (Jerry) Brainin
• "Now Is The Hour" w.m. Maewa Kaihan, Clement Scott & Dorothy Stewart
• "(I'd Like to Get You on a) Slow Boat to China" w.m. Frank Loesser
• "Once And For Always" w. Johnny Burke m. Jimmy Van Heusen
• "Papa Won't You Dance With Me?" w. Sammy Cahn m. Jule Styne
• "Pass That Peace Pipe" w. Ralph Blane m. Hugh Martin
• "Perhaps, Perhaps, Perhaps" w.(Eng) Joe Davis (Span.) Osvaldo Farrés m. Osvaldo Farrés Quizás, Quizás, Quizás
• "Please Stop Playing Those Blues, Boys" Claude Demetrius & Fleecie Moore
• "Put 'Em In A Box, Tie 'Em With A Ribbon, And Throw 'Em In The Deep Blue Sea" w. Sammy Cahn m. Jule Styne
• "Rhode Island Is Famous For You" w. Howard Dietz m. Arthur Schwartz
• "Save The Bones For Henry Jones" w.m. Danny Barker & Michael H. Goldsen
• "Serenade Of The Bells" w.m. Kay Twomey, Al Goodhart & Al Urbano
• "Sixteen Tons" w.m. Merle Travis
• "Smoke! Smoke! Smoke!" w.m. Merle Travis & Tex Williams
• "Steppin' Out With My Baby" w.m. Irving Berlin
• "Tallahassee" w.m. Frank Loesser
• "There But For You Go I" w. Alan Jay Lerner m. Frederick Loewe
• "Too Fat Polka" w.m. Ross MacLean & Arthur Richardson
• "Toolie Oolie Doolie" w.(Eng) Vaughn Horton (Ger) Arthur Beul m. Arthur Beul
• "The Turntable Song" w. Leo Robin m. John Green
• "Waitin' For My Dearie" w. Alan Jay Lerner m. Frederick Loewe
• "The Wedding Samba" w.m. Abraham Ellstein, Allan Small & Joseph Liebowitz
• "We're Gonna Rock, We're Gonna Roll" Teddy Reig, William Moore
• "What Good Would the Moon Be?" w. Langston Hughes m. Kurt Weill. Introduced by Anne Jeffreys in the musical Street Scene
• "What's Good About Goodbye?" w. Leo Robin m. Harold Arlen. Introduced by Tony Martin in the 1948 film Casbah
• "When I'm Not Near The Girl I Love" w. E. Y. Harburg m. Burton Lane Introduced by David Wayne in the Broadway production of Finian's Rainbow
• "Woody Woodpecker" w.m. George Tibbles & Ramez Idriss
• "You Do" w. Mack Gordon m. Josef Myrow
• "You Don't Have To Know The Language" w. Johnny Burke m. Jimmy Van Heusen
• "You Were Only Fooling" w. William E. Faber & Fred Meadows m. Larry Fotine
• "You, You, You Are The One" w. Milton Leeds & Fred Wise m. Tetos Demey

Classical music

• Milton Babbitt – Three Compositions for Piano
• Samuel Barber – Knoxville: Summer of 1915
• Lennox Berkeley – Piano Concerto in B-flat
• Doreen Carwithen (Mary Alwyn) – ODTAA (One Damn Thing After Another)
• Paul Creston – Fantasy for Trombone
• George Crumb
  • Gethsemane for small orchestra
  • Three Early Songs for Voice and Piano
• David Diamond – String Quartet No. 3
• Maurice Duruflé – Requiem
• Henri Dutilleux – oboe Sonata
• Einar Englund – Symphony No. 1 War Symphony
• Vittorio Giannini – Variations on a Cantus Firmus
• Morton Gould – American Salute
• Vagn Holmboe – Symphony No. 6
• Charles Ives – Piano Sonata No. 2, Concord, Mass., 1840–60 (Concord Sonata, revised version)
• Miloslav Kabeláč – Overture No. 2 for large orchestra
• Gian Francesco Malipiero
  • Symphony No. 5 (Concertante in Eco)
  • Symphony No. 6 (degli Archi)
• Nikolai Myaskovsky
  • Pathetic Overture in C Minor, Op.76
  • String Quartet No. 12 in G, Op.77
• Sergei Prokofiev
  • Symphony No. 6 in E-flat Minor
  • Symphony No. 4 in C Major (extensively revised version)
• Edmund Rubbra – Symphony No. 5
• Mátyás Seiber – Ulysses (cantata)
• Harold Shapero – Symphony for Classical Orchestra
• Igor Stravinsky
  • Orpheus (ballet)
  • Petrushka (ballet) (2nd version)
• Edgard Varèse – Tuning Up
• William Walton – String Quartet in A minor (1945–47)

Opera

• Benjamin Britten – Albert Herring
• Gottfried von Einem – Dantons Tod
• Gian Carlo Menotti – The Telephone
• Ildebrando Pizzetti – L'Oro
• Virgil Thomson – The Mother of Us All

Musical theater

• Allegro Broadway production
• Angel in the Wings Broadway production
• Annie Get Your Gun (Irving Berlin) – London production opened at the Coliseum on June 7 and ran for 1304 performances
• Barefoot Boy with Cheek Broadway production
• Bless the Bride London production opened at the Adelphi Theatre on April 26 and ran for 886 performances. Starring Georges Guétary, Lizbeth Webb, Anona Winn and Brian Reece.
• Bonanza Bound Philadelphia production
• Brigadoon (Alan Jay Lerner and Frederick Loewe) – Broadway production
• Finian's Rainbow (Burton Lane and E.Y. Harburg) – Broadway production opened on January 10 at the 46th Street Theatre and ran for 725 performances.
• Finian's Rainbow (Burton Lane and E.Y. Harburg) – London production opened on October 21 at the Palace Theatre and ran for 55 performances.
• High Button Shoes (Jule Styne and Sammy Cahn) – Broadway production
• Oklahoma! (Rodgers & Hammerstein) – London production opened at the Theatre Royal on April 29 and ran for 1543 performances
• The Red Mill London revival
• The Shape of Things! East Hampton production
• Street Scene Broadway production
• Together Again London revue starring The Crazy Gang opened at the Victoria Palace Theatre on April 7 and ran for 1566 performances.
• Tuppence Coloured London revue
• Under the Counter Broadway production opened at the Shubert Theatre on October 3. Cicely Courtneidge reprised her starring role from the London production but the show closed after only 27 performances.

Musical films

Tommy and Jimmy, The Fabulous Dorseys

• Carnival in Costa Rica
• Copacabana
• The Dancing Years
• Down to Earth
• Etoile Sans Lumiere (Star Without Light)
• The Fabulous Dorseys
• Fiesta
• Fun and Fancy Free animated film includes Bongo and Mickey And The Beanstalk
• Golden Earrings
• Good News
• I Wonder Who's Kissing Her Now
• I'll Be Yours starring Deanna Durbin, Tom Drake, William Bendix and Adolphe Menjou. Directed by William A. Seiter.
• It Happened in Brooklyn starring Frank Sinatra, Peter Lawford, Kathryn Grayson and Jimmy Durante. Directed by Richard Whorf.
• Ladies' Man
• Linda Be Good starring Elyse Knox, Marie Wilson and John Hubbard. Directed by Frank McDonald. Directed by Frank McDonald.
• Little Miss Broadway starring Jean Porter, John Shelton and Ruth Donnelly. Directed by Arthur Dreifuss.
• Living in a Big Way starring Gene Kelly
• Mother Wore Tights starring Betty Grable and Dan Dailey
• My Favorite Brunette
• My Wild Irish Rose
• New Orleans
• Night Song
• Nora Prentiss
• Northwest Outpost
• The Perils of Pauline
• The Road to Rio
• The Secret Life of Walter Mitty
• The Shocking Miss Pilgrim released January 4 starring Betty Grable and Dick Haymes
• Something in the Wind
• Song of Scheherazade
• Star Without Light
• This Time for Keeps
• The Trouble with Women
• The Unfinished Dance
• Variety Girl
• Welcome, Stranger

Births

• January 6 – Sandy Denny, folk singer (Fairport Convention) (d. 1978)
• January 8
  • David Bowie, singer-songwriter
  • Terry Sylvester (The Hollies)
• January 18 – John O'Conor, Irish pianist
• January 19 – Rod Evans (Deep Purple)
• January 20 – George Grantham (Poco)
• January 21 – Pye Hastings (Caravan)
• January 24 – Warren Zevon, singer and songwriter (d. 2003)
• January 28 – David Byron (Uriah Heep)
• January 30 – Steve Marriott, vocalist (Small Faces, Humble Pie) (d. 1991)
• February 3
  • Dave Davies, singer-guitarist (The Kinks)
  • Melanie Safka, singer-songwriter
• February 9 – Joe Ely, singer, guitarist and songwriter
• February 14 – Tim Buckley, singer and musician (d. 1975)
• February 15
  • David Brown, bass guitarist (Santana) (d. 2000)
  • John Coolidge Adams, composer
• February 18 – Dennis DeYoung (Styx)
• February 24 – Rupert Holmes, singer-songwriter
• February 26 – Sandie Shaw, singer
• March 3 – Jennifer Warnes, singer
• March 5 – Clodagh Rodgers, singer
• March 6 – Kiki Dee, singer
• March 8 – Michael Allsup (Three Dog Night)
• March 9 - Chris Thompson
• March 10 – Tom Scholz (Boston)
• March 11 – Mark Stein (Vanilla Fudge)
• March 15 – Ry Cooder, guitarist, singer and composer
• March 18 – B. J. Wilson, drummer (Procol Harum) (d. 1990)
• March 24 – Mike Kellie, drummer (Spooky Tooth)
• March 25
  • Elton John, pianist, singer and songwriter
  • John Rowles, New Zealand singer
• March 29 – Bobby Kimball, singer (Toto)
• April 2 – Emmylou Harris, country singer-songwriter
• April 7 – Patricia Bennett (The Chiffons)
• April 8
  • Steve Howe, guitarist (Yes)
  • Larry Norman, singer, songwriter and producer (d. 2008)
• April 10 – Bunny Wailer, reggae musician
• April 16
  • Ján Lehotský, Slovak composer
  • Gerry Rafferty, singer-songwriter
• April 17 – Linda Martin, singer
• April 21
  • Iggy Pop, rock singer-songwriter
  • John Weider (John Mayall's Bluesbreakers)
• April 23 – Glenn Cornick, bass guitarist (Jethro Tull)
• April 27 – Pete Ham, singer-songwriter (Badfinger) (d. 1975)
• April 29 – Tommy James, singer, songwriter and producer
• May 8 – Phil Sawyer, guitarist (The Spencer Davis Group, Jefferson Starship)
• May 10 – Jay Ferguson (Spirit)
• May 11 – Butch Trucks, drummer (The Allman Brothers Band)
• May 14 – Al Ciner, guitarist (Three Dog Night)
• May 15 – Graeham Goble (Little River Band)
• May 16
  • Barbara Lee (The Chiffons)
  • Darrell Sweet (Nazareth) (d. 1999)
• May 19 – Paul Brady, singer-songwriter
• May 20 – Steve Currie (T. Rex) (d. 1981)
• May 21 – Bill Champlin (Chicago)
• May 31 – Junior Campbell, singer and songwriter
• June 1 – Ronnie Wood, guitarist (The Faces, The Rolling Stones)
• June 3 – Mickey Finn (T. Rex) (d. 2003)
• June 5
  • Tommie Evans (Badfinger) (died 1983)
  • Laurie Anderson, singer-songwriter
• June 8
  • Mick Box (Uriah Heep)
  • Julie Driscoll, singer (Brian Auger and the Trinity)
• June 14 – Barry Melton (Country Joe and the Fish)
• June 17
  • Gregg Rolie (Santana, Journey)
  • Paul Young (Sad Café), singer and percussionist (died 2000)
• June 20 – Dolores "LaLa" Brooks, singer (The Crystals)
• June 22 – Howard Kaylan (The Turtles, The Mothers of Invention, Flo & Eddie)
• June 24 – Mick Fleetwood , drummer
• July 7 – Rob Townsend, drummer (Family)
• July 9 – Mitch Mitchell, drummer (The Jimi Hendrix Experience) (d. 2008)
• July 10 – Arlo Guthrie, folk singer
• July 11 – John Holt, singer (The Paragons)
• July 15 – Peter Banks, guitarist (Yes) , (The Syn)
• July 19
  • Bernie Leadon (The Flying Burrito Brothers, Eagles)
  • Brian May, guitarist (Queen)
• July 20 – Carlos Santana, guitarist
• July 22 – Don Henley (Eagles)
• July 23 – David Essex, singer and actor
• July 24 – Chris Townson, drummer (John's Children, The Who)
• August 5
  • Rick Derringer (The McCoys)
  • Gregory Leskiw (The Guess Who)
• August 6 – Dennis Alcapone, reggae deejay and producer
• August 9 – Barbara Mason, singer
• August 10
  • Ian Anderson, singer and flautist (Jethro Tull)
  • Dimitri Alexeev, pianist
• August 14 – Maddy Prior, folk singer
• August 17 – Gary Talley, guitarist (The Box Tops)
• August 20 – James Pankow, brass player (Chicago)
• September 3 – Eric Bell, guitarist (Thin Lizzy)
• September 12 – Darryl DeLoach, vocalist (Iron Butterfly) (d. 2002)
• September 17
  • Lol Creme, singer (10cc)
  • Gordon Edwards (The Kinks)
• September 21 – Don Felder (Eagles)
• September 23 – Jerry Corbetta (Sugarloaf)
• September 27 – Meat Loaf, singer
• September 30 – Marc Bolan, singer and songwriter (died 1977)
• October 4 – Jim Fielder, bass guitarist (Blood, Sweat & Tears, Buffalo Springfield)
• October 5 – Brian Johnson, singer (AC/DC)
• October 10 – Norman Carl Odam, the Legendary Stardust Cowboy, novelty artist
• October 13 – Sammy Hagar (Montrose, Van Halen)
• October 16 – Bob Weir (Grateful Dead)
• October 17 – Michael McKean (This Is Spinal Tap)
• October 18 – Laura Nyro, singer, pianist and composer (d. 1997)
• October 21 – Tetsu Yamauchi, bass guitarist (Free, The Faces)
• October 23 – Greg Ridley, bass guitarist (Spooky Tooth, Humple Pie) (d. 2003)
• October 30 – Timothy B. Schmit (Poco, Eagles)
• November 2 – Dave Pegg, instrumentalist (Fairport Convention, Jethro Tull)
• November 5
  • Peter Noone, singer, "Herman" of Herman's Hermits
  • Steve Hodson, British actor
• November 8 – Minnie Riperton, singer (d. 1979)
• November 10
  • Greg Lake (Emerson, Lake & Palmer)
  • Dave Loggins, singer-songwriter
• November 12 – Buck Dharma (Blue Öyster Cult)
• November 20 – Joe Walsh (James Gang, Eagles)
• December 4 – Terry Woods (The Pogues)
• December 5
  • Jim Messina (Buffalo Springfield, Loggins and Messina)
  • Rick Wills, bass guitarist (Foreigner)
• December 8 – Gregg Allman, singer, guitarist and songwriter
• December 12 – Vin Scelsa, radio DJ
• December 27 – Tracy Nelson, singer (Mother Earth)
• December 28 – Dick Diamonde, bassist (The Easybeats)
• December 29 – Cozy Powell, drummer (d. 1998)
• December 30 – Jeff Lynne, singer, songwriter and producer (The Move, Electric Light Orchestra)
• December 31 – Burton Cummings (The Guess Who)
• date unknown – Jonathan Kelly, singer-songwriter

Deaths

• January 11 – Eva Tanguay, singer, vaudeville star, 67
• January 16
  • Sonny Berman, jazz trumpeter, 21 (suspected drug overdose)
  • Fate Marable, jazz pianist and bandleader, 56 (pneumonia
• January 26 – Grace Moore, operatic soprano, 48 (plane crash)
• January 28 – Reynaldo Hahn, French composer and conductor, 71
• March 5 – Alfredo Casella, composer, 63
• March 28 – Rudolph Simonsen, composer, 57
• April 22 – Charles Friant, tenor, 57
• May 2 – Louie Henri, singer and actress, 83
• May 6 – Louise Homer, operatic contralto, 76
• May 27 – Claire Croiza, mezzo-soprano and singing teacher, 64
• May 30 – Georg Ludwig von Trapp, head of the singing von Trapp family, 67
• July 1 – Clarence Lucas, composer and conductor, 80
• July 12 – Jimmie Lunceford, jazz saxophonist and bandleader, 45 (cardiac arrest)
• July 13 – Marcel Varnel, Broadway director, 52 (car crash)
• July 15 – Walter Donaldson, songwriter, 54
• July 24 – Ernest Austin, English composer, 72
• September 18 – Bert Kalmar, lyricist, 63
• September 28 – Francisco Santiago, the "Father of Kundiman Art Song", 58
• September 29 – Jan Hambourg, violinist, 65
• October 6
  • Janet Fairbank, opera singer, 44 (leukaemia)
  • Leevi Madetoja, composer
• November 14 – Joseph Allard, French-Canadian fiddler, 74
• November 28 – Georg Schnéevoigt, conductor and composer, 75
• December 14 – Will Fyffe, Scottish comedian and singer, 62
• December 16 – Cesare Sodero, conductor, 61
• date unknown
  • Salvatore Cardillo, songwriter
  • Ilia Trilling, Yiddish theatre producer and composer