This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 1944.

Specific locations

Specific genres

Events

Albums released

Top records

On August 1, 1942, a strike by the American Federation of Musicians ended all recording sessions. Record companies kept business going by releasing recordings from their vaults, but by mid-1943, alternate sources were running dry, as the strike continued. Decca was the first company to settle in September 1943, but RCA Victor and Columbia held on until November 11, 1944. It comes as no surprise that fifteen of the top twenty records of 1944 were released by Decca, with two more by Capitol, the second company to settle. Beginning February 19, 1944, The Billboard modified its "Most Played Juke Box Records" chart to rank records (previously it had ranked songs, listing multiple records for each). The January 6, 1945 issue contained year-end top ten charts for "Best Selling Retail Records", "Most Played Juke Box Records" and "Top 10 Disks for 1944", the latter combining the scores of the former two charts. The chart below was compiled using Billboard's formula, but includes each record's full chart period, with weeks from 1943 and 1945 as needed. Details from "Most Played Juke Box Folk Records" (Hillbilly), "Harlem Hit Parade" (HHP) charts and the "American Folk Records" column late 1943-early 1944 were also considered. As always, numerical rankings are approximate.

Top race records

Popular hit records

• "Amor" recorded by • *Andy Russell • *Bing Crosby • "And Her Tears Flowed Like Wine" by Stan Kenton with Anita O'Day • "Artistry In Rhythm" by Stan Kenton • "Cherry" by Harry James • "D-Day" by Nat King Cole • "Don't Sweetheart Me" by Lawrence Welk • "First Class Private Mary Brown" by Perry Como • "Goodnight Irene" by Lead Belly • "A Hot Time In the Town of Berlin" by Bing Crosby & the Andrews Sisters • "Is You Is or Is You Ain't" performed by • *The Andrews Sisters • *Louis Jordan • "It Could Happen To You" by Jo Stafford • "It Had To Be You" by Dick Haymes and Helen Forrest • "It's Love-Love-Love" by Guy Lombardo • "Saturday Night (Is the Loneliest Night of the Week)" by Frank Sinatra • "Speak Low" by Guy Lombardo • "(There'll Be A) Hot Time in the Town of Berlin" by The Andrews Sisters • "The Trolley Song" recorded by • *Judy Garland • *Vaughn Monroe and His Orchestra • "Time Waits For No One" by Helen Forrest • "There Goes That Song Again" by Russ Morgan

Published popular music

Classical music

Premieres

Compositions

Film

Jazz

Musical theater

Musical films

Births

Deaths