The Yearly GELT's TOP 1947

Orson Welles & Rita Hayworth in The Lady From Shanghai (O. Welles, 1947)

Artist of the year : Hank Williams

1947 was a pivotal year in the history of modern popular music. The big band era was coming to an end and swing gave way to boogie-woogie while another trend was well up to rise with the advent of the rougher and stronger sound produced by the electric guitar. The name of Hank Williams was for now on all the lips, regarded as the big discovery of the year thanks to a charismatic personality and his highly modernized way to perform country music. Trained from his childhood in the hillbilly blues closerly related to the culture of his native Alabama, he took advantage of his often sick state to introduce himself  to guitar playing. He was just 14 when he formed his first group, performing in the streets of Montgomery. Already a songwriter, he made his mother his first fan. Convinced of his talent,  she led him to Nashville where he reached to hold producers’ attention but these were fast wary of his alcoholic addiction and didn't follow up. His marriage in 1944 with Audrey Mae Sheppard proved on the other hand wholesome and after going back to Nashville, two years later, he contracted with publisher Fred Rose with whom he would release his first big hit, Move It On Over, a soon emblematic Country music song but also influential in the era of the rock 'n' roll.

RK	Artist	Title	CT	VIDEO
1	Hank Williams	Move It On Over (Hank Williams)	USA	view
2	Louis Jordan	Jack, You're Dead (Dick Miles/Richard Miles/Walter Bishop, Jr./Walter Bishop,Sr)	USA	view
3	Ella Fitzgerald	That's My Desire (Bob Haggart)	USA	view
4	Danny Kaye & The Andrews Sisters	Civilization (Bongo, Bongo, Bongo) (Bob Hilliard/Carl Sigman)	USA	view
5	Jo Stafford	Haunted Heart (Arthur Scwartz/Howard Dietz)	USA	view
6	Art Lund with Johnny Thompson & His Orchestra	Mam'selle (Edmund Goulding/Mack Gordon)	USA	view
7	Savannah Churchill & The Sentimentalists	I Wanna Be Loved (Savannah Churchill)	USA	view
8	Sarah Vaughan with Teddy Wilson Quartet	September Song (Kurt Weill, Maxwell Anderson)	USA	view
9	The Mills Brothers	Across The Alley From The Alamo (Joe Greene)	USA	view
10	Bing Crosby & The Andrews Sisters	There's No Business Like Show Business (Irving Berlin)	USA	view
11	Julia Lee & Her Boyfriends	Snatch And Grab It (Sharon A. Pease)	USA	view
12	Phil Harris	Darktown Pocket Club (Clarence Williams/William Vodery)	USA	view
13	Jo Stafford	Early Autumn (Johnny Mercer)	USA	view
14	Frank Sinatra	I Have But One Heart (Johnny Farrow/Marty Symes)	USA	view
15	Louis Jordan & His Tympany Five	Texas And Pacific (Jack Wolf Fine/ Joseph E. Hirsch)	USA	view
16	Tex Williams	Smoke! Smoke! Smoke! (Merle Travis/Tex Williams)	USA	view
17	Tony Pastor & His Orchestra	The Lafy Of 29 Palms feat. The Clooney Sisters (Allie Wrubel)	USA	view
18	Hank Williams and His Drifting Cowboys	I Heard You Crying In Your Sleep (Hank Williams)	USA	view
19	T-Bone Walker	Call It Stormy Monday (T-Bone Walker)	USA	view
20	Ray Noble & Buddy Clark	Linda (Jack Lawrence)	USA	view
21	Hadda Brooks	That's My Desire (Bob Haggart)	USA	view
22	Frank Sinatra with Alex Stordahl & His Orchestra	Always (Irving Berlin)	USA	view
23	The Nat King Cole	When I Take My Sugar To Tea (Sammy Fain/Irving Kahal)	USA	view
24	Nellie Lutcher	He's A Real Gone Guy (Nellie Lurcher)	USA	view
25	Bing Crosby, Dick Haymes & The Andrews Sisters	Anything I Can Do (Irving Berlin)	USA	view
26	Perry Como	Chi-Baba (Ly Bambino Go To Sleep) (Mack Daid/Jerry Livingston/Al Hoffman)	USA	view
27	Margaret Whiting with Jerry Gray Orchestra	Guilty (Richard A. Whiting/Harry Akst/Gus Kahn)	USA	view
28	Louis Jordan & His Tympany Five	Boogie-Woogie Blue Plate (Joe Bushkin/Johnny DeVries)	USA	view
29	Frankie Laine	That's My Desire (Helmi Kreas/Carroll Loveday)	USA	view
30	Peggy Lee	Golden Earrings (Victor Young/Jay Livingstone/Ray Evans)	USA	view
31	Roy Milton & His Solid Senders	True Blues (Roy Milton)	USA	view
32	Lionel Hampton & Dinah Washington	Blow Top Blues (Leonard Feather)	USA	view
33	Eddie "Cleanhead" Vinson	Old Maid Boogie (Jessie Mae Robinson)	USA	view
34	Sarah Vaughan	Tenderly (Lloyd Gross/Jack Lawrence)	USA	view
35	Francis Craig & His Orchestra	Near You feat. Bob Lamm (Francis Craig/Kermitt Giel)	USA	view
36	Roy Brown with Bob Ogden Orchestra	Good Rockin' Tonight (Roy Brown)	USA	view
37	Joe Loss & His Orchestra	A Gal In Calico feat. Elizabeth Batey (Arthur Schwartz)	UK	view
38	Vaughn Monroe	Ballerina (Carl Sigman/Bob Russell)	USA	view
39	Merle Travis	So Round, So Firm, So Fully Packed (Merle Travis/Eddie Kirk/Cliffie Stone)	USA	view
40	Anita O' Day	How High The Moon (Morgan Lewi/Nancy Hamilton)	USA	view