Top 100 Songs of 1959: The Year-End Chart

“The Battle Of New Orleans” by Johnny Horton was the biggest hit of 1959, finishing at No. 1 on the year-end Top 100 ahead of “Mack The Knife” by Bobby Darin and “Personality” by Lloyd Price. The year-end chart ranks the songs that performed best across the whole year, not just in a single week.

16 acts placed more than one song on the list, led by Frankie Avalon (4), Elvis Presley (4), Ricky Nelson (4), Lloyd Price (3), The Coasters (3). None of the 100 songs was on the 1958 year-end list.

The 1950s: the sound of the era

Rock ’n’ roll crashed the pop charts in the mid-1950s. Elvis Presley, Chuck Berry, Little Richard and the doo-wop vocal groups shared the year-end lists with crooners, novelty records and lush orchestral pop, a mix that shows a business still deciding what teenagers wanted to hear.

Born in 1941? This was the year you turned 18. Tune the mixer to your year, or try today’s Name That Year game.

The full 1959 year-end Top 100

Source: Billboard’s year-end singles chart, as compiled on Wikipedia. Hey DJ 4U is an independent site, not affiliated with Billboard. ▶ plays the song in Hey DJ 4U; ♪ searches for it on Apple Music. Spotted an error? Tell us.