1964 in music

1 Events
2 Albums released
3 Top hits on record
4 Published popular music
5 Classical music
6 Opera
7 Musical theater
8 Musical films
9 Births
10 Deaths
11 Awards
- 11.1 Grammy Awards
- 11.2 Eurovision Song Contest

Events

January 1 – Top of the Pops premieres on BBC television.
January 3 – Footage of the Beatles performing a concert in Bournemouth, England is shown on The Jack Paar Show.
January 15 – Vee Jay Records files a lawsuit against Capitol Records and Swan Records over manufacturing and distribution rights to Beatles albums. On April 9, Capitol Records is granted an injuction restraining Vee Jay Records from further manufacturing, distributing or advertising recordings by the Beatles.
January 18 – The Beatles appear on the Billboard magazine charts for the first time.
February 1 – Indiana Governor Welsh declares the song "Louie Louie" by the Kingsmen pornographic. He requests that the Indiana Broadcasters Association ban the record. Governor Welsh claimed that his "ears tingle" when he heard the song. Publisher Max Firetag offers $1,000 to anyone that can find anything "suggestive" in the song's lyrics.
February 7 – The Beatles arrive in the United States and are greeted by thousands of screaming fans at New York's Kennedy Airport.
February 9 – The Beatles perform on the Ed Sullivan show, which breaks television ratings records.
February 16 – The Beatles appear on the Ed Sullivan show.
February 23 – The Beatles appear on the Ed Sullivan show.
March – Capitol Records is bombarded with requests for heavyweight boxing champion Cassius Clay's album, I Am the Greatest, following Clay's defeat of Sonny Liston in February.
March 6 – Elvis Presley's 14th motion picture, Kissin' Cousins is released to theaters.
March 14 – Billboard Magazine reports that sales of Beatle records make up 60% of the entire singles market.
March 16 – Disc jockey Alan Freed is charged with tax evasion.
March 21 – For the first time in history, all Top Ten singles on the U.K. chart are by British acts.
March 24 – John Lennon's first book, In His Own Write is published.
March 27 – The Beatles occupy the top six spots on the Australian pop chart.
March 28 – Wax likenesses of The Beatles are put on display in London's Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum. The Beatles are the first pop stars to be displayed at the museum.
April 4 – The Beatles occupied all five top positions on Billboard's Top Pop Singles chart with their singles "Can't Buy Me Love", "Twist and Shout", "She Loves You", "I Want to Hold Your Hand", and "Please Please Me".
April 11 – The Beatles hold 14 positions on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Previously, the highest number of concurrent singles by one artist on the Hot 100 was nine by Elvis Presley, December 19, 1956.
April 26 – The Rolling Stones release their eponymous debut album
May 2 – In the United States, The Beatles' Second Album climbs to the #1 spot on the LP charts in only its second week of release, making it the first album ever to reach #1 that quickly.
July 31 – Country singer Jim Reeves dies in an airplane crash near Nashville.
September 16 – Shindig! premieres on ABC.
September 22 – Fiddler on the Roof opens on Broadway.
October 19 – Simon and Garfunkel release Wednesday Morning, 3 A.M., which is initially a total flop upon first release. After release of their second album, Sounds of Silence, in 1966, it hits #30 on the Billboard charts.
Simon and Garfunkel form to record for Columbia Records, marking first time that ethnic names are used in pop music.
11 year old Keith Green becomes the youngest person ever to sign a contract with the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) after publishing, recording and releasing the song "The Way I Used to Be".
Frank Zappa's musical career begins.
Phil Ochs' musical career begins.
Marianne Faithfull's musical career begins.
Sonny and Cher begin performing together.
MC5 forms.
The Mamas & the Papas form.

Albums released

Amore Scusami – Dalida
A Hard Day's Night – The Beatles
With the Beatles – The Beatles
Wednesday Morning, 3 A.M. – Simon and Garfunkel
A Love Supreme – John Coltrane
Early Orbison – Roy Orbison
More of Roy Orbison's Greatest Hits – Roy Orbison
It Hurts to Be in Love – Gene Pitney
Johnny Horton's Greatest Hits – Johnny Horton
Said I To Shostakovitch – Tupper Saussy
Simmer Down – The Wailing Wailers (Bunny Wailer, Bob Marley, Peter Tosh)
The Swinger's Guide To Mary Poppins – The Tupper Saussy Quartet with Charlie McCoy

Top hits on record

"Amore Scusami" – Dalida
"Baby Love" – The Supremes
"Can't Buy Me Love" – The Beatles
"Chaque instant de chaque jour" – Dalida
"Chug-A-Lug" – Roger Miller
"Dancin' In The Street" – Martha & the Vandellas
"Dawn" – Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons
"Fun Fun Fun" – The Beach Boys
"Glad All Over" – Dave Clark Five
"Go Now" – The Moody Blues
"Goldfinger" – Shirley Bassey
"A Hard Day's Night" – The Beatles
"Hello Dolly" recorded by Louis Armstrong
"House Of The Rising Sun" – The Animals
"I Feel Fine"/"She's A Woman" – The Beatles
"I Get Around" – The Beach Boys
"I Guess I'm Crazy" – Jim Reeves
"Welcome To My World" – Jim Reeves
"It's Over" – Roy Orbison
"Needles And Pins" – The Searchers
"Rag Doll" – Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons
"She's Not There" – The Zombies
"Oh, Pretty Woman" – Roy Orbison
- This is reported to be the fastest selling single in history
"Twist and Shout" – The Beatles
"Under The Boardwalk" – The Drifters
"Walk on By" – Dionne Warwick
"Welcome To My World" – Jim Reeves
"Wishin' and Hopin'" – Dusty Springfield
"You Really Got Me" – The Kinks
"The French Song" – Lucille Starr

Published popular music

"Anatevka" – w. Sheldon Harnick m. Jerry Bock
"Bewitched theme song" w.m. Howard Greenfield and Jack Keller
"Chim Chim Cher-ee" w.m. Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sheman
"Do You Love Me?" w. Sheldon Harnick m. Jerry Bock
"Feed The Birds" w.m. Richard M. Sherman & Robert B. Sherman from the film Mary Poppins
"Gimme Some" w. Lee Adams m. Charles Strouse
"Glad All Over" w.m. Dave Clark & Mike Smith
"Goin' Out Of My Head" w.m. Teddy Randazzo & Bobby Weinstein
"Golden Boy" w. Lee Adams m. Charles Strouse
"Hang On Sloopy" w.m. Bert Russell & Wes Farrell
"Have I The Right" w.m. Alan Blaikley & Howard Blaikley
"If I Were A Rich Man" w. Sheldon Harnick m. Jerry Bock
"It's Over" w.m. Roy Orbison & Bill Dees
"Matchmaker, Matchmaker" w. Sheldon Harnick m. Jerry Bock
"Miracle Of Miracles" w. Sheldon Harnick m. Jerry Bock
"Now I Have Everything" w. Sheldon Harnick m. Jerry Bock
"Oh, Pretty Woman" w.m. Roy Orbison & Bill Dees
"Pass Me By" w. Carolyn Leigh m. Cy Coleman from the musical Father Goose
"So Long, Dearie" w.m. Jerry Herman
"A Spoonful Of Sugar" w.m. Richard M. Sherman & Robert B. Sherman from the film Mary Poppins
"Style" w. Sammy Cahn m. Jimmy Van Heusen from the film Robin And The Seven Hoods
"Sunrise, Sunset" w. Sheldon Harnick m. Jerry Bock
"Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious" w.m. Richard M. Sherman & Robert B. Sherman from the film Mary Poppins
"To Life" w. Sheldon Harnick m. Jerry Bock
"Tradition" w. Sheldon Harnick m. Jerry Bock

Classical music

Eyvin Andersen – Concerto for violin and orchestra
Aaron Copland – Music for a Great City
Mario Davidovsky – Electronic Study No. 3
Mario Davidovsky – Synchronisms No. 2 for flute, clarinet, violin, cello and tape
Mario Davidovsky – Synchronisms No. 3 for cello and electronic sound
Henri Dutilleux – Métaboles
Dmitri Shostakovich – String Quartet No.9 in E flat major, Op.117
Dmitri Shostakovich – String Quartet No.10 in A flat major, Op.118
James Tenney – Music for Player Piano

Opera

Alberto Ginastera – Don Rodrigo
Robert Ward – The Lady from Colorado

Musical theater

Anyone Can Whistle – Broadway production opened at the Majestic Theatre on April 4 and ran for 9 performances
Fiddler on the Roof (Jerry Bock and Sheldon Harnick) – Broadway production opened at the Imperial Theatre on September 22 and ran for 3242 performances
Funny Girl (Jule Styne and Bob Merrill) – Broadway production opened at the Winter Garden Theatre on March 26 and ran for 1348 performances
Golden Boy – Broadway production opened at the Majestic Theatre on October 20 and ran for 569 performances
Hello, Dolly! (Jerry Herman) – Broadway production opened at the St. James Theatre on January 16 and ran for 2844 performances
Little Me – London production opened at the Cambridge Theatre on November 18 and ran for 334 performances
Robert and Elizabeth – London production opened at the Lyric Theatre on October 20 and ran for 948 performances
Salad Days (Julian Slade) – London revival
She Loves Me – London production opened at the Lyric Theatre on April 29 and ran for 189 performances
What Makes Sammy Run? – Broadway production opened at the 54th Street Theatre on February 27 and ran for 540 performances