The Best Movie Songs of the 1950s

What are the best songs found on movie soundtracks from 1950 until 1959?

The term soundtrack originated in the 1950s, when film studios decided to release albums as a promotional gimmick for upcoming movies. They then labeled these recordings as "music from the original motion picture soundtrack." This is not too suprising onsidering that one of the biggest icons in Rock n Roll was dancing his way across the screen at this time. I'm, of course, talking about Elvis Presley. Elvis appeared in two movies during the 1950s Love Me Tender (1956) (originally titled The Reno Brothers), and Jailhouse Rock (1957). Both movies had title singles connected with them that eventually hit #1 on the music charts.

Television was beginning to creep up in popularity and many people speculated it would be the end of the movies (so much so that film studios banned its stars from appearing on television until 1956). Instead, it proved to be a new venue for the movies. The very first film broadcast on television occurred in November 3, 1956. It, of course, was a musical--the legndary Wizard of Oz.

We've selected a few of the best songs from this decade and listed them below. For your convenience, we have included links to the sheet music on Sheetmusicplus.com as well as the CD on Amazon.com whenever available. If you are looking to purchase the mp3 or would like to listen to a sample, then click on either the Amazon, Rhapsody, or iTunes links.

Rhapsody provides both music subscriptions as well as individual mp3s for sale in WMA format and iTunes only provides MPEG-4 audio files for sale. However, Amazon does offer mp3s that are compatible with both Windows Media Player and iTunes. For more information about where to purchase music online, we provide it on our Music Downloads page or our Music Subscriptions page.

Below are what we consider among the best songs from movies of the 1950s.

1. "A Kiss To Build A Dream On" by Louis Armstrong from The Strip
    Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
2. "Aba Daba Honeymoon" by Debbie Reynolds & Carleton Carpenter from Two Weeks With Love
    Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
3. "All Of You" by Fred Astaire from Silk Stockings (1957)
    Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
4. "Almost Like Being In Love" by Gene Kelly from Brigadoon (1954)
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5. "Baby, You Knock Me Out" by Carol Richards from It's Always Fair Weather (1951)
    Find it on:          Sheetmusicplus
6. "Baubles, Bangles, and Beads" by Ann Blyth from Kismet (1955)
    Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
7. "Be My Love" by Mario Lanza & Kathryn Grayson from The Toast Of New Orleans (1950)
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8. "By Myself" by Fred Astaire from The Band Wagon (1953)
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9. "Dancing in the Dark" by The Band Wagon from The Band Wagon (1953)
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10. "Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend" by Marilyn Monroe from Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953)
     Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
11. "Easy To Love" by Tony Martin from Easy to Love
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12. "From This Moment On" by Ann Miller, Tommy Rall, Bobby Van & Bob Fosse from Kiss Me Kate (1953)
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13. "Get Happy" by Judy Garland from Summer Stock (1950)
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14. "Gigi" by Louis Jordan from Gigi
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15. "Good Morning" by Donald O'Connor, Gene Kelly, and Debbie Reynolds from Singin' in the Rain (1952)
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16. "Hallelujah! " by Tony Martin, Vic Damone, Jane Powell, Debbie Reynolds, Ann Miller, Kary Armen & Rex Dennis from Hit The Deck (1955)
     Find it on:        Sheetmusicplus
17. "High Noon (Do Not Forsake Me, Oh My Darlin')" by Tex Ritter from High Noon (1952)
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18. "I Got Rhythm" by Gene Kelly & the MGM Children's Chorus from An American in Paris (1951)
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19. "I Guess I'll Have to Change My Plan" by Fred Astaire & Jack Buchanan from The Band Wagon (1953)
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20. "I Like Myself" by Gene Kelly from It's Always Fair Weather (1951)
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21. "I Remember It Well" by Hermione Gingold & Maurice Chevalier from Gigi (1958)
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22. "I Wanna Be A Dancin' Man" by Fred Astaire from The Belle of New York (1952)
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23. "I Wanna Be Loved By You" by Helen Kane from Three Little Words (1950)
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24. "If You Can Dream" by Lena Horne from Meet Me In Las Vegas (1956)
     Find it on:        Rhapsody
25. "Jailhouse Rock" by Elvis Presley from Jailhouse Rock (1957)
     Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
26. "Love is Here to Stay" by Gene Kelly from An American in Paris (1951)
     Find it on:          Sheetmusicplus
27. "Luck Be a Lady Tonight" by Marlon Brando from Guys and Dolls (1955)
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28. "Make 'em Laugh" by Gene Kelly from Singin' in the Rain (1952)
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29. "Now You Has Jazz" by Bing Crosby, Louis Armstrong from High Society (1956)
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30. "Ol' Man River" by William Warfield from Show Boat] (1951)
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31. "Rock Around the Clock" performed by Bill Haley & His Comets from Blackboard Jungle (1955)
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32. "Shall We Dance?" by Deborah Kerr, Marni Nixon, & Yul Brynner from The King and I (1956)
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33. "Singin' In The Rain" by Gene Kelly from Singin in The Rain (1952)
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34. "Some Enchanted Evening" by Mitzi Gaynor & Giorgio Tozzi from South Pacific (1958)
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35. "(I'll Build A) Stairway to Paradise" by Georges Guetary from An American in Paris (1951)
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36. "Stereophonic Sound" by Fred Astaire & Janis Paige from Silk Stockings (1957)
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37. "S'Wonderful" by Gene Kelly & Georges Guetary from An American In Paris (1951)
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38. "Thanks a Lot But No Thanks" by Dolores Grey from It's Always Fair Weather (1951)
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39. "Thank Heaven for Little Girls" by Maurice Chevalier from Gigi (1958)
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40. "That's Entertainment" by Fred Astaire, Jack Buchanan, India Adams, Nanette Fabray, Oscar Levant from The Band Wagon (1953)
     Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
41. "The Heather on the Hill" by Gene Kelly from Brigadoon (1954)
     Find it on:          Sheetmusicplus
42. "The Man that Got Away" performed by Judy Garland from A Star Is Born (1954)
     Find it on:        Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
43. "There's No Business Like Show Business " by Betty Hutton, Howard Keel, Louis Calhern & Keenan Wynn from Annie Get Your Gun (1950)
     Find it on:          Sheetmusicplus
44. "Triplets" by Fred Astaire, Nanette Febray & Jack Buchanan from The Band Wagon (1953)
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45. "True Love" by Bing Crosby and Grace Kelly from High Society (1956)
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46. "Well, Did You Evah!" by Bing Crosby and Frank Sinatra from High Society (1956)
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47. "The Man that Got Away" performed by Judy Garland from A Star Is Born (1954)
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48. "Whatever Will Be, Will Be (Que Será, Será)" by Doris Day from The Man Who Knew Too Much (1956)
          Rhapsody   Sheetmusicplus
49. "When The Red, Red Robin Comes Bob, Bob, Bobbin' Along" by Susan Hayward from I'll Cry Tomorrow (1955)
     Find it on:        Rhapsody
50. "You Were Meant For Me" by Gene Kelly from Singin' In The Rain (1952)
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51. "You Wonderful You" by Judy Garland and Gene Kelly from Summer Stock (1950)
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52. "You're Sensational" by Frank Sinatra from High Society (1956)
     Find it on:          Sheetmusicplus

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