1964 in music

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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 injunction 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 Matthew E. Welsh declares the song "Louie, Louie" by the Kingsmen pornographic. He requests that the Indiana Broadcasters Association ban the record. Governor Welsh claimed that hearing the song made his "ears tingle." 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 22 - Plácido Domingo makes his international breakthrough at the première of Ginastera's Don Rodrigo in New York City.
• 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 Beatles records make up 60% of the entire singles market.
• March 16 - Disc jockey Alan Freed is charged with tax evasion.
• March 21 - Italy wins the 9th Eurovision Song Contest, held in the Tivoli Concert Hall, Copenhagen, with the song "Non ho l'età", sung by 16-year-old Gigliola Cinquetti.
• 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 Tussauds 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 Hot 100 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 16 - The Rolling Stones release their eponymous début 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.
• June 5 - The Rolling Stones start their first US tour.
• July 31 - Country singer Jim Reeves dies in an airplane crash near Nashville.
• Bob Dylan released his fourth album, Another Side of Bob Dylan.
• August 22 - The Supremes are on the Billboard Hot 100 chart with the first of five successive number one hits, "Where Did Our Love Go".
• August 26 - The Kinks release their iconic single "You Really Got Me".
• September 16 - Shindig! premieres on ABC.
• September 22 - Fiddler on the Roof opens on Broadway.
• October 19 - Simon & 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.
• October 24 - The Rolling Stones start their second US tour.
• October 25 - The Rolling Stones perform on The Ed Sullivan Show for the first time.
• October 29 - The T.A.M.I. Show is filmed.
• October 31 - The Supremes are on the Billboard Hot 100 chart with the second of five successive number one hits, "Baby Love".
• November - A deal with UK impresario W. H. Miller lands the Anita Kerr Quartette on Capitol Records for North America.
• December 11 - Sam Cooke is killed under mysterious circumstances in Los Angeles, California. Shortly thereafter, "A Change Is Gonna Come," a song considered by many to be his best, is released.
• December 19 - The Supremes are on the Billboard Hot 100 chart with the third of five successive number one hits, "Come See About Me".
• Simon & Garfunkel make their first recording for Columbia Records.
• Dalida is the first star to receive a Platinum Disc in Europe.
• 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".
• Marianne Faithfull's musical career begins.
• Sonny and Cher begin performing together.
• MC5 forms.
• Los Saicos forms.
• The Who's musical career begins

Albums released

• Ain't That Good News - Sam Cooke
• All Summer Long - The Beach Boys
• America, I Hear You Singing - Frank Sinatra
• Amore Scusami (Amour Excuse Moi) - Dalida
• The Animals (UK Album) - The Animals
• The Animals (US Album) - The Animals
• Another Side of Bob Dylan - Bob Dylan
• The Beach Boys' Christmas Album - The Beach Boys
• Beach Boys Concert - The Beach Boys
• The Beatles' Second Album - The Beatles (US)
• Bitter Tears: Ballads of the American Indian - Johnny Cash
• Bo Diddley's 16 All-Time Greatest Hits - Bo Diddley
• Cuddlebug - The Simon Sisters
• Dance with the Shadows - The Shadows
• Donna The Prima Donna - Dion DiMucci
• The Doris Day Christmas Album - Doris Day
• The Dubliners with Luke Kelly - The Dubliners (debut)
• Ella at Juan-Les-Pins - Ella Fitzgerald
• Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Johnny Mercer Songbook - Ella Fitzgerald
• Early Orbison - Roy Orbison
• The Five Faces of Manfred Mann - Manfred Mann
• A Girl Called Dusty - Dusty Springfield (debut)
• A Hard Day's Night - The Beatles
• Hello, Dolly! - Ella Fitzgerald
• Here I Go Again - The Hollies (US)
• Hide and Seekers - The Seekers
• I Walk the Line - Johnny Cash
• In Person at the Americana - Julie London
• In The Hollies Style - The Hollies
• It Hurts to Be in Love - Gene Pitney
• It Might as Well Be Swing - Frank Sinatra (with Count Basie)
• Joan Baez/5 - Joan Baez
• Johnny Horton's Greatest Hits - Johnny Horton
• Joyful Season - Jo Stafford
• The Kinks - The Kinks
• Kissin' Cousins (OST) - Elvis Presley
• Little Old Lady from Pasadena - Jan and Dean
• Love After Midnight - Patti Page
• A Love Supreme - John Coltrane
• The Manfred Mann Album - Manfred Mann
• Meet the Beatles! - The Beatles (US)
• Meet The Simon Sisters - The Simon Sisters
• More of Roy Orbison's Greatest Hits - Roy Orbison
• Oscar Peterson Trio + One - The Oscar Peterson trio with Clark Terry
• Quincy Jones Explores the Music of Henry Mancini - Quincy Jones
• Rock Around the Clock King - Bill Haley & His Comets
• The Rolling Stones - The Rolling Stones
• Roustabout (OST) - Elvis Presley
• Said I To Shostakovitch - Tupper Saussy
• The Seekers - The Seekers
• Simmer Down - The Wailing Wailers (Bunny Wailer, Bob Marley, Peter Tosh)
• Sinatra Sings Days of Wine and Roses, Moon River, and Other Academy Award Winners - Frank Sinatra
• Surf Surf Surf - Bill Haley & His Comets
• Softly, as I Leave You - Frank Sinatra
• St. Louis to Liverpool - Chuck Berry
• Stay with the Hollies - The Hollies (debut)
• The Swinger's Guide to Mary Poppins - The Tupper Saussy Quartet with Charlie McCoy
• Tears for Dolphy - Ted Curson
• The Times They Are a-Changin' - Bob Dylan
• 12 X 5 - The Rolling Stones
• Five Live Yardbirds - The Yardbirds
• Two Great Guitars - Chuck Berry & Bo Diddley
• Wednesday Morning, 3 A.M. - Simon & Garfunkel
• Where Did Our Love Go? - The Supremes
• With a Smile and a Song - Doris Day
• With the Beatles - The Beatles (UK)
• You Don't Have to Be a Baby to Cry - Julie London
• We Get Requests - The Oscar Peterson trio

Biggest hit singles

The following singles achieved the highest chart positions in 1964.

#	Artist	Title	Year	Country	Chart Entries
1	The Beatles	I Want to Hold Your Hand	1964		UK 1 - Dec 1963, US BB 1 - Jan 1964, US CashBox 1 of 1964, Canada 1 - Jan 1964, Norway 1 - Jan 1964, Germany 1 - Feb 1964, Australia 1 for 5 weeks Jul 1963, Australia 2 of 1963, RYM 2 of 1964, DDD 4 of 1963, South Africa 6 of 1963, US BB 7 of 1964, Global 7 (10 M sold) - 1963, POP 7 of 1964, Rolling Stone 16, RIAA 28, Scrobulate 29 of oldies, Acclaimed 30, Germany 40 of the 1960s, WXPN 350
2	Roy Orbison	Oh, Pretty Woman	1964		UK 1 - Sep 1964, US BB 1 - Sep 1964, Canada 1 - Aug 1964, Norway 1 - Oct 1964, Germany 1 - Jan 1965, Éire 1 - Oct 1964, Holland 3 - Jan 1965, US CashBox 4 of 1964, DDD 8 of 1964, RYM 13 of 1964, South Africa 15 of 1964, 16 in 2FM list, US BB 17 of 1964, POP 17 of 1964, Australia 20 of 1964, RIAA 43, OzNet 62, Germany 64 of the 1960s, Acclaimed 77, Europe 83 of the 1960s, Party 147 of 2007, Rolling Stone 222, Belgium 234 of all time, WXPN 655
3	The Animals	House of the Rising Sun	1964		UK 1 - Jun 1964, US BB 1 - Aug 1964, Canada 1 - Aug 1964, Australia 1 for 2 weeks Apr 1964, France 4 - Oct 1972, DDD 4 of 1964, RYM 5 of 1964, Netherlands 3 1964, Poland 6 - Oct 1982, Europe 7 of the 1960s, Germany 9 - Jan 1965, US BB 38 of 1964, POP 38 of 1964, US CashBox 53 of 1964, Acclaimed 55, Italy 66 of 1965, Scrobulate 80 of oldies, 89 in 2FM list, Rolling Stone 122, Belgium 124 of all time, TheQ 227, RIAA 240, OzNet 275, Germany 296 of the 1960s
4	The Beatles	A Hard Day's Night	1964		UK 1 - Jul 1964, US BB 1 - Jul 1964, Canada 1 - Jul 1964, Norway 1 - Aug 1964, Éire 1 - Aug 1964, Australia 1 for 4 weeks Mar 1964, Germany 2 - Sep 1964, Australia 3 of 1964, RYM 6 of 1964, DDD 11 of 1964, South Africa 14 of 1964, US CashBox 18 of 1964, Scrobulate 39 of oldies, Europe 96 of the 1960s, Rolling Stone 153, Germany 254 of the 1960s, Acclaimed 411, OzNet 815
5	The Beatles	I Feel Fine	1964		UK 1 - Dec 1964, US BB 1 - Dec 1964, Canada 1 - Nov 1964, Holland 1 - Jan 1965, Norway 1 - Dec 1964, Éire 1 - Dec 1964, Australia 1 for 6 weeks Jul 1964, Germany 3 - Jan 1965, Australia 8 of 1964, RYM 8 of 1964, DDD 9 of 1964, US CashBox 19 of 1965, Scrobulate 40 of oldies, Germany 207 of the 1960s

Singles released

• "All Day and All of the Night" - The Kinks
• "Anyone Who Had a Heart" - Cilla Black
• "As Tears Go By" - Marianne Faithfull
• "Baby I Need Your Loving" - The Four Tops
• "Baby Let Me Take You Home" - The Animals
• "Baby Love" - The Supremes
• "Baby Please Don't Go - Them
• "Come See About Me" - The Supremes
• "Can't Buy Me Love" - The Beatles
• "Dancing In The Street" - Martha and The Vandellas
• "Do Wah Diddy Diddy" - Manfred Mann
• "Do You Want to Know a Secret" - The Beatles
• "Ferry Cross the Mersey" - Gerry & the Pacemakers
• "Fever" - Helen Shapiro
• "Girl Don't Come" - Sandie Shaw
• "Gloria" - Them
• "Goldfinger" - Shirley Bassey
• "Happiness" - Ken Dodd
• "A Hard Day's Night" - The Beatles
• "Hello, Dolly! - Louis Armstrong
• "The House of the Rising Sun" - The Animals
• "I Feel Fine" - The Beatles
• "I Get Around" - Beach Boys
• "I Just Don't Know What To Do With Myself" - Dusty Springfield
• "I Understand" - Freddie & the Dreamers
• "I'm Crying" - The Animals
• "I'm Into Something Good" - Herman's Hermits
• "It's All Over Now" - The Rolling Stones
• "It's For You" - Cilla Black
• "Just One Look" - The Hollies
• "Little Children" - Billy J. Kramer and The Dakotas
• "A Little Loving" - The Fourmost
• "Little Old Lady from Pasadena" - Jan and Dean
• "Little Red Rooster" - The Rolling Stones
• "Losing You" - Dusty Springfield
• "A Message To Martha" - Adam Faith
• "My Boy Lollipop - Millie
• "My Guy - Mary Wells
• "Non Ho L'Età (Per Amarti)" - Gigliola Cinquetti
• "One Way Love" - Cliff Bennett and the Rebel Rousers
• "Rag Doll" - The Four Seasons
• "Ringo" - Lorne Greene
• "She's Not There" - The Zombies
• "Shout" - Lulu & The Luvvers
• "Terry" - Twinkle
• "(There's) Always Something There To Remind Me" - Sandie Shaw
• "Twist and Shout" - The Beatles
• "(They Call Her) La Bamba" - The Crickets
• "There's a Place" - The Beatles
• "The Way You Do The Things You Do" -The Temptations
• "Tobacco Road" - The Nashville Teens
• "Walk Away (Warum Nur Warum?)" - Matt Monro
• "We Love You Beatles" - The Carefrees
• "The Wedding" - Julie Rogers
• "When Joanna Loved Me" - Tony Bennett
• "Where Did Our Love Go?" - The Supremes
• "A World Without Love" - Peter & Gordon
• "You're My World" - Cilla Black
• "You're No Good" - The Swinging Blue Jeans
• "You Really Got Me" - The Kinks
• "Zoot Suit" - The Who

See also: Hot 100 No. 1 Hits of 1964 (USA)

Published popular music

• "The Addams Family theme song" w.m. Vic Mizzy
• "Anatevka" - w. Sheldon Harnick m. Jerry Bock
• "Anyone Who Had a Heart" w. Hal David m. Burt Bacharach
• "Baby, I Need Your Loving w.m. Edward Holland, Brian Holland & Lamont Dozier
• "The Ballad of Gilligan's Island" w.m. Frank DeVol and Sherwood Schwartz
• "Before the Parade Passes By" w.m. Jerry Herman, from the musical Hello, Dolly!
• "Bewitched theme song" w.m. Howard Greenfield and Jack Keller
• "Chapel Of Love" w.m. Phil Spector, Ellie Greenwich & Jeff Barry
• "Chim Chim Cher-ee" w.m. Richard M. Sherman and Robert B. Sherman
• "Cryin' Time" w.m. Buck Owens
• "Dear Heart" w. Jay Livingston & Ray Evans m. Henry Mancini
• "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. Ken Howard & Alan Blaikley
• "Hush, Hush Sweet Charlotte", m. Frank DeVol from the film of the same name
• "If I Were a Rich Man" w. Sheldon Harnick m. Jerry Bock. Introduced in the musical Fiddler on the Roof by Zero Mostel. Performed by Chaim Topol in the 1971 film version.
• "Invisible Tears" w.m. Ned Miller and Sue Miller
• "It's Over" w.m. Roy Orbison & Bill Dees
• "Let's Go Fly a Kite" w.m. Richard M. Sherman & Robert B. Sherman from the film Mary Poppins
• "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. Introduced by Digby Wolfe in the film Father Goose
• "Put On Your Sunday Clothes" w.m. Jerry Herman, from the musical Hello, Dolly!
• "So Long, Dearie" w.m. Jerry Herman, from the musical Hello, Dolly!
• "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
• "That's Life" w.m. Dean Kay & Kelly Gordon
• "To Life" w. Sheldon Harnick m. Jerry Bock from Fiddler on the Roof
• "Tradition" w. Sheldon Harnick m. Jerry Bock
• "Where Did Our Love Go?" w.m. Lamont Dozier, Brian Holland and Edward Holland
• "A World Without Love" w.m. John Lennon and Paul McCartney
• "Zorba's Dance" m. Mikis Theodorakis

Classical music

• Eyvin Andersen - Concerto for violin and orchestra
• Luciano Berio Folk Songs
• Aaron Copland - Music for a Great City
• George Crumb - Four Nocturnes (Night Music II) for violin and piano
• Mario Davidovsky
  • Electronic Study No. 3
  • Synchronisms No. 2 for flute, clarinet, violin, cello and tape
  • Synchronisms No. 3 for cello and electronic sound
• Michel Decoust - Horizon remarquable (lyrics by René Char)
• Henri Dutilleux - Métaboles
• David Lumsdaine - Annotations of Auschwitz (cantata with words by Peter Porter)
• Dmitri Shostakovich
  • String Quartet No.9 in E flat major, Op.117
  • String Quartet No.10 in A flat major, Op.118
• Karlheinz Stockhausen – Mikrophonie I
• James Tenney - Music for Player Piano
• Mikis Theodorakis - Axion Esti

Opera

• Luciano Berio - Traces
• Benjamin Britten - Curlew River
• Alberto Ginastera - Don Rodrigo
• Robert Ward - The Lady from Colorado

Musical theater

• Hello, Dolly! (Jerry Herman) - Broadway production opened at the St. James Theatre on January 16 and ran for 2844 performances
• What Makes Sammy Run? - Broadway production opened at the 54th Street Theatre on February 27 and ran for 540 performances
• Funny Girl (Jule Styne and Bob Merrill) - Broadway production opened at the Winter Garden Theatre on March 26 and ran for 1348 performances
• 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
• Foxy (Book: Ian McLellan Hunter & Ring Lardner, Jr. Lyrics: Johnny Mercer Music: Robert Emmett Dolan. Broadway production opened on February 16 and ran for 72 performances. Starring Bert Lahr, Larry Blyden, Cathryn Damon and Julienne Marie.
• Golden Boy - Broadway production opened at the Majestic Theatre on October 20 and ran for 569 performances
• She Loves Me - London production opened at the Lyric Theatre on April 29 and ran for 189 performances
• Maggie May London production opened at the Adelphi Theatre on September 22 and ran for 501 performances
• Robert and Elizabeth - London production opened at the Lyric Theatre on October 20 and ran for 948 performances
• Little Me, the musical - London production opened at the Cambridge Theatre on November 18 and ran for 334 performances
• Salad Days (Julian Slade) - London revival

Musical films

• A Hard Day's Night starring The Beatles
• Mary Poppins starring Julie Andrews, Dick Van Dyke, Glynis Johns and David Tomlinson
• My Fair Lady starring Rex Harrison and Audrey Hepburn
• Robin and the Seven Hoods starring Frank Sinatra, Bing Crosby, Dean Martin and Sammy Davis, Jr.
• The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (Les Parapluies De Cherbourg)
• The Unsinkable Molly Brown starring Debbie Reynolds and Harve Presnell
• Viva Las Vegas starring Elvis Presley and Ann Margaret

Births

• January 5 - Grant Young, Soul Asylum
• January 10 - Brad Roberts, Crash Test Dummies
• January 11 - Torstein Aagaard-Nilsen, composer
• January 29 - Roddy Frame, Aztec Camera
• February 4 - Noodles of The Offspring
• February 5 - Duff McKagan of Guns N' Roses
• February 23 - John Norum, Europe guitarist
• March 11 - Vinnie Paul, drummer (Pantera, Damageplan and Hellyeah!)
• March 19 - Yoko Kanno, composer
• March 20 - Tracy Chapman
• April 12 - Amy Ray, Indigo Girls
• April 16 - Dave Pirner, Soul Asylum
• April 17 - Maynard James Keenan, Tool
• April 25 - Andy Bell, Erasure
• May 26 - Lenny Kravitz, guitarist
• May 30 - Tom Morello, Rage Against the Machine & Audioslave
• May 31 - Darryl McDaniels, Run-D.M.C.
• June 6 - Jay Bentley, Bad Religion
• June 13 - Robbie Merrill, Godsmack
• June 22
  • Dicky Barrett, The Mighty Mighty Bosstones
  • Mike Edwards, Jesus Jones
• July 20 - Chris Cornell, Soundgarden & Audioslave
• July 22 - Will Calhoun, Living Colour
• August 1 - Adam Duritz, Counting Crows
• August 5 - Adam Yauch, Beastie Boys
• August 17 - Colin James
• September 7 - Eazy-E, NWA
• September 23 - Koshi Inaba, B'z
• September 27 - Stephan Jenkins, Third Eye Blind
• September 30 - Robby Takac, Goo Goo Dolls
• October 5 - Dave Dededer, Presidents of the United States of America
• October 6 - Matthew Sweet
• October 7 - Sam Brown
• October 10 - Neneh Cherry, singer
• October 20
  • Frederic Chiu, pianist
  • Luciano, reggae singer
  • Jim Sonefeld (Hootie & The Blowfish)
• October 23 - Robert Trujillo (Metallica)
• November 6
  • Corey Glover (Living Colour)
  • Greg Graffin (Bad Religion)
• November 14
  • Joseph Run Simmons (Run DMC)
  • Nic Dalton (The Lemonheads)
• November 24 - Tony Rambola (Godsmack)
• December 8 - Sandy Burnett, record producer
• December 13 - Hideto Matsumoto (Hide)

Deaths

• January 7 - Colin McPhee, Canadian composer and musicologist
• January 9 - Big Boy Goudie, jazz saxophonist
• January 15 - Jack Teagarden, jazz trombonist and vocalist, 58 (pneumonia/heart attack)
• January 22 - Marc Blitzstein, composer
• February 25 - Johnny Burke, lyricist
• April 4 - Georgia Caine, Broadway star
• May 10 - Carol Haney, dancer and choreographer, 39 (pneumonia)
• June 10 - Louis Gruenberg, pianist and composer
• June 29 - Eric Dolphy, American jazz saxophonist, flautist and bass clarinettist, 36 (diabetic coma)
• July 1 - Pierre Monteux, French conductor
• July 31 - Jim Reeves, American country singer, 40 (plane crash)
• August 14 - Johnny Burnette, rockabilly singer, 30 (drowned)
• September 20 - Lazare Lévy, French pianist and teacher
• September 28 :
  • Nacio Herb Brown, songwriter and film/TV composer
  • George Dyson, English composer
• October 10 :
  • Eddie Cantor, comedian, singer and songwriter
  • Heinrich Neuhaus, Soviet (of German extraction) pianist and teacher
• October 15 - Cole Porter, songwriter and composer
• October 29 - Vasily Agapkin, Soviet composer
• November 5 - Buddy Cole, jazz pianist and orchestra leader, 45 (heart attack)
• November 30 - Don Redman, US arranger, bandleader and saxophonist
• December 2 - Sam H. Stept, Russian-born US songwriter, pianist and conductor, 67
• December 9 - Edith Sitwell, poet and collaborator of William Walton
• December 11 :
  • Alma Mahler-Werfel, songwriter and widow of Gustav Mahler
  • Sam Cooke, singer, 33 (shot)
• December 14 - Francisco Canaro, Uruguayan violinist and tango orchestra leader
• December 21 - Theodor Blumer, composer and conductor
• date unknown - Joe Haymes, bandleader and arranger

Awards

Grammy Awards

• Grammy Awards of 1964

Eurovision Song Contest

• Eurovision Song Contest 1964

See also

Hot 100 No. 1 Hits of 1964, 1963 in music, other events of 1964, 1965 in music and the list of 'years in music'