Billboard Top Race Records of 1948 is a year-end chart compiled by Billboard magazine ranking the year's top race records based on record sales. Billboard assigned point totals to each record based on its sales, much like with its weekly Best-Selling Retail Race Records chart.
"Long Gone", an instrumental by Sonny Thompson with the "Sharps and Flats" was the year's No. 1 race record with 195 points. Thompson had another instrumental record, "Late Freight", that made the year-end list at No. 13.
"Good Rocking Tonight" by Wynonie Harris finished in the No. 2 spot with 145 points. The song anticipated elements of rock and roll music and has been cited as one of the candidates for the title of the first rock and roll record.5 Candidates for the First Rock 'n' Roll Song
"Tomorrow Night", a blues record by Lonnie Johnson, finished third with 129 points. The record was a remake of a 1939 version by Horace Heidt. Johson's version held the No. 1 spot on the race chart for seven weeks and crossed over to reach the No. 19 spot on the pop chart.
"Nature Boy" by King Cole, with an orchestra conducted by Frank De Vol, was the only song to be included in Billboards year-end lists for both race and pop records. It finished at No. 11 among the year's race records and No. 14 among the pop records.
King Records led all other labels with six records on the year-end chart, followed by Miracle and Capitol with three records each.
Rank Title Artist(s) Label Points1 "Long Gone" Sonny Thompson Miracle 1952 "Good Rocking Tonight" Wynonie Harris King 1453 "Tomorrow Night" Lonnie Johnson King 1294 "Pretty Mama Blues" Ivory Joe Hunter 4 Star 1255 "I Can't Go on Without You" Bull Moose Jackson King 1176 "Messin' Around" Memphis Slim Miracle 1087 "My Heart Belongs to You" Arbee Stidham RCA Victor 978 "Corn Bread" Hal Singer Sextette Savoy 799 "Run Joe" Louis Jordan Decca 62 10 "Blues After Hours" Pee Wee Crayton Modern 5511 "Nature Boy" Nat King Cole Capitol 4712 "All My Love Belongs to You" Bull Moose Jackson King 4213 "Late Freight" Sonny Thompson Miracle 41 14 "Send for Me if You Need Me" The Ravens National 3914 "Am I Asking Too Much?" Dinah Washington Mercury 3915 "Hop, Skip and Jump" Roy Milton Specialty 3816 "King Size Papa" Julia Lee Capitol 3417 "Long About Midnight" Roy Brown DeLuxe 3218 "It's Too Soon to Know" The Orioles Natural 2819 "It's Too Soon to Know" Dinah Washington Mercury 2320 "Fine Brown Frame" Nellie Lutcher Capitol 2021 "Don't Burn the Candle at Both Ends" Louis Jordan Decca 1922 "Everything I Do Is Wrong" Roy Milton Specialty 1523 "Bewildered" Red Miller Trio Bullet 1224 "Pleasing You" Lonnie Johnson King 1125 "Blues for the Red Boy" Todd Rhodes King 10
See also Billboard year-end top singles of 1948 1948 in music
References