Billie Holiday Popular Song Rankings [2026]

Body and SoulBillie Holiday11rank/position

Body and Soul

Composed by Johnny Green in 1930, this song was written for actress and singer Gertrude Lawrence, but it was ultimately introduced in a Broadway revue by Libby Holman.

To this day, it is a ballad that has been performed, loved, and well known among many singers and instrumentalists.

Among vocal versions, Billie Holiday’s rendition is particularly famous, and the song can be said to suit her character.

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Hirakawa Masako (Bōkarisuto: Sakata Mizumako)

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Gloomy SundayBillie Holiday12rank/position

Gloomy Sunday – Billie Holiday

Many people may know this song as one of the urban legends.

“Gloomy Sunday” was composed by Hungarian songwriter Rezső Seress, based on the grief of losing his lover.

The song’s influence was considered so strong that it was banned from broadcast in Hungary.

It became known worldwide when jazz singer Billie Holiday covered it in English.

In Japan, Maki Asakawa wrote Japanese lyrics for it, and it was covered by several well-known singers.

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Yoimachi Jēn

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On the Sunny Side of the StreetBillie Holiday13rank/position

On the Sunny Side of the Street

A beloved classic that has long been cherished as a standard number, “On the Sunny Side of the Street.” Originally written for a musical, it later became a standard and has been covered by many famous jazz artists such as Louis Armstrong and Benny Goodman.

In Japanese, the title means “On the Bright Main Street,” and true to its name, the piece has a cheerful and relaxed feel.

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Ryo

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Speak LowBillie Holiday14rank/position

Billie Holiday & Her Orchestra – Speak Low (Verve Records 1956)

In Kurt Weill’s 1943 stage play One Touch of Venus, the song was performed by Mary Martin.

The play tells the story of a Venus statue coming to life and falling in love, with the song conveying the poignancy of never knowing when she might turn back into stone.

It was adapted into a film in 1948, in which Ava Gardner performed the song.

Summer TimeBillie Holiday15rank/position

Billie Holiday – Summertime

George Gershwin, who worked across a wide range of genres—from opera and musicals to film scores, orchestral works, and concertos—was active in both popular and classical music and is even called a composer who helped create American music.

Among the many masterpieces he produced, let’s look at the timeless standard “Summertime,” a song that continues to be covered across all musical genres, not only jazz but also soul and pop.

Composed as an aria for the groundbreaking 1935 opera Porgy and Bess—remarkable at the time for its all-Black cast—the piece is sung by the heroine as a lullaby within the story.

Although it has inspired an enormous number of cover versions, the first to achieve widespread popular success is said to be the rendition sung in 1936 by the legendary female jazz singer Billie Holiday.

Among covers by white artists, the version performed by the equally legendary rock singer Janis Joplin is especially famous.

Despite being a song in which the lyrics play a crucial role, countless jazz musicians have also performed it as an instrumental, which shows how its universal, superb melody continues to captivate the hearts of musicians and listeners alike.

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KOH-1

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