The Billboard Hot 100 is a chart published since August 1958 by Billboard magazine which ranks the best-performing singles in the United States. In 1959, it was compiled based on a combination of sales and airplay data sourced from surveys of retail outlets and playlists submitted by radio stations respectively, and 16 different singles spent time at number one.
In the issue of Billboard dated January 5, the Chipmunks with David Seville were at number one with the Christmas-themed track "The Chipmunk Song", its third week in the top spot. The single remained at number one for a further week before being displaced by "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes" by the Platters in the issue dated January 19. Not until 2019 would another Christmas song top the Hot 100, although for much of the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s holiday-themed songs were excluded from the chart. The Platters and Seville had not previously topped the Hot 100, but had achieved number ones on the separate pop music sales, airplay, and jukebox play charts which Billboard had published prior to the creation of the consolidated listing, as had Paul Anka, Elvis Presley, and Guy Mitchell. All of the other acts to reach number one during 1959 gained the first pop chart-toppers of their careers.
The Fleetwoods and Frankie Avalon were the only acts to have two number ones in 1959, but neither act topped the Hot 100 again. Bobby Darin spent nine non-consecutive weeks at number one in October and November with "Mack the Knife", making it the year's longest-running number one and Darin the act with the most weeks in the top spot. At the 2nd Annual Grammy Awards in November 1959, the song won the award for Record of the Year, but it would prove to be Darin's only number one on the Hot 100. In the first of its two spells atop the chart, "Mack the Knife" spent six weeks at number one, tying with "The Battle of New Orleans" by Johnny Horton for the year's longest unbroken run in the peak position. Horton's song won the awards for Best Country & Western Recording and Song of the Year at the same Grammy Awards ceremony (the latter presented to its writer, Jimmy Driftwood) and topped Billboards Year-End Hot 100 singles chart, but it similarly proved to be the only pop number one for Horton, who died in a car accident in 1960. Avalon's second number one of 1959, "Why", was the year's final chart-topper.