a blog for those who never gave up their turntables
MY INTRODUCTION TO WRITING RECORD REVIEWS was for my high school newspaper in 1969. Like most nerds with cool record collections given a pulpit, I wrote condescendingly about the artists and music that my classmates liked. I remember damning Glen Campbell and dismissing Cream’s farewell album. [Read more] “introduction to rather rare records”
MAKE A MISTAKE? Correct it, learn from it, and move on! My recent article, “What Was The First Platinum Record Album?” has been proven inaccurate! Instead of Iron Butterfly’s IN-A-GADDA-DA-VIDA award in 1969, the first platinum record album seems to have been awarded in 1968 to another group for another album, also on Atco Records. [Read more] “was the first platinum record album awarded in 1968?”
LIES, DAMNED LIES, AND “FACTS.” A reader submitted a fact for my use in one of my articles on this blog. It was one of those facts that just ain’t so. I asked him where he found it and he sent me a link to a site that is reasonably well-known among record collectors and music fans. [Read more] “lies, damn lies, and facts that just ain’t so”
RESEARCHING A PREVIOUS ARTICLE, I found that Iron Butterfly’s second album received the first platinum album award. I also found websites that made extravagant claims for how many copies In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida sold. However, none of them provided reliable documentation to back those claims. Here is a look at the “research” of the internet’s most referred-to site. [Read more] “how many copies did you say in-a-gadda-da-vida sold?”
IF YOU HAVE ANY REASON to look up a record on the RIAA’s website to see if it has been certified for a Gold Record or Platinum Record Award, go to the website’s Gold and Platinum page. Every record that has been certified by the RIAA is listed there (or should be listed there). [Read more] “a few things about the riaa’s gold and platinum page”
FIRST PLATINUM RECORD ALBUM? Ask the question that makes up the title of this article on Google and you will find more than 7,000,000 entries (most of them offering something for sale). The answer you will invariably encounter will be the Eagles/Their Greatest Hits 1971-1975 album from 1976—except that is not the correct answer. [Read more] “was the first platinum record album awarded in 1969?”
DISPOSABLE POP MUSIC has been with us for a long time. In fact, long enough that Tin Pan Alley and Brill Building seem almost legendary. The attitude that the music you listen to somehow defines who you are is recent. It originated with teenage boys who took their record collections dead serious in the ’60s. [Read more] “we took our record collections dead serious in the ’60s!”
MOST OF THE INFORMATION about the criteria required for an RIAA Gold Record awarded an album from 1958 through 1974 and singles through 1988 found on the internet is incorrect. This applies to almost every website I have seen, especially Wikipedia. Believe it or not, this even applies to the RIAA’s own website! [Read more] “understanding riaa gold and platinum record awards”
A WHILE BACK is an old person’s way of saying, “It was more than a few years ago but how much more, I ain’t certain.” So, a while back, I was telling my friends that the future of music was going to be AI generated by computer program developers who would not necessarily be musicians. [Read more] “guess I’m dumb about the state of AI generated music”
IN MAY 1968, the Rolling Stones released “Jumpin’ Jack Flash,” which was a worldwide smash. While it topped the Cash Box Top 100 in the US, for some inexplicable reason it stalled at #3 on the Billboard Hot 100. In August, the group followed with “Street Fighting Man,” the lead single from their upcoming album. [Read more] ““street fighting man” is the most valuable picture sleeve in the world”
SUBSCRIBE NOW
a blog for those of us who never gave up our turntables
