February 1964: Beatlemania Hits America And Births A Cultural RevolutionLooking back 62 years ago this month, in February 1964 The Beatles arrived in the United States and ignited a cultural explosion that would permanently reshape popular music. John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr landed at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York on February 7, greeted by an estimated 3,000 screaming fans. Their arrival marked the true beginning of the “British Invasion,” a wave of UK acts who would dominate American charts throughout the deca...
The MTV Era And The Birth of Music VideosWhen MTV launched on August 1, 1981, it did more than introduce music videos to cable television—it permanently transformed how artists were marketed, perceived, and collected. The MTV era marked the moment when sound and image fused into a single commercial force. For memorabilia collectors, it represents the birth of modern music branding: a time when visuals, fashion, logos, and video iconography became as valuable as vinyl records. MTV launched its MTV Video Music Awards in 1984, with t...
Rare Beatles 1964 U.S. Tour Photos Unearthed And Now AvailableMusicGoldmine has acquired the exclusive rights to a set of rare photographs of the Beatles on their first full U.S. tour. The photos were shot on August 27, 1964 at Cincinnati Gardens, Cincinnati, Ohio, which was the seventh stop on the Fab 4's 25-date U.S. tour, a run which kicked off Beatlemania in the USA. These fantastic photos, shot that day by photographer Walt Burton, were acquired as original Kodak Tri-X 35mm negatives. Photographer Burton was a leading figure in the Greater Cin...
Who Has The Most Gold and Platinum Records Of All Time? UPDATEDAs of January 2025, the ranking of artists by the number of Gold and Platinum record awards issued by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) reflects their monumental commercial success and enduring influence. Also: Check out these two videos on our MusicGoldmine YouTube™ channel for more information, interesting facts and stories (you can watch these videos right here or view them on YouTube): The RIAA awards Gold and Platinum certifications based on sales attained in the Uni...
Latest Top 10 RIAA All-Time: Rumours RisesFleetwood Mac's masterpiece Rumours has finally cracked the top 10. Cracked, literally, since it has finally overtaken Hootie & The Blowfish's clearly popular album Cracked Rear View, which held the tenth spot on the RIAA's top selling albums list for many years. The list only tallies sales made in the USA. In other moves at this point heading into mid-2024, the venerable Garth Brooks (who has the most RIAA Diamond Awards, for 10 million copies sold, ever issued) moved up a s...
New Beatles Track Comes To LightExciting news for Beatles fans today as a new track entitled "Now And Then" has come to light. New software developed during the production of Peter Jackson's 2022 documentary series Get Back unlocked a vocal and piano demo recorded by John Lennon in the 70s, allowing it to be developed into the new work. The recording was first heard by the surviving Beatles in 1995, but it remained unusable until the new technology enabled an uncoupling of Lennon's vocal from the piano on t...
Vintage Vinyl Is HotIs it about the occasional crackle and pop that lends a nostalgic note to your day? Maybe the liner notes and photos you can actually see? How you can hold it in your hand? Whether it's nostalgia for the records they used to listen to in their youth or the sound and feel, vinyl is big with music buyers and continues to get bigger. The burgeoning return of vinyl record sales has been well-documented in recent years. The RIAA reported in their 2021 year end recap that vinyl record sales g...
The Best-Selling Albums From 1957-2020Here is a fascinating video depiction of the best-selling albums from 1957 through 2020. Note the start with what became the first RIAA Gold Album ever awarded (for Oklahoma!), the dominance of Elvis through the late 60s, and then the Beatles rise. You'll also note the fairly constant presence in the 70s of classics such as the various Beatles albums (especially Sgt. Pepper), Pink Floyd's Dark Side Of The Moon, various Zeppelin albums, Eagles Greatest Hits, Michael Jackson's Thril...
Authenticity: 5 MORE Tips For Autograph BuyersSo it's been a year here at MusicGoldmine.com since we wrote our first article on this topic and we're sad to see that every day, music memorabilia collectors and fans seeking real autographed items from their favorite artists are still being duped by unscrupulous sellers. (You can see that first article here--Authenticity: 5 Tips For Autograph Buyers). Since sellers -- both on the Internet and in brick and mortar stores -- are still bilking consumers out of literally hundreds of th...
The Week In Music History Feb 17 - 23The week in music history brought to you by MusicGoldmine.com FEB 17: On this day in 2005, a 1965 Fender Stratocaster guitar once owned by Jimi Hendrix sold for over $125,000 at a London auction! Also in the auction, a poem Hendrix had written a couple weeks after he appeared at the Monterey Pop Festival ($12,000) and the first Jimi Hendrix Experience single "Hey Joe" signed by all the band members ($2500). FEB 18: On this day in 1966, Beach Boy Brian Wilson was in the pr...
This Week in Music History July 7-13The week in music history brought to you by MusicGoldmine.com. JULY 7: Happy birthday to Ringo Starr, born today in 1940!🎂🥁 Ringo is the richest drummer in the world, as he has amassed a $350M fortune. He has beeen inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice. In addition his time as a Beatle, he has formed Ringo Starr’s All-Starr Band featuring a wide variety of musicians. It would be impossible to use this small space to go through all of his accomplishments! J...
February 1964: Beatlemania Hits America And Births A Cultural Revolution
Looking back 62 years ago this month, in February 1964 The Beatles arrived in the United States and ignited a cultural explosion that would permanently reshape popular music. John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, and Ringo Starr landed at John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York on February 7, greeted by an estimated 3,000 screaming fans. Their arrival marked the true beginning of the “British Invasion,” a wave of UK acts who would dominate American charts throughout the deca...
The MTV Era And The Birth of Music Videos
When MTV launched on August 1, 1981, it did more than introduce music videos to cable television—it permanently transformed how artists were marketed, perceived, and collected. The MTV era marked the moment when sound and image fused into a single commercial force. For memorabilia collectors, it represents the birth of modern music branding: a time when visuals, fashion, logos, and video iconography became as valuable as vinyl records. MTV launched its MTV Video Music Awards in 1984, with t...
Rare Beatles 1964 U.S. Tour Photos Unearthed And Now Available
MusicGoldmine has acquired the exclusive rights to a set of rare photographs of the Beatles on their first full U.S. tour. The photos were shot on August 27, 1964 at Cincinnati Gardens, Cincinnati, Ohio, which was the seventh stop on the Fab 4's 25-date U.S. tour, a run which kicked off Beatlemania in the USA. These fantastic photos, shot that day by photographer Walt Burton, were acquired as original Kodak Tri-X 35mm negatives. Photographer Burton was a leading figure in the Greater Cin...
Who Has The Most Gold and Platinum Records Of All Time? UPDATED
As of January 2025, the ranking of artists by the number of Gold and Platinum record awards issued by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) reflects their monumental commercial success and enduring influence. Also: Check out these two videos on our MusicGoldmine YouTube™ channel for more information, interesting facts and stories (you can watch these videos right here or view them on YouTube): The RIAA awards Gold and Platinum certifications based on sales attained in the Uni...
Latest Top 10 RIAA All-Time: Rumours Rises
Fleetwood Mac's masterpiece Rumours has finally cracked the top 10. Cracked, literally, since it has finally overtaken Hootie & The Blowfish's clearly popular album Cracked Rear View, which held the tenth spot on the RIAA's top selling albums list for many years. The list only tallies sales made in the USA. In other moves at this point heading into mid-2024, the venerable Garth Brooks (who has the most RIAA Diamond Awards, for 10 million copies sold, ever issued) moved up a s...
New Beatles Track Comes To Light
Exciting news for Beatles fans today as a new track entitled "Now And Then" has come to light. New software developed during the production of Peter Jackson's 2022 documentary series Get Back unlocked a vocal and piano demo recorded by John Lennon in the 70s, allowing it to be developed into the new work. The recording was first heard by the surviving Beatles in 1995, but it remained unusable until the new technology enabled an uncoupling of Lennon's vocal from the piano on t...
Vintage Vinyl Is Hot
Is it about the occasional crackle and pop that lends a nostalgic note to your day? Maybe the liner notes and photos you can actually see? How you can hold it in your hand? Whether it's nostalgia for the records they used to listen to in their youth or the sound and feel, vinyl is big with music buyers and continues to get bigger. The burgeoning return of vinyl record sales has been well-documented in recent years. The RIAA reported in their 2021 year end recap that vinyl record sales g...
The Best-Selling Albums From 1957-2020
Here is a fascinating video depiction of the best-selling albums from 1957 through 2020. Note the start with what became the first RIAA Gold Album ever awarded (for Oklahoma!), the dominance of Elvis through the late 60s, and then the Beatles rise. You'll also note the fairly constant presence in the 70s of classics such as the various Beatles albums (especially Sgt. Pepper), Pink Floyd's Dark Side Of The Moon, various Zeppelin albums, Eagles Greatest Hits, Michael Jackson's Thril...
Authenticity: 5 MORE Tips For Autograph Buyers
So it's been a year here at MusicGoldmine.com since we wrote our first article on this topic and we're sad to see that every day, music memorabilia collectors and fans seeking real autographed items from their favorite artists are still being duped by unscrupulous sellers. (You can see that first article here--Authenticity: 5 Tips For Autograph Buyers). Since sellers -- both on the Internet and in brick and mortar stores -- are still bilking consumers out of literally hundreds of th...
The Week In Music History Feb 17 - 23
The week in music history brought to you by MusicGoldmine.com FEB 17: On this day in 2005, a 1965 Fender Stratocaster guitar once owned by Jimi Hendrix sold for over $125,000 at a London auction! Also in the auction, a poem Hendrix had written a couple weeks after he appeared at the Monterey Pop Festival ($12,000) and the first Jimi Hendrix Experience single "Hey Joe" signed by all the band members ($2500). FEB 18: On this day in 1966, Beach Boy Brian Wilson was in the pr...
This Week in Music History July 7-13
The week in music history brought to you by MusicGoldmine.com. JULY 7: Happy birthday to Ringo Starr, born today in 1940!🎂🥁 Ringo is the richest drummer in the world, as he has amassed a $350M fortune. He has beeen inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame twice. In addition his time as a Beatle, he has formed Ringo Starr’s All-Starr Band featuring a wide variety of musicians. It would be impossible to use this small space to go through all of his accomplishments! J...
