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...
Remembering Eddie Van Halen Through Isolated TracksEddie Van Halen (1955-2020). Every rock guitarist alive in the 80s regarded Eddie Van Halen as a god. It's the truth. While Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page and others were influences that Eddie would often acknowledge, he took the art of rock guitar to another level, literally inventing techniques that would influence countless other guitarists to follow. His melodic chops were honed by an intense admiration for Clapton. It was an admiration so great that he said he learned all of Clapton's...
Trio Of Tony Iommi-Owned Black Sabbath Awards Up For Sale [SOLD]Black Sabbath are often cited as the pioneers of the heavy metal genre, with their eponymous debut introducing the world to alternate guitar tunings, thunderous drums, dark lyrics and a maniacal new singer named Ozzy. Interestingly, the reason for some of the unique twists to traditional rock that the group came up with were, it turns out, accidental art. For example, the detuning and unique chord constructions that Sabbath founder and guitarist Tony Iommi (pictured below in 1970) introduced ...
Rare Doors RIAA Award To Jim Morrison Up For Sale [SOLD]Becoming friends with Jim Morrison in college at UCLA. Seeing his former college-mate rise to worldwide fame as the lead vocalist and poet laureate of The Doors. Spending good, and sometimes tumultuous, times with him in France years later. Photographing what would become some of the last images of him ever seen due to his untimely demise in 1971 at the young age of 27. Those are some of the unique experiences of Alain Ronay. Ronay, who hails from France and today is a naturalized American, ...
MusicGoldmine Donates Items For Sweet Relief Musicians CharityUnable to tour, many musicians have been especially challenged during the COVID-19 crisis. For every Beyonce or Bruce Springsteen, there are thousands of professional musicians for whom live performances provide their sole source of income. MusicGoldmine.com donated a Jimi Hendrix package, consisting of a pair of our items to raise funds for Sweet Relief, a 501(c)(3) charity helping musicians in need. 100% of the funds raised by the sale held May 9 went to the charity. The donated items inclu...
New World Record Set At $6M For Nirvana GuitarIn an auction held today June 20, 2020 at Julien's Auctions a bidder bought Kurt Cobain's acoustic guitar used during the infamous MTV Unplugged performance. The purchase cost the lucky buyer a record-setting $6,010,000. The buyer, whose name was announced publicly as the auction concluded in a somewhat unusual occurrence, was Australian Peter Freedman, Founder and CEO of RODE Microphones. The Nirvana MTV Unplugged concert was recorded on November 18, 1993 in MTV's New York City s...
"Hey Jude" Lyrics Net $910K In AuctionHandwritten lyrics of the Beatles iconic 1968 track "Hey Jude" handwritten by Paul McCartney sold on April 10, 2020 for an incredible $910,000. Auction house Julien's had expected the item to net a large sum and had estimated the value at $170-190,000 but were no doubt shocked with the end result. Likely the item's owner was more shocked! Written in black felt tip pen, the description indicated they had been used during the recording sessions for the song at Trident Studios in...
Best Selling Artists 1969-2019Here is a fascinating video that shows the best selling artists from 1969-2019 in moving graphic form. You can see the evidence here of superstars you know and love but you may be interested to see their complete domination of the music sales landscape during their respective heydays. There are also some surprises, although many were short-lived. (Video courtesy Data Is Beautiful):
Kurt Cobain "Unplugged" Sweater Sets Auction RecordOver this past weekend, the pale green sweater worn by Kurt Cobain at Nirvana's legendary MTV "Unplugged" taping in 1993 sold for $334,000 at an auction staged by Julien's in New York City. The sale makes it the most expensive sweater ever sold at auction. Cobain tragically took his own life at the age of 27 in Spring of 1994 not long after the famous televised gig. The record-setting memorabilia sale reflects the growing market for collector's items that capture a piece o...
The Genius Of The WhoLegends The Who are on tour this year with the two remaining stalwarts Roger Daltrey and Pete Townshend out windmilling and delighting audiences with the many memorable tunes from the group's incredible body of work. All of the members of the group contributed in key ways to bring the mostly Townshend-penned songs to life. Here are a few isolated tracks with examples of their creativity and instrumental prowess, with the other tracks stripped away so you can hear all the detail. Also be ...
Oasis Isolated Noel Gallagher Guitars and VocalsListen to Noel Gallagher of Oasis on all his guitar tracks (acoustic and rhythm electric parts) on their classic hit "Wonderwall". Great parts that add up to make a great track underneath Liam's vocal. And just for extra fun (and because many non-Oasis fans think Liam sings all their songs!), here is Noel's great vocal track from "Don't Look Back In Anger" isolated as well. These videos work in the U.S. but note that they may not work in other countries. For more c...
Pink Floyd's "Shine On You Crazy Diamond" DissectedHere's a fascinating exploration of Pink Floyd masterpiece from Wish You Were Here, "Shine On You Crazy Diamond". This was the group's tribute to fallen founding member Syd Barrett and it is full of fantastic layered recording techniques and beautiful vocals, all achieved on a 24 track tape recorder. An excerpt from a BBC Radio 2 program called "The Record Producers" featuring Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason commenting on excerpts from the original master tapes, it descr...
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...
Remembering Eddie Van Halen Through Isolated Tracks
Eddie Van Halen (1955-2020). Every rock guitarist alive in the 80s regarded Eddie Van Halen as a god. It's the truth. While Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page and others were influences that Eddie would often acknowledge, he took the art of rock guitar to another level, literally inventing techniques that would influence countless other guitarists to follow. His melodic chops were honed by an intense admiration for Clapton. It was an admiration so great that he said he learned all of Clapton's...
Trio Of Tony Iommi-Owned Black Sabbath Awards Up For Sale [SOLD]
Black Sabbath are often cited as the pioneers of the heavy metal genre, with their eponymous debut introducing the world to alternate guitar tunings, thunderous drums, dark lyrics and a maniacal new singer named Ozzy. Interestingly, the reason for some of the unique twists to traditional rock that the group came up with were, it turns out, accidental art. For example, the detuning and unique chord constructions that Sabbath founder and guitarist Tony Iommi (pictured below in 1970) introduced ...
Rare Doors RIAA Award To Jim Morrison Up For Sale [SOLD]
Becoming friends with Jim Morrison in college at UCLA. Seeing his former college-mate rise to worldwide fame as the lead vocalist and poet laureate of The Doors. Spending good, and sometimes tumultuous, times with him in France years later. Photographing what would become some of the last images of him ever seen due to his untimely demise in 1971 at the young age of 27. Those are some of the unique experiences of Alain Ronay. Ronay, who hails from France and today is a naturalized American, ...
MusicGoldmine Donates Items For Sweet Relief Musicians Charity
Unable to tour, many musicians have been especially challenged during the COVID-19 crisis. For every Beyonce or Bruce Springsteen, there are thousands of professional musicians for whom live performances provide their sole source of income. MusicGoldmine.com donated a Jimi Hendrix package, consisting of a pair of our items to raise funds for Sweet Relief, a 501(c)(3) charity helping musicians in need. 100% of the funds raised by the sale held May 9 went to the charity. The donated items inclu...
New World Record Set At $6M For Nirvana Guitar
In an auction held today June 20, 2020 at Julien's Auctions a bidder bought Kurt Cobain's acoustic guitar used during the infamous MTV Unplugged performance. The purchase cost the lucky buyer a record-setting $6,010,000. The buyer, whose name was announced publicly as the auction concluded in a somewhat unusual occurrence, was Australian Peter Freedman, Founder and CEO of RODE Microphones. The Nirvana MTV Unplugged concert was recorded on November 18, 1993 in MTV's New York City s...
"Hey Jude" Lyrics Net $910K In Auction
Handwritten lyrics of the Beatles iconic 1968 track "Hey Jude" handwritten by Paul McCartney sold on April 10, 2020 for an incredible $910,000. Auction house Julien's had expected the item to net a large sum and had estimated the value at $170-190,000 but were no doubt shocked with the end result. Likely the item's owner was more shocked! Written in black felt tip pen, the description indicated they had been used during the recording sessions for the song at Trident Studios in...
Best Selling Artists 1969-2019
Here is a fascinating video that shows the best selling artists from 1969-2019 in moving graphic form. You can see the evidence here of superstars you know and love but you may be interested to see their complete domination of the music sales landscape during their respective heydays. There are also some surprises, although many were short-lived. (Video courtesy Data Is Beautiful):
Kurt Cobain "Unplugged" Sweater Sets Auction Record
Over this past weekend, the pale green sweater worn by Kurt Cobain at Nirvana's legendary MTV "Unplugged" taping in 1993 sold for $334,000 at an auction staged by Julien's in New York City. The sale makes it the most expensive sweater ever sold at auction. Cobain tragically took his own life at the age of 27 in Spring of 1994 not long after the famous televised gig. The record-setting memorabilia sale reflects the growing market for collector's items that capture a piece o...
The Genius Of The Who
Legends The Who are on tour this year with the two remaining stalwarts Roger Daltrey and Pete Townshend out windmilling and delighting audiences with the many memorable tunes from the group's incredible body of work. All of the members of the group contributed in key ways to bring the mostly Townshend-penned songs to life. Here are a few isolated tracks with examples of their creativity and instrumental prowess, with the other tracks stripped away so you can hear all the detail. Also be ...
Oasis Isolated Noel Gallagher Guitars and Vocals
Listen to Noel Gallagher of Oasis on all his guitar tracks (acoustic and rhythm electric parts) on their classic hit "Wonderwall". Great parts that add up to make a great track underneath Liam's vocal. And just for extra fun (and because many non-Oasis fans think Liam sings all their songs!), here is Noel's great vocal track from "Don't Look Back In Anger" isolated as well. These videos work in the U.S. but note that they may not work in other countries. For more c...
Pink Floyd's "Shine On You Crazy Diamond" Dissected
Here's a fascinating exploration of Pink Floyd masterpiece from Wish You Were Here, "Shine On You Crazy Diamond". This was the group's tribute to fallen founding member Syd Barrett and it is full of fantastic layered recording techniques and beautiful vocals, all achieved on a 24 track tape recorder. An excerpt from a BBC Radio 2 program called "The Record Producers" featuring Pink Floyd drummer Nick Mason commenting on excerpts from the original master tapes, it descr...
