RIAA Platinum Award for Billy Joel album Greatest Hits Vol. 3. The album was released on Aug. 19, 1997. The album was certified Platinum by the RIAA on Mar. 31, 1998 for one million copies sold.
The album continues from where Joel's Greatest Hits Volume II left off, with tracks from his 1983 album An Innocent Man kicking things off, including that album's title track and "Keeping the Faith". Other hits on the set include "A Matter of Trust", "We Didn't Start The Fire", "I Go To Extremes" and more. See image above for the RIAA sales certification of this album*.
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Item Highlights:
- RIAA Platinum award
- In VG to Excellent condition
- First presentation award from 1998
- Presentation to record industry executive
- All original with manufacturer sticker
- Known as a "RIAA bar hologram" award with serial number, they were made from 1998 to present
- Award measures 13" x 17"
- Beautiful collectors item for any Billy Joel fan
- FREE insured shipping to continental U.S.
- International shipping available
Detailed Item Description: This RIAA Platinum award is a first presentation award that would have been manufactured in 1998 making this award 25 years old. The award is presented to Jerry Blair, who was at the time a record executive at Columbia Records.
Blair played a key role in the success of artists including Joel, Billy Idol, Aerosmith, Tony Bennett, Mariah Carey, Ricky Martin, George Michael, Will Smith and many others. The award is accompanied by a letter of provenance from Blair's son, who later took possession of his father's awards and memorabilia (see image of letter, son's name is redacted on image, buyer will receive unredacted copy).
The award is in VG to Excellent condition with only very minor wear on the frame and plexiglass. This award is all original with Ill Eagle manufacturer sticker.
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Notes on the condition of all vintage RIAA awards like this one: Please do not buy this item if you want a brand new piece of memorabilia. These are historical artifacts from the year they were produced. As a result they may show signs of wear. Frankly, if you see a 20 to 50-year-old award purported to be in 100% perfect condition, it might be too good to be true. After all, an antique should have "good' wear. If not, you might want to question the piece.
As to where they came from, they could have been displayed in record label offices, recording studios, artist manager's offices, radio stations, private collector's homes and yes, of course, possibly the artist's or songwriter's home. Typically, we don't know all the places they may have been over the years other than what we've stated in the description.
Finally, a word on photos: Our photos are zoomable so you can get a very good look. Do let us know if you want photos of any other details on our pieces and we'll be happy to provide.
*RIAA sales data source: RIAA.com