RIAA Gold Album award for Tony Bennett album Tony Bennett: MTV Unplugged. Released on June 24, 1994 it was certified Gold on Feb. 3, 1995 for 500,000 copies sold. Remember the legendary Tony Bennett (1926-2023) with this award.
Backed by the Ralph Sharon Trio, this album captured Bennett's performance on MTV Unplugged. The tracks he performed generally came from the "Great American Songbook". The show included guest appearances by Elvis Costello and k.d. lang. The album won the Grammy award in 1995 for Album of the Year and also for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Performance. By 2000 the album was certified Platinum for one million copies sold. See image above for the RIAA sales certifications of this album*.
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Item Highlights:
- RIAA Gold album award
- In Excellent condition
- First presentation award from 1995
- Presentation to music industry executive
- All original with manufacturer sticker
- Letter of provenance included
- Award measures approx. 13" x 17"
- Known as a "R hologram" award, they were made from 1990-97
- Great collectors item for Tony Bennett fan
- FREE insured shipping to continental U.S.
- International shipping available
Detailed Item Description: This is a first presentation RIAA Gold award that would have been manufactured in 1995 making it 27 years old. The award is presented to Jerry Blair, a record executive who held roles at CBS, Chrysalis, and Columbia Records.
Blair played a key role in the success of artists including Tony Bennett in his time at Columbia Records, along with Aerosmith, Mariah Carey, Billy Joel, 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).
This award is all original with Ill Eagle manufacturer's sticker. The award is in Excellent condition with only minor wear on the frame and a few mars on the plexiglass.
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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