RIAA Gold 45 award for Frankie Valli "Grease", which was released in May 6, 1978. The 45 rpm single was certified Gold by the RIAA on July 27, 1978 for 1 million copies sold.
Written by Barry Gibb of the Bee Gees, who also sang background vocals on the track, this was the theme song of the hugely successful Grease film. It gave Valli a second #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and in Canada in the 70s after his prior success with The Four Seasons in the 60s (his first #1 as a solo artist was "My Eyes Adored You" from 1974). It also helped drive the soundtrack album to 8x Multi-Platinum status. By October the single was certified Platinum for two million in sales. See image above for RIAA sales certifications of this album through the years*.
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Item Highlights:
- RIAA Gold 45 award with all proper components for the era: Gold frame, gold disc and gold info plate
- In Good to VG condition with wear on the frame (see details)
- First presentation award from sometime in the 1978
- Presented to co-founder of the RSO record label
- Has original backing paper
- Known as a "floater" award because the components appear to "float" above the matte, they were made from 1975-1981. RIAA "floater" awards numbered only 25-50 plaques worldwide for any given single/album
- Award measures 13" x 17"
- Great collectors item for any Grease or Frankie Valli 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 sometime in 1978. That makes this award approximately 42 years old. It is presented to the late Al Coury, a record executive who co-founded the RSO label that this track was released on. He also helped develop the careers of the Beatles, Nat King Cole, The Beach Boys, Pink Floyd, Glen Campbell, Bob Seger, Guns N' Roses, Aerosmith, Don Henley, Cher and Linda Ronstadt. (Below: Coury with John Lennon)
This award is in Good to VG condition. It has its original backing paper with sticker residue of a shape and size that would indicate it had a sticker from the New York Frame & Picture Co. but it is missing. It has some typical wear on the frame and some minor spotting on the presentation plate but otherwise is in very good shape.
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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