RIAA Platinum 45 award for Johnnie Taylor track "Disco Lady", which was released in January 1976. It was certified Platinum by the RIAA on April 20, 1976 for two million copies sold. This is an interesting award because it was the first single ever certified Platinum by the RIAA once they launched their Platinum program in 1976.
The track became Taylor's biggest hit, topping the Billboard Hot 100 chart for four weeks and also earning him a Grammy nomination. Among players on the track were members of Parliament-Funkadelic including bassist Bootsy Collins. See image above for RIAA sales certifications of the single*.
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Item Highlights:
- RIAA Platinum 45 award
- In VG condition
- First presentation award from 1976
- Presented to record label executive
- All original but has been rebacked
- 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 Johnnie Taylor fan
- FREE insured shipping to continental U.S.
- International shipping available
Detailed Item Description: This is a first presentation RIAA Platinum Single award that would have been manufactured in 1976. That makes it approximately 47 years old. The award is presented to Norm Ziegler, who started his career in sales at Columbia Records and later became a Regional VP at CBS Records.
As mentioned above, this was the very first single to ever be certified Platinum by the RIAA. Note that when launched in 1976, a Platinum 45 single certification represented two million singles sold. In later years (around 1989) the Platinum single level was adjusted to one million sold. This was done when singles started to sell less units as the album format gained traction with consumers. The RIAA website today shows all Platinum singles as having sold one million units, without differentiating whether they were certified in the "two million sold" or the "one million sold" era.
The award is in VG condition with some minor frame wear and mars on the plexiglass. It has been rebacked but otherwise is all original.
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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