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Van Halen 1984 RIAA Gold Album Award

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RIAA Gold LP award for Van Halen album 1984, which was released in the U.S. on Jan. 4, 1984. The album was certified Gold by the RIAA on March 12, 1984 for 500,000 copies sold. 

The album, the group's fifth and last with David Lee Roth in the line up (until 2012's A Different Kind Of Truth) produced mega hit "Jump", their sole #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, along with "Panama", "Hot For Teacher" and "I'll Wait". The album peaked at #2 on the Billboard Top 200 Album chart. By 1999 the album had gone to 10x Multi-Platinum, becoming a rare Diamond certified album, and matched their debut as one of VH's two best selling releases. See image above for more RIAA sales certifications of this album through the years*. 

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Item Highlights:

  • RIAA Gold LP award with all proper components for the era: Gold frame, gold disc and gold info plate
  • In VG condition 
  • First presentation award from 1984
  • Presented to Warner Bros. record executive
  • Known as a "floater" award because the components appear to "float" above the matte, they were reportedly made by an unknown manufacturer later than RIAA standards dictated from 1981-85
  • RIAA floater awards numbered only 25-50 plaques worldwide for any given single/album
  • Award measures 17.5" x 21.5"
  • Great collectors item for any Van Halen 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 1984. That makes this award around 37 years old. It is presented to Bob Merlis, who was at the time Senior VP of Worldwide Corporate Communications at Warner Bros. 

This award is in VG condition with only some minor wear to the frame (note the bottom rail in particular) and plexiglass. This is most likely a "grey area floater" award made in the 80s by an unknown manufacturer, possibly a former staffer from Fitzgerald Hartley. Many Warner Bros. awards from this era share these characteristics. For more information on awards such as this, see the section on "floater awards" in our record award guide article here

Interested in knowing more about RIAA awards and what makes them great to add to your collection? Subscribe to our free bi-weekly newsletter and get our 55-page MusicGoldmine RIAA and Record Award Guide free plus a 15% discount code here.

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, record retailers, 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

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