| Going For
Platinum There are many
record awards issued by different countries, but the most well known and most collectible
is the record award given by the Recording Industry Associating of America (RIAA).
Unfortunately there has been some controversy with award. Many claim that the sales award
does not clearly indicate the true number of albums sold. Often record companies apply for
these awards even before the designated 500,000 or 1,000,000 albums is sold. In addition,
there is controversy of whether or not records sold through discount clubs such as BMG or
Columbia House should be counted as sales. However, whatever your stance, the following
page is designed to help you authenticate the existence
of an award. The authentication
section of this page can also be found on the RIAA
website. The pictures were taken from the now defunked website of Merit Adventures, a
dealer in music memorabilia.
Before we get to the authentication, we
would
like to address some questions that we had when we purchased two record awards by
Radiohead.
Frequently asked questions:
- Who receives these awards?
- Are awards ever presented to a band as a
whole?
- How many of each award (gold/platinum)
are made?
- How much should I pay for an award?
- Can there be more than one design for
the same award?
- What does gold mean?
- What does platinum mean?
- Who makes the award?
- How can I authenticate the
existence of
an award?
- I have an award that is damaged, can I
fix it?
- What is an In-house award?
1. Who receives
these awards?
Record awards are given to members of the
band, producer of the album, important label executives
such as the head of the
promotions department, and a few radio stations that help to promote the album. It is very
rare to find an award that was actually presented to a person in the band.
2. Are awards ever
presented to a band as a whole?
Remember that it is very difficult to split
an award five ways in a band like Radiohead which has five members. It is likely that if
you find an award of this type that it is a counterfeit.
3. How many of each
award (gold/platinum) are made?
The number of awards that are made varies but
the average is between 12 and 15.
4. How much should
I pay for an award?
We believe that this is a personal choice. To
help you make your decision, keep in mind that it costs at least $80 for each certified
award that is given out. The white matte awards are the most rare awards. If an award is a
presentation award this may also affect the price. These are usually
more extravagant/fancy
compared to the normal awards. They may include a custom design, and may drift from the
typical format. Presentation awards may be presented to a record company, and not
necessarily one particular person. Presentation awards may include a custom
silk-screened plexiglass cover as opposed to plain plexiglass.
5. Can there be
more than one design for the same award?
Yes. It is not uncommon for there to be more
than one design for the same award. For more popular artists there may even be four
different designs.
6. What does gold
mean?
Gold signifies that 500,000 copies of an
album have been sold.
7. What does
platinum mean?
Platinum signifies that 1,000,000 copies of
an album have been sold.
8. Who makes the
award?
There are a limited number of framers who
make these awards. They are given a special license to produce these awards.
9. How can I
authenticate the existence of an award?
Earlier awards come with an engraved gold
plate with RIAA certified logo. Later awards have a holographic plate which are easier to
counterfeit. A common method of counterfeiting is to use the plates from less collectible
awards and produce fake awards. Current awards have a holographic plate along with a
serial number. Unfortunately the serial number can be wiped off easily. This can only be
done if someone were to open the award and tamper with surface of the plate itself. Awards
usually also have a sticker on the back telling who made the award.
10. I have an award that
is damaged, can I fix it?
We recently purchased two awards. Upon
arrival in the mail, the plaque on one of the awards was jarred loose. We called the
company who originally made the awards and they were able to fix the award for free. The
award is basically as new, the only difference being that the paper backing was redone and
their is no longed the sticker of the manufacturer affixed
to the back. As a result, we can
still sell the award as M-. It is important not to tamper with the award, for instance by
ripping off the paper backing even though it is already torn. Such defects are easily
correctable. We suggest taking the award to the original
manufacturer.
11. What is an In-house
award?
In-house awards are awards presented by the
record company, without the RIAA certification. By not getting an RIAA certification, the
record company is able to save money on making the awards.
Authenticating awards:
 "White
Matte" (1964-1974)
- The plaques were an off-white linen material displayed in
an unpainted, finished wood frame. The dedication on the plate was engraved with an etched
RIAA seal and a mini-cover of the LP was mounted separately from the plate.
"Floater" (1975-1981) -
The award background was usually black matte enclosed in a wood frame painted either gold
or white. The disc and plate appeared to "float" between the background and a
layer of Plexiglas. The mini-cover of the LP was mounted separately from the presentation
plate.
 "Strip-Plate" (1982-1984) - The
award background was dark. Unlike previous awards, the mini-cover of the LP was included
on the presentation strip plate. These awards were also the first to contain either a
gold-or-silver plated cassette, acknowledging the increasing contribution of cassette
tapes toward sales. The cassettes were located either directly beneath the album disc or
on the LP itself.
 "Hologram" (1985 to present) - An
RIAA holographic seal incorporating the RIAA logo has appeared on all RIAA plaques since
March 1985. The hologram is used to prevent unauthorized duplication of awards, and
usually appears on the presentation plate along with the dedication and mini-album cover.
 
Two awards from the nineties. The one pictured on the left is
an earlier design where as the one on the right was more common in the late nineties.
There are also custom designs which became more prevalent in the
nineties.
After the hologram style of awards was
introduced, the traditional size and style restrictions for awards were relaxed, giving
record companies more freedom in choosing a design for a particular award. Customized
awards and impressive designs, which now include the CD configuration, are a collaborative
effort on the part of the record label and the licensed plaque manufacturer. The
collectible value of these awards depends on a number of factors including the artist,
title, presenter, format and condition of each award. For more information on collecting
Gold and Platinum awards, see "Goldmine's Price Guide to Collectible Record
Albums," 3rd Edition. |
