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Record awards in their earliest days were pretty plain, starting with simple dark-stained wood framed affairs with white matte boards in the 60s and early 70s. The period of 1975 thru the mid-80s brought silver and gold painted frames and charcoal-colored mattes. This was followed by a graduation to some pretty pedestrian black plastic-covered frame/black matte awards from the mid-80s through late 90s.   Just before the millennium, however, the RIAA loosened up its' previously strict design standards. This opened up the creative floodgates for award designers, who responded with an explosion of new designs. The companies that designed these new award...

The week in music history brought to you by MusicGoldmine.com. Just a couple of highlights from this week in music history! OCT 13: Happy birthday to Sammy Hagar, born today in 1947! The rock singer, songwriter, and musician is best known for his work as a solo artist and as the lead vocalist for Van Halen from 1985 to 1996. Hagar first gained attention in the early 1970s as the lead singer of the hard rock band Montrose. With Montrose, Hagar delivered hits like "Bad Motor Scooter" and "Rock Candy," helping to establish his reputation as a powerful vocalist with a gritty,...

Halloween music spans decades, and some of the most iconic songs date back many years. These classics helped set the eerie, playful tone of Halloween and have become timeless additions to the holiday. Here’s a look at ten of the best Halloween songs, each bringing a dose of nostalgia and spooky charm to October 31st. "Monster Mash" - Bobby "Boris" Pickett (1962) No Halloween playlist is complete without "Monster Mash." Bobby "Boris" Pickett’s novelty song from 1962 captures the essence of Halloween fun, recounting a monster party complete with Dracula, Frankenstein, and other classic creatures. The song’s humorous lyrics, creepy...

The week in music history brought to you by MusicGoldmine.com. Just a couple of highlights from this week in music history! SEPT 28: Sadly, it was announced today that Kris Kristofferson passed away yesterday, September 28th. The singer, songwriter, and actor is widely regarded as one of the most influential country music artists of the 20th century. Born in 1936, Kristofferson is known for his deeply poetic songwriting, blending country, folk, and rock with a gritty sense of realism and emotional depth. Before launching his music career, he was a Rhodes Scholar, served in the U.S. Army as a helicopter pilot, and...

As we've acquired collections of awards and memorabilia from record industry executives, artist teams and others, we inevitably end up with some that would have been wonderful pieces of music history but instead are damaged. This not only ruins them for their current owner, it also robs the ability for future collectors to enjoy them. After all, this is not the way a record award was meant to look: The sad thing is that much of the damage we see could have been avoided if some simple display and storage principles were considered over the years. One solution is, of course, to...