Pink Floyd
Dark Side of the Moon
R.I.A.A. Record Award Discography
1973-1990

by Vernon Fitch

© copyright Vernon Fitch / The Pink Floyd Archives


This is a discography of Dark Side of the Moon album sales awards certified by the Record Industry Association of America (R.I.A.A.). Although there have been record awards issued for nearly every Pink Floyd album, this discography documents only Dark Side of the Moon album awards since they are representative of the different types of awards issued throughout the years. Awards issued for other Pink Floyd albums during the years specified in this discography can be assumed to be of the same type and format as those listed in this discography.

General Information Guide

Authorized Awards: Official record awards are authorized by the R.I.A.A. only after an audit of a record company's books confirms that the sales of a particular album have reached award status. After the sales figures are confimed, the R.I.A.A. gives the record company authorization to order an R.I.A.A. certified sales award from an R.I.A.A. licensed awards manufacturer. The licensed manufacturer creates the award according to specifications set out by the R.I.A.A. and the record company. Once the award is completed, the manufacturer delivers the award to the record company for presentation by the record company to the award recepient.

Counterfeit Record Awards: There are numerous instances of counterfeit gold / platinum record awards. Many of these counterfeits are made by the same manufacturers that make the official awards, so it is impossible to determine a counterfeit award just by looking at it. Awards with the holographic R.I.A.A. logo on them are just as susceptible to order counterfeiting than the pre-holographic logo awards. The only true way of determining if an R.I.A.A. record award is official is to trace back the origin of the award.

Receipents of Awards: Record awards are made for presentation to the following:

1) The recording artist
2) The record company
3) A record company executive
4) The production company
5) An individual involved with the production of the record
6) A radio station

Any comments, corrections or additions to this discography would be appreciated.


Quick Click Guide

[1973-1975] [1975-1981]
[1982-1984] [1984-1989] [1990]
[The Pink Floyd Discographies Page]
[Reference Directory] [Pink Floyd Archives home page]

Pink Floyd
Dark Side of the Moon Sales Awards
(by year)

Pink Floyd
  1. 1973-1975

    1. Dark Side of the Moon off-white burlap matte gold record award

  2. 1975-1981

    1. Dark Side of the Moon floater gold record award

  3. 1982-1984

    1. Dark Side of the Moon single strip-plate gold record award

  4. 1984-1989

    1. Dark Side of the Moon single strip-plate R.I.A.A. hologram logo gold record award

  5. 1990-present

    1. Dark Side of the Moon R.I.A.A. hologram logo platinum record award


R.I.A.A. Record Awards

1973-1975
(Off-white burlap matte award)

Certification of Dark Side of the Moon: Dark Side of the Moon was certified gold by the R.I.A.A. on April 17, 1973.

Gold Record Certification: In 1973, a record album was certified gold by the R.I.A.A. for sales of $1,000,000 at the manufacturers wholesale price. This amount essentially meant that the album had sold over 500,000 copies. Sales of tapes (both 8-track and cassette) were included in the sales totals for the purpuse of establishing award status.

Manufacturer: These awards were manufactured exclusively by the New York Picture & Frame Company, the licensed R.I.A.A. awards manufacturer.

Style of Award: From 1973 to 1975, the style of a gold record award was a gold record in an unpainted finished wood frame on an off-white burlap matte background.

1973
Dark Side of the Moon
gold record award


The Dark Side of the Moon LP
Gold Record Award

Title: Dark Side of the Moon
Record Company: Capitol Records
Release Information: A record sales award presented to Capitol Records for sales in excess of $1,000,000.
Description:
Frame: Unpainted finished wood frame.
Matte: Off-white burlap material.
Record: A gold record with original issue prism label.
Record cover: Minature copy of the album cover mounted separately and to the left of the dedication plate.
Dedication Plate: Gold dedication plate with engraved dedication on the left side, and the RIAA logo etched on the right side.
Dedication:

PRESENTED TO
CAPITOL INDUSTRIES, INC.
TO COMMEMORATE THE SALE OF MORE THAN
ONE MILLION DOLLARS WORTH OF THE
HARVEST RECORDS
LONG-PLAYING RECORD ALBUM
"THE DARK SIDE OF THE MOON"


1975-1981
(Floater award)

Gold Record Certification: In 1975, the R.I.A.A. changed it's gold record certification guidelines to require that an album have both sales of $1,000,000 at the manufacturers wholesale price, and sell over 500,000 copies.

Platinum Record Certification: In 1976, the R.I.A.A. introduced the platinum sales award, for sales of 1,000,000 copies of an album.

Style of Award: From 1975 to 1981, the style of a gold or platinum record award was a black linen background, with the record, album cover, and dedication plate mounted so as to make them appear that they are "floating" between the background and the plexiglass.

1975
Dark Side of the Moon
gold record award


The Dark Side of the Moon LP
Gold Record Award

Title: Dark Side of the Moon
Record Company: Capitol Records
Release Information: A record award presented to Capitol Records for sales in excess of 500,000 copies.
Description:
Frame: Gold painted wood frame.
Matte: Black linen material.
Record cover: Minature copy of the album cover mounted separately and to the left of the dedication plate.
Dedication Plate: Engraved dedication on the left, with the RIAA logo printed on the right.
Dedication:

PRESENTED TO
CAPITOL INDUSTRIES, INC.
TO COMMEMORATE THE SALE OF MORE THAN
500,000 COPIES OF THE
CAPITOL RECORDS, INC.
LONG-PLAYING RECORD ALBUM
"DARK SIDE OF THE MOON"


1982-1984
(Single strip-plate style award)

Manufacturer: These awards were manufactured by various companies, including California Art & Frame in Huntington Beach, California.

Multi-Platinum Record Certification: In 1984, the R.I.A.A. introduced the multi-platinum sales award, for sales of an album in multiples of 1,000,000.

Style of Award: From 1982 to 1984, the style of a gold or platinum record award was a black linen background with the album cover and dedication plate combined on the same strip-plate. Some of these awards also included a gold (or silver) plated cassette along with the record album, placed either on the lower edge of the album, or just below the album.

1982
Dark Side of the Moon
gold record award


The Dark Side of the Moon LP
Gold Record Award

Title: Dark Side of the Moon
Record Company: Capitol Records
Release Information: A record award presented to Capitol Records for sales in excess of 500,000 copies.
Description:
Frame: Black plastic frame.
Matte: Black linen material.
Dedication Plate: A minature copy of the album cover mounted to the left of the dedication, with the RIAA logo printed on the right.
Dedication:

PRESENTED TO
CAPITOL MARKETING
TO COMMEMORATE THE SALE OF MORE THAN
500,000 COPIES OF THE
CAPITOL RECORDS, INC.
LONG-PLAYING RECORD ALBUM
"DARK SIDE OF THE MOON"


1984-1989
(Single strip-plate R.I.A.A hologram logo award)

Style of Award: From 1984 to 1989, the style of a gold record award was a black background with the album cover and dedication plate combined on the same strip-plate. The R.I.A.A. logo on the strip-plate was changed to a hologram. Most of these awards also included a gold (or silver) plated cassette along with the record album, placed either on the lower edge of the album, or just below the album. Some of these awards also include a gold (or silver) compact disc. Early versions of this award featured the black prism label on the record, while later copies (1988) have the purple Capitol label on the record.

1984
Dark Side of the Moon
gold record award


The Dark Side of the Moon LP
Gold Record Award

Title: Dark Side of the Moon
Record Company: Capitol Records
Release Information: A record award presented to Capitol Records for sales in excess of 500,000 copies.
Description:
Frame: Black plastic frame.
Matte: Black linen material.
Dedication Plate: A minature copy of the album cover mounted to the left of the dedication, with the RIAA logo as a hologram on the right.
Dedication:

PRESENTED TO
CAPITOL MARKETING
TO COMMEMORATE THE SALE OF MORE THAN
500,000 COPIES OF THE
CAPITOL RECORDS, INC.
LONG-PLAYING RECORD ALBUM
"DARK SIDE OF THE MOON"


1990
(R.I.A.A hologram logo award)

Style of Award: From 1990 onwards, the style of record awards varied considerably. The R.I.A.A. logo was a holographic image, while the size and style of the award was left up to the Record Company.

1990
Dark Side of the Moon
platinim record award


The Dark Side of the Moon LP
Platinum Record Award

Title: Dark Side of the Moon
Record Company: Capitol Records
Release Information: A record award presented to Capitol Records for sales in excess of 1,000,000 copies.
Description:
Frame: Black plastic frame.
Matte: Black background.
Record covers: A silver compact disc, a minature copy of the album cover, and a silver cassette tape mounted separately below the dedication plate.
Dedication Plate: A dedication, with the RIAA logo as a hologram on the right.
Dedication:

PRESENTED TO
CAPITOL MARKETING
TO COMMEMORATE THE SALE OF MORE THAN
1,000,000 COPIES OF THE
CAPITOL RECORDS, INC.
LONG-PLAYING RECORD ALBUM
"DARK SIDE OF THE MOON"

Note: Numerous styles of R.I.A.A. record awards have been produced since the R.I.A.A. relaxed its formatting guidelines in 1990 and let record companies design the awards themselves. Literally hundreds of variations have been made, such as large multi-platinum awards. This discography makes no attempt to define all such awards.