Certifications of some Carpenters albums...

[cam89]

Hi All,
I was wondering about how close some of the CARPENTERS albums would be to going gold or platinum...

On the RIAA site...Close to You...the 1970 album is gold, then goes platinum and now double platinum, but in the DECADES book from the Carpenters Fan Club it states it sold 5 million copies. Is this worldwide or just in the US that the RIAA site says it is only certified 2 million...

What about albums like LOVELINES, PASSAGE, TICKET TO RIDE, FROM THE TOP, INTERPRETATIONS, THE MILLENIUM COLLECTION, KAREN CARPENTER etc. How close are they to be certified?

The singles...I know they had 10 gold million selling singles. I think a few of them almost made it to platinum status...and Only Yesterday single sold about 600,000 copies. What about the Merry Christmas Darling single...if it was Number One on the seasonal charts shouldn't it have come close to being a gold single??

My thoughts,
Cameron
[email protected]
www.carponline.bravepages.com

 

[Tim Neely]

There are several things to remember when looking at the RIAA certification listings:

1. The RIAA didn't start giving out "platinum" awards until 1976. Many records that sold enough to be "platinum" but were released before 1976 have never been "certified" platinum to this day. And that is because...
2. A record label has to ask the RIAA's auditors and accountants for a certification, and that costs money. Certifications of "gold" and "platinum" status are not automatic. If an artist is no longer selling records for a label, or has left on bad terms, or is suing for back royalties, it may not be in a record label's best interest to ask for a certification. Sometimes a significant anniversary or reissue program causes a label to ask for certification, as it's good publicity. Several years ago, BMG/RCA went back and had all of Elvis' sales numbers for his old records checked when they hadn't been in decades, and voila! He suddenly had a lot more gold and platinum records than he had in the past.
3. Some significant labels either were never members of the RIAA or never wanted the RIAA's people poking around their financial statements. Motown sold millions of records in the 1960s, but none of the 45s or LPs were "certified" gold or platinum by the RIAA until Berry Gordy no longer owned the company.

 

[mr J.]

CLOSE TO YOU has probably sold about 3 million copies in the US to date.The RIAA certification of 2 million in 1998 means that CLOSE TO YOU has sold at least 2 millions copies,but less than 3 million.(actual sales figures could be 2.8 or 2.9 million.)The 5 million sales figure from the 1979 DECADE book was worldwide sales up to that point.CLOSE TO YOU ranks as one of K&R's all-time best sellers,along with CARPENTERS,SONG FOR YOU,and SINGLES 1969-1973.Their worst selling albums are PASSAGE,MADE IN AMERICA and KAREN CARPENTER.From what I can tell,LOVELINES has probably sold close to 500,000 copies to date.A gold certification for LOVELINES could be possible in the future.

 

[Mark-T]

If you are going to include Karen's solo, I'm sure Richard's two solo projects rank down there in quantities sold as well.

Mark

 

[PJ]

Record Companies Tend to Ignore Sales / RIAA Awards For Most Artists UNLESS FLAVOUR OF THE PERIOD ......

Even Carpenters Had to Wait Until 1998 For Most Catalog Albums to Be Certified .....!!

Ticket To Ride , MIA , Passage , Lovelines Should Be Certified Gold Plus Several Non -A&M TV Releases Gold & Platinum

Certainly RIAA Figure of 24 Million Album Sales is Well Out of Date -35/40 Million Being Closer to USA Sales

Worldwide Sales Should Be Over 150 Million With Continuing Success

Peter

 

[mr J.]

PASSAGE,MADE IN AMERICA and TICKET TO RIDE can't be certified gold-they haven't sold enough copies.According to Richard's management,both PASSAGE and MADE IN AMERICA sold approximately 400,000 as of 1992.Those three albums were also out-of-print from 1992-1998,and they've only sold a minimal amount of copies since being reissued.TICKET TO RIDE was a bomb when it was released in 1969,and,even though it turned out to be a consistent seller for 20+ years,it still hasn't reached the 500,000 plateau.(if it did,it would have been certified in 1998,along with the other albums.)KAREN CARPENTER was the "bomb supreme",clocking in at about 100,000 copies.LOVELINES is approaching 500,000 copies,but it could still take years for it to pass the gold mark.Currently,the best-selling albums are CHRISTMAS PORTRAIT,HORIZON and LOVE SONGS.

 

[Mark-T]

Do sales from CD clubs count?
What about when a remstared disc sells? Does that add to the original count or is it brand new all over again, as if it were a new album?
Mark