Initially released on March 31, 1949, by RCA Victor as a smaller, more durable and higher-fidelity replacement for the previous heavy and brittle 78 rpm shellac discs that had been around since the 1920's. The first 45 rpm records were mono with recordings on both sides of the disc. As stereo recordings became popular in the 1960s almost all 45 rpm records ended up being produced in stereo.
The first 45 rpm record pressed on December 7th 1948 was 'PeeWee the Piccolo' at the Sherman Avenue plant in Indianapolis but it is with Arthur Big Boy Crudup's groundbreaking 1949 Rhythm and Blues KILLER 'That's Alright' on RED Vinyl that the 45 legacy was truly born.
An answer to Columbia's 33 1⁄3 LP system released in June 1948 RCA also released 'albums' as boxes of 45 rpm seven-inch singles that could be played continuously like an LP on their record changer. Originally pressed in different colors for different genres, making it easy for customers to find their preferred music in 1952 black vinyl was established as the preferred colour due to cost and ease of production.
The lightweight and inexpensive 45 rpm discs introduced by RCA were quickly popular and in the early 1950s all US labels had begun manufacturing seven-inch (45) singles and In the decades that followed it became the format that many artists made their recording debut on with many recordings ONLY released as 45 singles.
The popularity of the seven-inch single reached a peak in 1974 when 200 million were sold and In the 1980s its popularity began to decline as jukeboxes became fewer and consumers were led to buy (more expensive) albums and longer formats such as cassettes and CDs
BUT the hunter, collector and selector continues to hold the 45 RPM in the highest esteem due to both its rarity, (many a boss cut is only available on a 45) and its mythological status among us
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