Music History

Come back with me to 1956 when vinyl was still new

Before Columbia Records introduced the long-playing vinyl album, records were made of a delicate and extremely fragile compound based on shellac. The use of polyvinyl chloride changed everything.

Shellac-based 78 RPM records continued to be sold for another dozen years as the industry slowly dragged people toward the new technology. Open Culture found this video that explained the vinyl-pressing process to a 1956 audience.

Alan Cross

is an internationally known broadcaster, interviewer, writer, consultant, blogger and speaker. In his 40+ years in the music business, Alan has interviewed the biggest names in rock, from David Bowie and U2 to Pearl Jam and the Foo Fighters. He’s also known as a musicologist and documentarian through programs like The Ongoing History of New Music.

Alan Cross has 39671 posts and counting. See all posts by Alan Cross

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