50’s Nostalgia – 45 RPM Records

Music in the 50’s meant 45 rpm records, smaller and harder to break than the old 78’s. Music came in 3 minute chunks because of the limited capacity of the medium. This meant that you bought singles making it easy to track the popularity of individual songs. It also meant that performers didn’t have to put out an album full of music at one time. It was easier to be a one hit wonder. Since records were two sided there was always a bonus song on the flip or reverse side of the record. 45’s were small and relatively easy to carry and everybody had a record player, often a three speed machine that could play 78’s, 45’s and the new 33 long playing records which became the standard for classical music and albums from pop stars.  We had record players like this one.

45’s were a boon for the record companies.

45 RPM EASY TO FILE, HANDLE, SHIP, DELIVER
The new system is extremely practical for the dealer and has been evolved for color-coding (especially of singles), more store space, elimination of breakage, and mail-order business. Also, with the 45 disc but 1/10th the weight of the 12″ shellac, thing will cost less to pack, ship and deliver. One hundred 12″ shellacs weigh 75 lbs, same number of 45’s 7 lbs. 45 RPM ENSURES PERFECT MUSICAL REPRODUCTION

Consumers liked them too.

Because for most folks furnishing a room today is like fitting together the parts of a jigsaw puzzle, the “45” album comes as a blessing to householders and apartment dwellers. From time immemorial the unwieldy, five-pound 78 album has been a stowage problem even in the mansion. Now artful, 7 3/8″, cellophane-covered, box-type album, weighing only 6 1/2 ounces, packed with hinged lid to keep dust off records, lends itself with unostentatious charm to telescoping operations within the modern room. In an 8-foot bookshelf 144 of them can be stacked away, or 1200 records–more discs than most people will want in a lifetime. Startlingly attractive single record comes in a cellophane envelope, permitting visibility of entire record.

But the big market was teenagers.

The school set loves ’em, now that you can get those Bluebird hits on “45.” and–from coast to coast– teenagers are lining up for bargain player attachments. The whole thing’s on key with their allowances–neat little records they can slip in their pockets, with a first-class band playing their favorite hit–for 49 cents Times are like the 30’s, the early 40’s again, when the youngsters made up the big biz in the pop market. They go for Flanagan, they go for the lowest priced at the new speed, they go for the little disc that fits on the shelf beside their paper-backed novels, is unbreakable, and has quality of tone that can’t be matched. Sell ’em, sell ’em “45”

Not only did we play 45’s at home, we played them when we went out to eat as well.