Though they haven’t been a band for about 30 years, The Beatles can’t seem to stop breaking records. They have produced more #1 singles and albums than any other group in history. They were the masterminds behind the most covered song of all time and two of their members have been crowned the most successful songwriters ever.
John, Paul, George and Ringo continue to dominate the industry – they have become the first act to earn six of the Recording Industry Of America (RIAA)’s diamond awards for records that have sold 10 million copies. In April, 1, the band’s compilation of #1 hit songs, became The Beatles’ sixth diamond LP.
The RIAA stipulates that an album is certified gold in the U.S. with the sale of 500,000 units. An album becomes certified platinum when it has sold one million units.
The Fab Four have also received diamond status for their albums The Beatles (certified in 2001 for U.S. shipments of 19 million copies), The Beatles 1967-1970 (16 million), The Beatles 1962-1966 (15 million), Abbey Road (12 million) and Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band (11 million).
Led Zeppelin, with five diamond-level titles, are currently the only act close to matching The Beatles’ title.
