1949 RCA Victor Demonstration Record of the new 45 System blue 45RPM (English) ( 9-JY 9-EY-3 ) Rare

On March 31, 1949, RCA Victor officially introduced their new “45” record format and made it available to the public.
Much like the one-sided release titled 'Whirl-Away Demonstration Record', this 45 RPM demonstration record was issued only for retail stores to help promote the new RCA Victor '45 System'. The record was not made available for sale to the public, making it somewhat scarce to find and sought by enthusiastic collectors worldwide. This playing side is English spoken, the flip side offered a Spanish speaking version.
Although many hobbyists commonly point to Eddy Arnold’s ‘Texarkana Baby’ as the "first 45” ever released but, truthfully, there was no particular release that edged out all other 45s to be 'first' on that date. In fact. there were a total of 76 boxed-sets (albums) and 104 singles that were made available to the public on release date. 'Albums' generally offered three or four 45s in each set. Even catalog numbers did not indicate a sequential order of titles being released.
Consideration might best be given to production dates when identifying which 45 came first, excluding, of course, research & development test pressings or promotional type samples of the new 45 RPM format like this particular record.
When only considering production 45s for public sale on the March 31st release date, it remains difficult to find much in the way of verified production dates other than to note that the first regular production “45” was pressed at the Sherman Avenue plant in Indianapolis on December 7, 1948, while the RCA Victor plant in New Jersey was idled by a strike. That initial production was of the release titled ‘Pee-Wee The Piccolo”, a children's record. A framed copy of the yellow vinyl Pee-Wee 45 is on display at the Indiana State Museum, signed by then plant manager, noting it as being the first production 45.
So, it is logical to conclude that, if any of the RCA 45s released to the public on March 31, 1949, were to have the honor of being considered 'the first', it would be the children's record, Pee-Wee The Piccolo.
The genre of children's records released by RCA Victor were pressed on yellow vinyl with dark blue labels. There were several music genre categories and RCA Victor uniquely colored each of them: ‘Popular’ genre 45s were black with a blue label; the ‘Classical’ genre was released on red, ‘Popular Classical’ records were on midnight blue, Country and Western was green, International was sky blue with a black label, Blues and Rhythm 45s were on cerise (often called orange) with gray labels, and Children’s records were yellow with a blue label.
Along with the new record format, RCA Victor released players for the new “45”. For as low as $12.95, customers buying a player often received ten 45s for free. The player featured in this video is a 1949 model 9-JY, one of the early RCA Victor players. Unfortunately, the platter mat has begun to curl on one edge and is no longer flat and even which has caused the 45 to appear warped.
Needless to say, the “45” format quickly grew popular and was soon the preferred format for many, including radio stations and jukebox manufactures.
I recorded this video of my RCA Victor Demonstration record 45RPM playing on my restored 9-JY player to share the experience of playing 45s with those who also enjoy the hobby and history of vinyl records, especially of those early and original 45 RPM releases. I do not claim or own, nor imply ownership, of the story or music recording in any way.
Check my KZbin Channel for other early RCA Victor 45 releases.

[@GramophonicReevolution]

Fantastic 😊 thanks for the video and the information. I'm in the UK and for countless years I have longed for one of these. Maybe one day.... 🤞

[@WITZERcom]

Thanks for tuning in. 2024 marks 75 years of the 45 record sold to the public! There's some 1949 RCA Victor 45s spinning on my KZbin channel for you to enjoy, too.

[@spencerbergquist781]

They had genius marketing. They make these ridiculously cheap to own, at some point they had a deal where you would get the player for free if you bought 12 45 RPM records . Many of my friends had one of these players. You hooked them up to your TV speaker .

[@Stereo4102]

The sky blue vinyl was reserved for international recordings.

[@dansettemajor]

Marvellous. I had a machine shipped over to the UK. Loved your vid. Thank you.

[@rizzlerazzleuno4733]

Thanks for making and posting the video.

[@TexTom1981]

THAT is NEAT. Very cool video.

[@WITZERcom]

thanks, TexTom1981. Enjoy my other videos, too!

[@robfriedrich2822]

I had an East German clone of this, was funny to let it automatically play the singles.

[@Rotary_Phone]

The quality is better because the tracks are wider.

[@robsemail]

Yes, but there’s more to it than that. Wider grooves are more vulnerable to tonearm resonance, so if you’ve got a loose gimbal holding your tonearm the sound quality will be horrible. In fact, I use a couple different 12” singles with very wide grooves to test the steadiness of tonearms. If I can hear resonance, I know the tonearm’s gimbal needs to tighten a little. I will tighten it and then use a 7” single with very tight grooves, something about 7 minutes long, to test it’s not too tight. If it is too tight the needle will skip. I am speaking, of course, about different turntables than this one, not necessarily high-end but with at least a tonearm featuring a counterweight. In my experience, your statement is probably 98% true. The other 2% is mostly older turntables that were heavily used, probably by deejays. Otherwise a gimbal would only very rarely need adjustment. However, once they do need adjustment, they will forever need to be tested from time to time and perhaps readjusted.

[@litoboy5]

Great

[@whittierlibrarybookstore3708]

thank you

[@almazotorresericdaniel8580]

Please, please, I would love to listen the version of the other side in Spanish

[@robfriedrich2822]

Under what category is the 45 in the video?

[@WITZERcom]

The category is 'Music'. Thanks for checking out my KZbin channel.

[@KarlUppianoKarlU]

Couldn't they find (or make) a record without all the clicks and pops? I mean, they're trying to sell the sound quality...

[@pik33100]

A new record has no clicks and pops. This is wear, tear and dirt. The same old record will have much less clicks and pops if played on a new turntable with elliptical (or more advanced) needle, that can go to still not damaged part of the groove. Cleaning also can help a lot.

[@KarlUppianoKarlU]

@@pik33100 I've had plenty of records with clicks and pops right out of the shrink wrap. It's one of the things I dislike about vinyl. Don't get me wrong, I enjoy playing my old vinyl records, but I don't enjoy the defects and surface noise. And I take fastidious care of my vinyl.

[@mrrkdino]

👍👍

[@johnnyrooks]

I WOULD LIKE TO BUY A RESTORED 9JY .. ANY SUGGESTIONS PLEASE?

[@WITZERcom]

... if you are on FaceBook, check out a group called 'Vintage RCA Group'. There are a few folks on there that restore and sell and generally reasonable pricing for quality and experience. eBay is also a good place to look for a restored model. They come up quite frequently so don't rush your decision. There are very expensive ones on a website 'FYLP' (For Your Listening Pleasure) that sells restored units, too. Good luck and enjoy the hobby!

[@johnnyrooks]

@@WITZERcom Thank yo very much!!

[@KDoyle4]

You may want to consider the improved model 45J which has a dashpot to lower the tonarm to the record more gracefully.

[@GusFernCa]

What's on the other side?

[@WITZERcom]

This playing side is English spoken, the flip side offered a Spanish speaking version.