What do vinyl records look like?

Records came in 3 "sizes", to correspond with the speed at which they are played. The speeds are:

• 78 - oldest type
• 33 1/3 - LP
• 45 - rpm - for singles, can be one sided but are usually two sided

The 78 record was made of thicker and heavier material with no flexibility. It has a very narrow hole at the center of the label; the hole goes over the spindle on the stereo or record player. The grooves are more raised than on other records.

The vinyl 33 1/3 (33 and 1/3) is similar to a 78 but is more flexible and is lighter weight and is not as thick. It also has a narrow hole for the spindle.

A 45 record has a hole about the size of a half-dollar. For record players, a small plastic adapter fit into the hole so the record could be played on an older stereo with just a spindle. Later, stereos came with a centered piece that came up the spindle and the hole (without the adapter) would fit onto the wider spindle area.

All 3 types contained a center paper label, giving the song title and singer or band. At first, labels were fairly plain-- no artwork or colors. But 45s and LPs may have artistic labels, with the song title and singer or band.

All three types came with jackets-- a paper cover that was open on the "top" end. Records were slipped into the jackets to keep the records clean. Album covers for 33 & 1/3's opened on the side. The 78s came with photo-like albums (books) containing multiple plain brown jackets which were glued to the binding, like opening a book. The outside of the album was usually plain also. The 78s jackets had an open hole so the label could easily be read.