Thomas Edison developed the phonograph in 1877. In 1888, Emile Berliner invented the lateral-cut disc record, which was used in toys. The Edison Blue Amberol Record was introduced in 1912. It was seen as a milestone because these records had a playing time of four minutes.
Deutsche Grammophon Records produced an album in 1908 of the opera "Carmen." The following year, Odeon, a German record company, released the "Nutcracker Suite" on four double-sided discs.
In the 1930s, record companies issued 78 rpm records by one performer or of one type of music in specially assembled collections. They were called "albums."
Although Peter Goldmark is credited as being the inventor of the album, it was actually his research team at CBS who were the architects of the LPs.
The team at CBS also came up with a better material--vinyl--and a lighter-weight phonograph needle.
On June 20, 1948, the first public demonstration of an album was held at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel. By this time, albums could hold 22 minutes of music.