Spring is in the air and it’s almost time for a National Holiday for music lovers around the world. Record Store Day is April 21, 2012. This is the one day that all of the independently owned record stores come together with artists to celebrate the art of music. Special vinyl and CD releases and various promotional products are made exclusively for the day and hundreds of artists in the United States and in various countries across the globe make special appearances and performances. Festivities include performances, cook-outs, body painting, meet & greets with artists, parades, djs spinning records and on and on. Record Store Day is celebrated the third Saturday every April.

A Record Store Day participating store is defined as a retailer whose main primary business focuses on a physical store location, whose product line consists of at least 50% music retail, whose company is not publicly traded and whose ownership is at least 70% located in the state of operation. (In other words, we’re dealing with real, live, physical, indie record stores—not online retailers or corporate behemoths).

Some of the highlights this year include Soundtracks to Pretty In Pink, The Breakfast Club and Empire Records, School of Seven Bells covering Siouxsie & The Banshees, reissues from Bowie, The Cure, The Clash, Iggy Pop and Lou Reed, brand new tracks from Garbage, Gorillaz, The Cult and Coldpay and many other treats.
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