National Vinyl Record Day: Significance And Interesting Facts About The Format

Music lovers and the proud owners of vinyl collections can go old school today as Aug. 12 marks National Vinyl Record Day.

National Vinyl Record Day was organized by music enthusiast Gary Freiberg of Los Osos, California. Once overtaken by audio formats such as cassettes and CDs, vinyl records have been making a comeback with many artists now making music in the vinyl format.

But apart from celebrating a music format that's said to have a sound quality that's truly its own, National Vinyl Day is also a reminder of "fond memories and the good things in life" including, of course, vinyl records.

"The objective of Vinyl Record Day is to remember that, whatever we go through on a personal or national level, life has its goodness. Music is the primary vehicle to our fondest memories, Vinyl Record Day is to celebrate and remember them," Freiberg said, as per National Today.

To mark the event, those with vinyl record collections can spend the day enjoying their favorite music in their collections or perhaps spend a little more time taking care of their vinyl records today. Those who don't have a collection may even drop by a record store to scan the collection. Who knows? It might encourage them to start their own collection as well.

To mark the day, let's look at some interesting facts about vinyl records. (Courtesy: National Today, National Day Calendar, Home HIFI Music Systems, Disc Makers, and Visually)

1. The term "vinyl revival" is an actual entry in Wikipedia referring to the format's huge comeback.
2. In 2020, vinyl records outsold CDs in the U.S.
3. There are differences between colored and black vinyl. Colored vinyl is said to produce "lower-quality sound" and typically attains more surface noise over time compared to black vinyl.
4. Songs that are closer to the label and spindle hole can sound audibly different than the ones closer to the outer edges because of "inner groove distortion."
5. Vinyl records produce a static charge.
6. The Beatles, Elvis Presley and the Wu-Tang Clan are the creators of the most expensive vinyl records to date. In 2015, Wu-Tang Clan's "Once Upon a Time In Shaolin" sold for $2 million.
7. The three standard vinyl record sizes are 7-inch, 10-inch and 12-inch, but not all record players play all three sizes.
8. The Voyager 1 spacecraft, which is currently the farthest man-made object, is carrying the "golden record." It includes musical selections from different cultures, spoken greetings in 55 languages and natural sounds.
9. Vinyl records are best stored in an upright position, not horizontally, to make sure they stay in good condition.
10. In 2016, the top-selling vinyl album was Twenty-One Pilots' "Blurryface."