Traditionally it's the early bird that gets the worm, but this morning it was the vinyl junkies that got the music.
Anticipation for the eighth annual UK Record Store Day had seen queues form overnight at many of the participating independent stores across the country, with fans eager to get their mitts on limited edition releases by artists icluding Foo Fighters, Prodigy, U2 and David Bowie.
In Northampton, the first person in the queue outside SpunOut Records was seated (deck chairs are a blessing) just before 5am. It's a serious business, and record fans need their fix.
"My friends think I'm mad," one devotee said, "But they just don't understand it. This is about more than just buying a record..."
Up and down the queue, customers braving the early morning chills made chit-chat about previous RSD releases, consulted lists of their 'most wanted' and talked bands, as you might expect.
No-one here is much bothered about downloading.
They - and we - like to be able to engage with our music. 'What was the first record your bought?' people ask. But no-one will remember the first track they downloaded.
Racks were brimming with rare releases, limited pieces and some exceptionally packaged products, and within seconds of the store opening, Spunout was bustling as the searching began in earnest.
Those racks were quickly relieved of their duties as happy punters clutched their most-favoured and moved to swap the cash for the quality.
"We've had a great morning," SpunOut manager Chris Kent (below) told Total MK.
"We've had so much interest ahead of the event, and had a really nice crowd of people show up today.
"It makes everything all the more worthwhile to be met by a genuinely nice bunch of real music fans.
"Hopefully everyone managed to get some of their particular favourites."
> Remember: SpunOut isn't just for Record Store Day!
Visit 57 Gold Street, Northampton or hop online www.spunout.net
