Record Store Day highlights

Record Store Day’s April 18 drop is leaning hard on collector bait: archival Beatles-adjacent material, early Primal Scream, and format details built for line-day demand. (recordstoreday.com) The official Record Store Day 2026 list says John Lennon’s *Love Meditation Mixes* will be released as a limited-edition 3-LP set on iridescent Pearl Arctic 180-gram transparent vinyl. Record Store Day lists it as an exclusive title for April 18, 2026. (recordstoreday.com) Record Store Day also lists Primal Scream’s *1987 EPs* as a 45 revolutions-per-minute translucent-blue vinyl release limited to 3,500 copies. The set packages *Gentle Tuesday* and *Imperial* together for the first time. (recordstoreday.com) Those two releases show how the event now mixes newly repurposed catalog with hard-to-find indie-era material. Record Store Day says the 2026 titles will be sold through participating stores as part of the April 18 celebration. (recordstoreday.com) The Lennon set is not a straight reissue of the original song. Record Store Day says producer Sean Ono Lennon reworked John Lennon’s “Love” into nine ambient “Meditation Mixes” using the original 1970 multitrack recordings, with some added instrumentation. (recordstoreday.com) John Lennon’s official site says the 3-LP edition also includes nine 1.8-second mantras cut into the runout groove on side B of the third LP, creating looping playback on a turntable. Retailer listings say the mixes stretch from about five minutes to more than 23 minutes. (johnlennon.com) (resident-music.com) Primal Scream’s release reaches back to the band’s 1987 debut-album period. Record Store Day says the tracks come from the *Sonic Flower Groove* era and include covers of songs by The Who and The Shadows of Knight. (recordstoreday.com) Record Store Day began in 2007, and the first event was held on April 19, 2008, according to the organization’s website. The group now says it represents nearly 1,400 independently owned stores in the United States and thousands more internationally. (recordstoreday.com) For shoppers, the practical detail is the date: these exclusives are scheduled for Saturday, April 18. After that, the usual Record Store Day ritual takes over — store lines, limited quantities, and whatever is left when the doors open. (recordstoreday.com)