PORTLAND, Maine (AP) - Music lovers are paying homage to their local record stores.

Record Store Day, which is celebrated Saturday from coast to coast, celebrates the brick-and-mortar spot where people have long gathered to thumb through vinyl records.

Chris Brown from Maine’s Bull Moose Music hatched the idea in 2007.

Brown wanted something for record stores along the lines of Free Comic Book Day. The annual event is now in its 11th year with hundreds of stores participating.

Record stores have something to cheer: The numbers of stores are growing and sales of CDs and vinyl are outselling digital downloads for the first time since 2011.

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