Vinyl records make a comeback, are your old records worth thousands?

Today is Vinyl Record Day! Whether caused by nostalgia or a newfound appreciation for the distinctly unique sound of a vinyl record, vinyl sales are rapidly increasing, despite the availability of nearly free music online.

Over 13 million vinyl records were sold in the U.S. in 2016, up from 11,900,000 in 2015 and 9,200,000 in 2014, according to Nielsen reports.

Although the classics are still popular, modern hits make up a large portion of vinyl record sales today. With 49,004 albums sold, Twenty One Pilots' Blurryface was the highest selling vinyl record in 2016 according to BuzzAngle's 2016 music report. The top five rank as follows:

1. Blurryface - Twenty One Pilots: (49,004)
2. Back to Black - Amy Winehouse (41,087)
3. A Moon Shaped Pool - Radiohead (39,861)
4. Abbey Road - The Beatles (39, 615)
5. 25 - Adele (39,512)

Record sales are up 260% from five years ago, but the numbers selling today still pale in comparison to the number of vinyl records sold in their heyday.

In 1973, vinyl records made up 73% of total music sales. Today, vinyl record sales only make up .2% of all music sold.

Any of the top selling records are probably not worth much, but rarer tracks go for a pretty penny. If you have boxes of old records sitting around in your basement, they could be worth a fortune.

Ebay released a list of vinyl albums worth upwards of $25,000 sold on their site.

Elvis Presley's Good Luck Charm 33-rpm single released in 1962 is valued at $24,000. When it initially came out in 1962, it stayed at the top of the Billboard singles chart for two weeks.

A copy of the Beatles' Yesterday and Today album sold for nearly $40,000 in 1996. The copy was unique because the band was posing in butcher smocks on the cover, with pieces of meat and parts of plastic dolls hanging from them.

At John Lennon's request, this photo was used for the U.S. album cover. It was only on sale for one day.
Everyone hated the cover then, but it sure is valuable now.

Coming in on top, the vinyl copy of John Lennon and Yoko Ono's "Double Fantasy" album Lennon signed just five hours before he was fatally shot in 1980 sold for over $400,000 in 1999.

If you happen to find that one in your basement, don't let it out of your sight!