Craft Recordings to Reissue Jazz Classics: Miles Davis, Coltrane, Rollins, Evans

Craft Recordings' Original Jazz Classics (OJC) series returns December 4 with three essential recordings from the Prestige catalog and an offering from the Riverside archive. Continuing the year-long celebration of the centennials of Miles Davis and John Coltrane, OJC will reissue The Miles Davis Quintet's Steamin' With The Miles Davis Quintet and John Coltrane's Soultrane, joined by Sonny Rollins' Work Time and The Bill Evans Trio's How My Heart Sings!

As with all OJC releases, these new editions feature all-analog (AAA) mastering from the original master tapes and are presented in faithfully reproduced tip-on packaging with an obi. Each LP is pressed on 180-gram black vinyl at RTI with lacquers cut by Kevin Gray at Cohearent Audio. Additionally, each title will be delivered to digital platforms in 192/24 hi-res audio. All four are available to pre-order/pre-save, individually or as a bundle.

The Miles Davis Quintet – Steamin' With The Miles Davis Quintet

Original Jazz Classics celebrates Miles Davis' centennial with the release of Steamin' with the Miles Davis Quintet. Released on Prestige in 1961 as one of four albums recorded in 1956 at Van Gelder Studios, Steamin' features Davis with his first great quintet of John Coltrane, Paul Chambers, Red Garland and Philly Joe Jones. DownBeat shares, 'This album is a must for anyone seriously interested in jazz.'

John Coltrane – Soultrane

Original Jazz Classics celebrates John Coltrane's centennial with this release of his 1958 album Soultrane. Recorded at Van Gelder Studios in New Jersey, the album contains five cuts from the quartet featuring Coltrane alongside pianist Red Garland, bassist Paul Chambers and drummer Art Taylor. Produced by Bob Weinstock, this recording birthed the term 'Sheets of Sound.' The phrase was used by DownBeat reviewer Ira Gitler to describe Coltrane's improvisation on the album, which consisted of high-speed arpeggios and scales in rapid succession.

Sonny Rollins – Work Time

Released in celebration of the lasting impact Sonny Rollins has had on music, this Original Jazz Classics series edition revisits his 1956 Prestige album Work Time. Recorded at Van Gelder Studios, the album completes the quartet with players Ray Bryant (piano), George Morrow (bass) and Max Roach (drums). Author and musician Peter Niklas Wilson called the album, 'One of Rollins' most brilliant sessions. In the opinion of many of the saxophone player's fans it is the equal of the epochal Saxophone Colossus recordings.'

Bill Evans Trio – How My Heart Sings!

How My Heart Sings! captures the elegant lyricism and refined interplay of the Bill Evans Trio at a mature and confident moment in their evolution. Released in 1962 on Riverside Records, the recording features Bill Evans alongside Paul Motian on drums and Chuck Israels on bass, blending introspective balladry with buoyant swing. The trio moves effortlessly between jazz standards and original compositions, offering nuanced readings of pieces such as 'I Should Care,' 'In Your Own Sweet Way' and 'Summertime,' each marked by Evans' harmonic sophistication and the group's conversational dynamic.

Created in 1982 under Fantasy Records, Original Jazz Classics was relaunched in 2023. The series has reissued more than 850 jazz albums to date, drawing from a transformative jazz catalog that includes thousands of groundbreaking albums originally released by Prestige, Galaxy, Milestone, Riverside, Debut, Contemporary, Jazzland and Pablo.

Since its relaunch, Original Jazz Classics has continued to earn acclaim for the exceptional quality of its reissues, pairing meticulous all-analog mastering with premium pressings and faithfully reproduced packaging. Jazzwise praised the series' sound as 'absolutely sensational,' while Record Collector News wrote, 'These records remind you why jazz collecting is worth the effort—great music, top-shelf sound and packaging that respects the original.' CLASH similarly noted that OJC titles 'feature beautifully reproduced artwork,' adding, 'The tip-on sleeves are a delight, and the mastering is consistently exceptional.' Meanwhile, All About Jazz praised the series for continuing to 'cherry-pick some of the best' from the Fantasy vaults, calling its reissue of Vince Guaraldi and Bola Sete's From All Sides 'impeccable.'

The new titles can be pre-ordered individually or as a bundle at i.craftrecordings.com/ojcoct26, and the complete OJC collection is available at craftrecordings.com.

Tracklist: John Coltrane – Soultrane

Side A

1. Good Bait

2. I Want to Talk about You

Side B

1. You Say You Care

2. Theme for Ernie

3. Russian Lullaby

Tracklist: The Miles Davis Quintet – Steamin' With The Miles Davis Quintet

Side A

1. Surrey with the Fringe on Top

2. Salt Peanuts

3. Something I Dreamed Last Night

Side B

1. Diane

2. Well, You Needn't

3. When I Fall in Love

Tracklist: Sonny Rollins – Work Time

Side A

1. There's No Business Like Show Business

2. Paradox

3. Raincheck

Side B

1. There Are Such Things

2. It's All Right with Me

Tracklist: Bill Evans Trio – How My Heart Sings!

Side A

1. How My Heart Sings

2. I Should Care

3. In Your Own Sweet Way

4. Walking Up

Side B

1. Summertime

2. 34 Skidoo

3. Ev'rything I Love

4. Show-Type Tune

About Craft Recordings

Craft Recordings is home to one of the largest and most essential collections of master recordings and compositions in the world. Its storied repertoire includes landmark releases from icons such as Joan Baez, John Coltrane, Creedence Clearwater Revival, Celia Cruz, Miles Davis, Isaac Hayes, John Lee Hooker, Little Richard, R.E.M., and Joan Sebastian. Plus, the catalog recordings of celebrated contemporary acts including A Day to Remember, Daddy Yankee, Evanescence, Alison Krauss, Nine Inch Nails, Taking Back Sunday and Violent Femmes, to name just a few. Renowned imprints with catalogs issued under the Craft banner include Fania, Fantasy, Fearless, Musart, Nitro, Panart, Prestige, Riverside, Rounder, Specialty, Stax, Vanguard, Varèse Sarabande, Vee-Jay and Victory, among many others. Craft creates thoughtfully curated packages, with a meticulous devotion to quality and a commitment to preservation—ensuring that these recordings endure for new generations to discover. Craft is also home to the Billie Holiday and Tammy Wynette estates which preserve and protect their respective names, likeness and music through day-to-day legacy management of these cultural trailblazers.

Craft Recordings is part of BMG. For more info, visit CraftRecordings.com.