2019 marks the 70thanniversaryof Prestige Records, one of the most revered
jazz labels in the world. Throughout the ’50s and ’60s, Prestige was at the
forefront of modern jazz, releasing sessions from some of the most influential
names in music, including Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Thelonious Monk, Stan
Getz, and Sonny Rollins. To honor the history of this pioneering label and its
exceptional output, Craft Recordingswill release a variety of content
throughout the year, including deluxe box sets and vinyl reissues, as well as
video content and curated playlists.
Kicking off
the campaign is a new box set, Coltrane ’58: The Prestige Recordings(5-CD &
digital formats available now, and 8-LP out on April 26th), which chronicles
the saxophonist’s breakout year. Featuring all 37 tracks Coltrane recorded as a
leader or co-leader for Prestige in those twelve months, Coltrane ’58captures
the artist in creative high gear—developing the signature improvisational style
that journalist Ira Gitler famously dubbed “sheets of sound.” The newly
remastered release includes extensive liner notes from GRAMMY® Award-winning
music historian Ashley Kahn, plus images of rare ephemera and historical
photographs of the saxophonist and his collaborators.
A newly
curated playlist, Prestige 70: Jazz Classics, has also just launched.Currently
streaming on Spotify, Apple Music, Pandora, and YouTube (click here to listen),
the playlist features a handpicked selection of 70 classic tracks from the
label. With titles from the likes of Kenny Burrell, Rusty Bryant, Red Garland,
and Coleman Hawkins, as well as iconic takes from John Coltrane, Miles Davis,
Sonny Rollins, and Thelonious Monk, the collection showcases not only the
timeless appeal of Prestige’s music, but also the importance of its catalog to
the development of modern music.
Throughout
2019, Craft will take a deeper look at the label’s history and incredible
roster of talent through special video content and additional playlists.
Contests, as well as additional releases, will be announced later in the year.
April also
marks Jazz Appreciation Month, whose 2019 theme is “Jazz Beyond Borders.” Many
artists under Prestige could not be more fitting to this subject. John
Coltrane, a self-declared humanist, not only gained fame around the world with
his music (his well-documented 1966 Japanese tour proves just how far-reaching
his influence was) but also strove to break boundaries at home, during the
height of the civil rights movement. Sonny Rollins, too, crossed a variety of
borders. A strong follower of Eastern philosophies, Rollins tackled issues of racial
inequality head-on, yet peacefully, through his recordings. Musically, Rollins
has not only performed with some of the biggest names in his own genre, but he
also crossed over into pop and rock territory, performing with artists like the
Rolling Stones, and bringing a variety of musical influences into his own
compositions. Both artists, along with countless others on the label’s roster,
continue to garner new generations of fans around the world.
Founded in
1949 by producer Bob Weinstock, Prestige was on the cutting-edge of jazz,
helping to usher in the eras of bop, hard-bop and soul jazz in the ’50s, while
later branching out into free jazz and fusion through the ’60s. Over the next
two decades, Prestige would develop the careers of some of the biggest names in
jazz, and release hundreds of albums, many of which were recorded in the
Hackensack, NJ studio of renowned engineer Rudy Van Gelder. Notable titles
include Miles, Cookin’, Relaxin’, Workin’ and Steamin’from the Miles Davis
Quintet, Etta Jones’ Don’t Go to Strangers, the Modern Jazz Quartet’s Django,
Eric Dolphy’s Out There,and Sonny Rollins’ career-defining 1956 LP, Saxophone
Colossus (as well as Tenor Madness, whose title track was recently inducted
into the GRAMMY® Hall of Fame and is the only known duet recording by Rollins
and John Coltrane). Soul jazz classics such as Charles Kynard’s Afro-Disiac,
Gene Ammons’ Boss Tenorand Charles Earland’s Black Talk! round out the latter
decade of the label under Weinstock.
In the early
’70s, Prestige was sold to Fantasy Records (home to the likes of Creedence
Clearwater Revival and Vince Guaraldi), which itself became part of the Concord
music family in 2004. The imprint still holds a vibrant presence today with
carefully curated reissues from the catalog label at Concord, Craft Recordings.
"Some of the most influential artists and significant recordings in the
history of jazz are on the Prestige label," says Sig Sigworth, President
of Craft Recordings. "It's a tremendous honor for Craft Recordings to be
the stewards of that timeless musical legacy."
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