CRAFT RECORDINGS AND ACOUSTIC SOUNDS LAUNCH MOODSVILLE ACOUSTIC SOUNDS SERIES

A new audiophile reissue series dedicated to Prestige Records’ classic 1960s jazz imprint, Moodsville.

Debut releases spotlight classic titles from Coleman Hawkins, the Frank Wess Quartet, and the Red Garland Trio with Eddie “Lockjaw” Davis

Each title features all-analog mastering (AAA), 180-gram vinyl pressed at QRP, and faithfully reproduced tip-on jackets; the remastered albums will also be available across digital platforms, including hi-res audio

Click here to pre-order/pre-save albums

Los Angeles, CA (July 28, 2026)—Craft Recordings announces the launch of the Moodsville Acoustic Sounds series, a new audiophile reissue series dedicated to classic titles from Prestige Records’ beloved 1960s jazz imprint, Moodsville. The series opens with three cornerstone titles: Moodsville, Volume 1 (1960), featuring the Red Garland Trio with Eddie “Lockjaw” Davis; Moodsville, Volume 8 (1960), featuring the Frank Wess Quartet; and Coleman Hawkins’ The Hawk Relaxes (1961). All three arrive September 18 and are available now for vinyl pre-order and digital pre-save.

Each album will be released on vinyl in partnership with audiophile leader Acoustic Sounds, a partner Craft has previously collaborated with on its acclaimed Bluesville Records and Contemporary Records Acoustic Sounds series. Delivering the highest-quality listening experience, the LPs feature all-analog mastering (AAA) from the original tapes by GRAMMY®-nominated engineer Matthew Lutthans (The Mastering Lab) and are pressed on 180-gram vinyl at Quality Records Pressing (QRP). Faithfully reproduced tip-on jackets round out every release. Additionally, every title in the series will be delivered to digital platforms in stunning hi-res audio.

In the early 1960s, when jazz fans often had to choose between improvisation-heavy releases or mood music backed by soothing—if sometimes formulaic—orchestration, one label sought to shake up the industry, tapping the era’s leading jazz musicians to deliver inspired yet melodic interpretations of standards. Moodsville, a subsidiary of legendary jazz label Prestige Records, was originally active from 1960 to 1963, with a focus on expressive ballads for late-night listening, featuring songs that would later become part of The Great American Songbook. Prestige executive Ron Eyre aptly described it as, “Jazz performances of ballads wherein the musical integrity of the artist is maintained and at the same time the original beauty and feeling of the ballad is not lost.” During its heyday, Moodsville released over three dozen albums—including titles from Gene Ammons, Yusef Lateef, and Kenny Burrell—and most albums were recorded by the legendary engineer Rudy Van Gelder at his studio in Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey.

More information on each title is below.

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The Red Garland Trio with Eddie “Lockjaw” Davis – Moodsville, Volume 1

Moodsville, Volume 1 marked the inaugural title under Prestige’s Moodsville imprint. Recorded in 1959 at Rudy Van Gelder’s storied Englewood Cliffs studio and released the following year, the bluesy session found the legendary pianist joined by the celebrated tenor saxophonist Eddie “Lockjaw” Davis, who lends his talents to three selections. “If anyone can capture the lyrical beauty of a song without getting syrupy it is Red Garland, a pianist who can weave a spell around a sound with touches of fine humor,” writes Eyre in his original liner notes. “[He] is the much-needed link between the hard ‘bop’ jazz piano school and the intimate cocktail room piano.” Davis, he adds, “is renowned for [his] direct sound, the first straightforward approach to a tune, the big, clear tone and clean statement of a melody.”

Garland, who rose to fame in the mid-’50s as a member of Miles Davis’ legendary “First Great Quintet,” is joined by his trio mates, bassist Sam Jones and drummer Art Taylor. They set the tone with a variety of romantic ballads, including Victor Young’s “Stella By Starlight,” Richard Rodgers’ “The Blue Room” and Carl T. Fischer’s “We’ll Be Together Again.” The tracklist is bolstered by two Garland originals: “The Red Blues” and “Softly Baby.”

In a retrospective, All About Jazz’s Marc Myers called the album, “One of the greatest pairings of piano and tenor saxophone,” adding, “What’s beautiful…is the groove…. It’s dripping blues, with penetrating soul and deeply authentic flavor that’s elegant and nuanced, especially on songs that crawl.”

Click here to pre-order/pre-save Moodsville, Volume 1 and stream the remastered “We’ll Be Together Again,” available now. 

Moodsville, Volume 1 Tracklist (Vinyl)

Side A:

1. We’ll Be Together Again
2. Stella By Starlight
3. I Heard You Cried Last Night
4. Softly Baby

Side B:

1. When Your Lover Has Gone
2. Wonder Why
3. Blue Room
4. The Red Blues

The Frank Wess Quartet – Moodsville, Volume 8

One of the most renowned jazz flautists of his time—as well as a respected tenor saxophonist—Frank Wess was a longtime member of Count Basie’s band, an in-demand session player, and a busy musician on Broadway and TV. He was also a prolific bandleader who recorded over 20 solo albums during his lengthy career. Among them was Moodsville Vol. 8. Captured by Rudy Van Gelder in 1960 and released later that year—while Wess was still an active member of Basie’s band—the warm and sophisticated album marked an early career highlight for the artist.

Leading his group on both the flute and the tenor saxophone, Wess sets a bucolic tone with Alec Wilder’s “It’s So Peaceful In The Country,” followed by his own “Rainy Afternoon,” and a Latin-tinged rendition of “Star Eyes” (Gene de Paul). Side B, meanwhile, focuses on popular ballads, including Jimmy Van Heusen’s “But Beautiful” and Arthur Schwartz’s “I See Your Face Before Me.” Joining Wess is the acclaimed pianist Tommy Flanagan, plus his Basie bandmate Eddie Jones (bass), as well as veteran session drummer Bobby Donaldson.

In his liner notes, Eyre praises Wess as “modern and inventive with a particularly fine lyrical sound on ballads.” Indeed, as a protégé of Lester Young, Wess was known for his light, melodic approach on both instruments. Upon the album’s release, the critics agreed, with DownBeat hailing the album as “lovely, languid music for nocturnal relaxation.” Now, the album returns to vinyl for the first time in over six decades.

Click here to pre-order/pre-save Moodsville, Volume 8 and stream the remastered “It’s So Peaceful In The Country,” available now.

Moodsville, Volume 8 Tracklist (Vinyl)

Side A:

1. It’s So Peaceful In The Country
2. Rainy Afternoon
3. Star Eyes

Side B:

1. Stella Starlight
2. But Beautiful
3. Gone With The Wind
4. I See Your Face Before Me

Coleman Hawkins – The Hawk Relaxes

A pioneer of the tenor saxophone, Coleman Hawkins (aka “The Hawk”) changed the game when it came to improvisation on his instrument, influencing a generation of players. His warm, emotional style made him a star during the big band era and, later, helped shape the sound of bebop. It also made him an excellent interpreter of ballads—and a natural fit for Moodsville. The Hawk Relaxes (1961) marked his second of five albums for the imprint and remains a standout title in his catalog.

Hawkins—who had just been voted into DownBeat critics’ poll Hall of Fame—is in fantastic company, with a line-up of rising stars, including guitarist Kenny Burrell, bassist Ron Carter, pianist Ronnell Bright, and drummer Andrew Cyrille. The younger musicians support The Hawk while he soars through a series of standards, including Leonello Casucci’s “Just A Gigolo” (featuring captivating interplay between the saxophonist and Burrell), a calypso-infused rendition of Kurt Weill’s “Speak Low,” and Vincent Youmans’ touching ballad, “More Than You Know.” As the album’s title implies, the group’s laid-back session allowed for creative freedom. In his original liner notes, jazz critic Joe Goldberg wrote, “[Hawkins] comes to the studio with no tensions or fears….It is often in a casual, relaxed situation such as this, with no pressure, and no commitment other than to play as well as one can…that the best work is achieved.”

In a retrospective review, All About Jazz hailed the album as Hawkins, “performing to near-perfection.” DownBeat called it “Compelling….[Hawkins] works all his magic, the warm-blooded singing of his playing gliding and soaring through one brilliant chorus after another.” AllMusic declared, “The Hawk Relaxes is one of his best latter period efforts.”

Click here to pre-order/pre-save The Hawk Relaxes and stream the remastered “Under a Blanket of Blue,” available now.

The Hawk Relaxes Tracklist (Vinyl)

Side A:

1. I’ll Never Be The Same
2. When Day Is Done
3. Under A Blanket Of Blue
4. More Than You Know

Side B:

1. Moonglow
2. Just A Gigolo
3. Speak Low

 

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, Alison Krauss, Daddy Yankee, Evanescence, 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 the catalog label team for Concord. For more info, visit Craft Recordings.com and follow on Facebook, X, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube.

 

About Acoustic Sounds:

Headquartered in Salina, Kan., Acoustic Sounds, Inc. is the world leader in audiophile music. Owned by CEO Chad Kassem, who founded the company in 1986, Acoustic Sounds provides the largest selection of highest-quality music in a variety of formats — from vinyl LPs and Super Audio CDs to Blu-ray and reel-to-reel analog tape — all designed to exceed the expectations of audiophiles. The company owns its own record pressing plant, Quality Record Pressings, and its own vinyl reissue label (Analogue Productions), an original production label (APO Records), its own recording studio (Blue Heaven Studios), and its own LP mastering business (The Mastering Lab at Blue Heaven Studios).

For more information on Acoustic Sounds, please visit www.acousticsounds.com, subscribe to our newsletter and follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.