AUTHENTIC SOUND, DISTILLED TO ITS PUREST FORM
ABOUT SMALL BATCH
Craft Recordings is proud to present Small Batch, our carefully curated vinyl series devoted to creating the highest quality vinyl reissues of legendary recordings from our catalog.
The fourth album in the series is Jazz Impressions of Black Orpheus, the GRAMMY® Award-winning, breakthrough album from Vince Guaraldi Trio, celebrating its 60th anniversary.
As with all Small Batch albums, Jazz Impressions of Black Orpheus was cut from its original analog tapes by Bernie Grundman and pressed on 180-gram vinyl at RTI using Neotech’s VR900 compound and a one-step lacquer process—as opposed to the standard three-step process—allowing for the utmost level of musical detail, clarity, and dynamics while reducing the amount of surface noise on the record.
Since launching in early 2020—debuting with John Coltrane’s Lush Life, followed by Yusef Lateef’s Eastern Sounds, then Miles Davis’ Relaxin’ with the Miles Davis Quintet—the series has drawn praise from critics far and wide. Absolute Sound raved, “the sound is exceptionally detailed, present, and airy, with gorgeously rich instrumental tones and textures, excellent dynamic scaling, and a notable lack of groove noise that brings these performances to goosebump-raising life,” adding, “the deluxe packaging and accompanying notes are likewise top-tier...Don’t hesitate.” UK’s Record Collector declared, “Craft [has] done a superlative job; the packaging is elegant, and the sound is flawless...there’s a depth and vivacity that brings out the best in these sessions.” Hi-Fi Choice added, “there’s no denying the beauty of this impeccable pressing.”
ONE-STEP LACQUER PROCESS AND ALL-ANALOG MASTERING OFFERS THE HIGHEST QUALITY LISTENING EXPERIENCE
ICONIC PACKAGING
Housed in a foil-stamped, linen-wrapped slipcase. The vinyl disc—extractable through a unique frictionless ribbon pull tab—comes in a reproduction of the original album jacket and protected by an archival-quality, anti-static, non-scratching inner sleeve.
NEW LINER NOTES
New liner notes from some of music’s best educators, historians, and journalists will accompany each title. This edition features new liner notes by Derrick Bang, the foremost Guaraldi historian and author of Vince Guaraldi at the Piano (McFarland & Company).
LIMITED EDITION
Each reissue will be limited edition and numbered. The limited nature of these pressings guarantees that each record is a true representation of the original lacquer and is as close as the listener can get to the original recording. Jazz Impressions of Black Orpheus is limited to 3,000 copies worldwide.
Jazz Impressions Of Black Orpheus (Small Batch, One-Step Pressing)
Vince Guaraldi Trio’s GRAMMY® Award-winning, breakthrough album, Jazz Impressions of Black Orpheus, is the fourth release in our Small Batch series — a carefully curated one-step lacquer process collection that’s devoted to creating the highest quality reissues of legendary recordings from our vast catalog.
As with previous Small Batch pressings, Jazz Impressions of Black Orpheus was cut from its original analog tapes by legendary engineer Bernie Grundman and pressed on 180-gram vinyl at RTI using Neotech’s VR900 compound and a one-step lacquer process—as opposed to the standard three-step process—allowing for the utmost level of musical detail, clarity, and dynamics while reducing the amount of surface noise on the record. The limited nature of these pressings guarantees that each record is a true representation of the original lacquer and is as close as the listener can get to the original recording.
Released in April 1962, Jazz Impressions of Black Orpheus made Guaraldi a household name—thanks, in large part, to the irresistible sounds of “Cast Your Fate to the Wind.” In 1963, the song earned Guaraldi a GRAMMY for “Best Original Jazz Composition.” Over the years, it would be covered by a range of artists, including Quincy Jones, George Benson, Allen Toussaint, the James Gang, and Mel Tormé (who added lyrics). Perhaps most famously, however, the tune caught the ear of television producer Lee Mendelson, who was searching for a musician to score a documentary about PEANUTS® creator, Charles M. Schulz, and his popular comic strip. While the film was never released, Guaraldi recorded the soundtrack to A Charlie Brown Christmas the following year—creating one of the best-selling jazz and holiday albums of all time in the process.
This Small Batch edition is limited to 3,000 copies worldwide. Each pressing is individually numbered and encased in a foil-stamped, linen-wrapped slipcase featuring an acrylic inset of the original artwork. The vinyl disc—extractable through a unique, frictionless ribbon pull-tab—is housed in a reproduction of the album’s original, tip-on jacket and protected by an archival-quality, anti-static, non-scratching inner sleeve. Rounding out the package are new liner notes by Derrick Bang, the foremost Guaraldi historian and author of Vince Guaraldi at the Piano (McFarland & Company).
Please note, due to the limited nature of this pressing there is a strictly enforced, per-household limit of two copies. Product is excluded from discount code offers.
Expanded Deluxe Edition of the album also available on 3-LP, 2-CD and 24-track digital configurations (inc. Hi-Res.). Click here for more details.
ABOUT JAZZ IMPRESSIONS OF BLACK ORPHEUS
Even without the presence of his tune “Cast Your Fate to the Wind,” a genuine and all-too-rare instrumental hit that reached No. 22 on the Billboard Hot 100 pop chart, Guaraldi’s 1962 album Jazz Impressions of Black Orpheus was a landmark achievement that introduced a trio with a singularly alluring sound. The combination of burnished lyricism, rhythmic subtly and exquisite dynamic calibration set it apart, but the group’s impact flowed equally from its repertoire. Guaraldi wasn’t the first American jazz artist to delve into the Brazilian songbook. But Jazz Impressions was an early harbinger of the jazz scene’s pervasive, unprecedented and enduring adoption of bossa nova (which means “new thing” or “new wave” in Portuguese). Winning the Palme d’Or at the 1959 Cannes Film Festival and the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film in 1960, Black Orpheus caught the ear of countless jazz musicians, and Guaraldi was smitten.
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