Craft Recordings Small Batch – Vinyl Reissues

Image Credit: Craft Recordings

California based record label, Craft Recordings, has launched a vinyl limited-edition series of high-quality pressings. This ‘Small Batch’ series of releases is promised to be “the highest quality vinyl reissues” of some of Crafts huge catalog of legendary recordings.

Rather than using the typical three-step pressing process, each 180-gram disc is pressed from the analog master tapes using a one-step process (rather than the typical three-step process). This in conjunction with the high tech vinyl formulation is said to reduce surface noise and deliver “maximum detail, clarity and dynamics”. According to Craft this  process, “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”.

The ‘Small Batch’ series kicks off with the release of John Coltrane’s iconic 1961 Lush Life album that celebrates its 60th anniversary this year.

Quote from Craft Records web site on the ‘Small Batch’ process:

“For this reissue, the original analog tapes were sent to mastering engineer Bernie Grundman, who utilized a custom tube pre-amp and analog mixing console with discrete electronics—both made in-house—as well as a Scully solid-state lathe with custom electronics. Grundman’s lacquers were then sent to Record Technology Incorporated (RTI) for plating using the plant’s one-step process where the lacquers are used to create a “convert” that becomes the record stamper. Utilizing Neotech’s VR900 compound, Lush Life was then pressed on to 180-gram vinyl.

Each pressing is individually numbered and housed in a foil-stamped, linen-wrapped slipcase featuring an acrylic inset of the original artwork. The vinyl disc is housed in a reproduction of the original album jacket, complete with tip-on jacket, and protected by an archival-quality, anti-static, non-scratching inner sleeve.”

According to the legendary mastering engineer Bernie Grundman: “When it comes to jazz, all you want to do is present the music in a good way. No gimmicks. No extra compression. Just the pure instruments.”

These first run Small Batch pressings are limited to 1000 copies worldwide. This limited issue, deluxe packaged, audiophile quality mastered and pressed vinyl is very reasonably priced at $99.99 each. Unfortunately this first batch sold out in hours, but Craft is planning to release more titles this year and through to 2022.

More details about the process here.

Interested in the next run of this album or others in the ‘Small Batch’ process, sign up on the Craft Records web site. Also by entering their contest (ends 02/19/2021), one lucky contestant will win a free copy of Lush Life.

See here for the Craft Recordings web site.

See here for my Introduction To vinyl and Direct To Disc Recording.