Have you ever packed and unpacked the same gear so many times that you finally realize—almost a year later—that life just steamrolled your review queue? Doesn’t happen often, but here we are. That one’s on me. I’ve started to unpack three homes in the past 3 months and still haven’t taken a real break in five years. We had to reschedule my daughter’s Bat Mitzvah—thanks to Iran shutting down Israeli airspace with a ballistic light show. Nothing like having to rethink a family milestone with eight days’ notice. Life got loud, and the jazz had to wait.
So here I am, 30,000 feet above the Western Mediterranean—headphones on, tray table down—and it finally felt like the perfect time to write. No boxes to unpack, no logistical nightmares, just me, a screen, and two albums from Craft Recordings’ OJC series that deserve far more attention than I’ve given them this past year. Mal/2 and Eastern Sounds—two very different jazz landmarks, both lovingly reissued, and both reminding me that even when life goes sideways, the music still cuts through.
Craft Recordings dropped the second wave of Original Jazz Classics reissues in 2023—an absolute must-have batch for any serious jazz fan. This round included the Mal Waldron Sextet’s Mal/2 and Yusef Lateef’s Eastern Sounds, along with two legendary Bill Evans Trio albums: Waltz for Debby and Sunday at the Village Vanguard.
These releases weren’t just remasters slapped on shiny vinyl—they were top-tier audiophile productions. Kevin Gray at Cohearent Audio cut the lacquers straight from the original tapes (AAA), pressed on heavyweight 180-gram vinyl at RTI, and packaged in tip-on jackets that faithfully replicated the original artwork. For those who preferred digital, all titles were also released in 192/24 HD audio.
Original Jazz Classics first launched back in ’82 under Fantasy Records to curate an incredible catalog spanning Prestige, Galaxy, Milestone, Riverside, Debut, Contemporary, Jazzland, and Pablo. Over more than three decades, OJC became the go-to source for quality jazz reissues, delivering over 850 essential albums.
Craft Recordings clearly shared that passion for preservation and quality, making their 2023 relaunch of OJC a no-brainer—with a strong focus on vinyl and hi-res digital. And honestly, the two titles I’m reviewing here—Mal/2 and Eastern Sounds—were some of the best offerings in this collaboration. If these didn’t get you excited about jazz reissues, nothing would.
Mal Waldron Sextet: Mal/2
Mal Waldron (1925–2002) was a powerhouse pianist, composer, and arranger with a career spanning five decades and over 100 albums as a leader, including plenty of film scores. Known for his versatility and a blues-infused, forward-thinking style, Waldron was more than just a solo artist—he was Prestige Records’ go-to house pianist and a sought-after accompanist for legends like Billie Holiday and Abbey Lincoln. His sideman credits read like a who’s who of jazz greats, from Charles Mingus to John Coltrane and Eric Dolphy.
By 1957, Waldron was ready to step fully into the spotlight, following up his well-received debut Mal/1 with Mal/2 just months later. This album marked a clear step forward, assembling a sextet loaded with some of the era’s most exciting players. Alongside trumpeter Idrees Sulieman and bassist Julian Euell, who appeared on the first album, Waldron brought in tenor saxophonist John Coltrane, fresh off his own debut as a leader. The horn section was rounded out by Sahib Shihab on alto and baritone sax, Jackie McLean on alto, and Bill Hardman on trumpet, with drums shared by Ed Thigpen and Art Taylor.
Across a mix of sextet settings, the group tackles Waldron originals like the brooding “One by One,” the lively “Potpourri,” and “J.M.’s Dream Doll,” a nod to McLean’s standout solo work. They also breathe new life into standards like Cole Porter’s upbeat “From This Moment On” and the classic “The Way You Look Tonight” by Fields and Kern. A bluesy, hard-bop gem buried deep in Waldron’s catalog, Mal/2 showcases tight arrangements and sharp performances that still hold up today.
The Mal/2 pressing is solid—cleanly centered black vinyl with just the usual light surface noise near the inner grooves, nothing that’ll jump out at you. Rudy Van Gelder’s mono engineering is straightforward and natural, no smoke and mirrors here. The 180g 1LP edition rings up at $38.99, which isn’t exactly bargain basement but fair enough for a piece of jazz history.
Side A kicks off with “From This Moment On,” featuring a tight horn section before Coltrane steps in with some classic bop lines. Sulieman’s solo is fiery enough to keep things interesting, and Waldron’s piano is sharp and to the point—no fluff. “J.M.’s Dream Doll” is a waltz dedicated to Jackie McLean’s wife, giving each horn a chance to show off, with McLean closing it out like he owns the place. The side wraps up with “The Way You Look Tonight,” a mostly traditional take with four-part harmony and decent solos from horns and keys—nothing revolutionary, but it gets the job done.
Flip to Side B and you get “One By One,” where Sulieman and Shihab play call and response over Waldron’s 16-bar pattern, and Coltrane delivers a passionate tenor solo that reminds you why he’s a legend. “Don’t Explain” turns the mood down with its somber, brooding vibe—no surprises there, it’s a Billie Holiday classic after all. The album closes with “Potpourri,” a straightforward swinger that’s basically the sonic equivalent of a shrug after the heavy stuff.
If you’re into Mal Waldron, this reissue gives you a clean, remastered mono sound and solid performances from some heavy hitters. It’s not going to change your life, but it’s a tidy package that respects the music without overhyping it. Most certainly a keeper and very underrated jazz pianist.
Where to buy: $38.98 at Amazon
Yusef Lateef: Eastern Sounds
Yusef Lateef (1920–2013) was the kind of multi-instrumentalist who couldn’t be boxed in. A lifelong musical explorer, he stood apart by mastering unusual instruments and digging deep into the sounds of different cultures long before “world music” was a marketing buzzword. Starting his career as a bandleader in 1957, he quickly began weaving Eastern influences into his jazz, carving out a sound that was both adventurous and approachable.
Eastern Sounds, released in 1961 as his 16th album, blends Middle Eastern and Asian musical ideas with the hard-bop style popular at the time. The album is a mix of unique textures and moods, showcasing Lateef on tenor sax, oboe, flute, and even a Chinese xun—a rare globular flute you don’t hear every day. Supporting him are pianist Barry Harris, drummer Lex Humphries, and bassist Ernie Farrow, who also plays the rubab, an Afghan lute-like instrument adding to the album’s distinctive sound.
The tracklist offers mostly originals, like the delicate opener “The Plum Blossom,” the bluesy “Blues for the Orient,” and the mysterious closer “The Three Faces of Balal.” Lateef and company also tackle some unexpected covers, including the cinematic “Love Theme from Spartacus” and “Love Theme from The Robe,” plus the jazz standard “Don’t Blame Me.”
Eastern Sounds is where jazz decides to take a detour through the Middle East and Asia without losing its cool. Yusef Lateef’s knack for blending unusual instruments—with straight-up hard bop gives the album a vibe that’s both unexpected and strangely inviting. It’s not your typical jazz record, but it never feels like it’s trying too hard to be “different.”
The pressing itself is clean and well-centered, with that 180-gram weight that audiophiles drool over. Surface noise is minimal, letting all those quirky woodwinds and delicate percussion textures shine through. If you’re tired of the same old sax solos and piano runs, this one’s a refreshing detour that actually delivers on its promise.
Where to buy: $38.98 at Amazon
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