Bethlehem Catalogue Poised for Reissue

by The Audio Beat | August 14, 2013

ounded in 1953 by Gus Wildi, Bethlehem Records amassed a catalogue of 250 titles featuring many established and emerging jazz musicians, including some of the earliest releases from John Coltrane, Dexter Gordon, Charles Mingus, Donald Byrd, Nina Simone, Booker Ervin, Johnny Hartman, Chris Connor and Art Blakey. Over the next year, more than two dozen of the label's most iconic recordings will be reissued as LPs and CDs, and others will appear as downloads on the label's iTunes store. In support of this relaunch, limited-edition apparel will also be available at select retailers and through the Bethlehem Records webstore.

The following 20 titles will be available from the Bethlehem Records iTunes store on 8/27.

Art Blakey – Art Blakey Big Band
Bobby Scott – Great Scott
Booker Ervin – The Book Cooks
Booker Little – Booker Little and Friend
Charles Mingus – The Jazz Experiments of Charles Mingus
Chris Connor – Sings Lullabys For Lovers
Donald Byrd & Pepper Adams – Motor City Scene
Dexter Gordon – Daddy Plays The Horn
Mel Torme & Frances Faye – George Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess
Howard McGhee – Dusty Blue
John Coltrane – In The Winners Circle
Johnny Hartman – Songs From The Heart
Mel Torme – Songs For Any Taste
Nina Simone – Nina Simone And Her Friends
Nina Simone – Little Girl Blue
Oscar Pettiford – Modern Quintet
Paula Castle – Lost Love
Sam Most – Sam Most Plays Bird, Bud, Monk and Miles
Stan Levy – Grand Stan
Zoot Sims – Down Home

The recording release schedule continues with LPs, CDs and digital downloads, including these titles.

August 27, 2013

BCP 1003: Oscar Pettiford – Modern Quintet (CD & 10")
BCP 1002: Chris Connor – Sings Lullabys For Lovers (CD & 10")
BCP 36: Dexter Gordon – Daddy Plays The Horn (CD & 12")
BCP 65: Charles Mingus – The Jazz Experiments (CD & 12")
BCP 6028: Nina Simone – Little Girl Blue (CD & 12")
BCP 6048: Booker Ervin – The Book Cooks (CD & 12")

October 29, 2013

BCP 6051: Zoot Sims – Down Home (CD & 12")
BCP 6056: Donald Byrd & Pepper Adams – Motor City Scene (CD & 12")
BCP 1030: Bobby Troup – The Songs of Bobby Troup (CD & 10")

January 29, 2014

BCP 1027: Helen Carr – Down In The Depths Of The 90th Floor (CD & 10")
BCP 43: Johnny Hartman – Songs From The Heart (CD & 12")
BCP 6040: Mel Torme & Frances Faye – George Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess (CD & 12")
BCP 6041: Nina Simone – Nina Simone and Her Friends (CD & 12")

March 26, 2014

BCP 6045: Mal Waldron – Left Alone (CD & 12")
BCP 6055: Howard McGhee – Dusty Blue (CD & 12")
BCP 6061: Booker Little – Booker Little and Friend (CD & 12")

May 28, 2014

BCP 71: Stan Levey – Grand Stan (CD & 10")
BCP 6064: Roland Kirk – Third Dimension (CD & 12")
BCP 6031: Mel Torme – Songs For Any Taste (CD & 12")

July 29, 2014

BCP 1004: Bobby Scott – Great Scott (CD & 10")
BCP 6069: Eddie Davis – The Best of Eddie Lockjaw Davis (CD & 12")
BCP 6024: John Coltrane – In The Winners Circle (CD & 12")
BCP 6027: Art Blakey – Art Blakey Big Band (CD & 12")
BCP 1010: Vinnie Burke – East Coast Jazz 2 (CD & 10")
BCP 1036: Paula Castle – Lost Love (CD & 10")

According to a press release, "Each track has been restored from the original analog sound recording & digitally remastered to meet the highest level of clarity and quality standards." It seems unlikely that this means all analog for the LPs; more likely, they will be cut from high-resolution digital files.