Recording history and tape provenance
Evans spent most of 1958 in Miles Davis's sextet, leaving that November to visit family in Florida and Louisiana. He returned to New York in December ready to record.
Both sidemen came from Cannonball Adderley's circle. Philly Joe Jones had just left Davis's band, and Sam Jones, no relation, had moved to New York from Tampa in 1955.
The album includes three unaccompanied solo pieces, "Lucky to Be Me," "Peace Piece" and "Epilogue." "Peace Piece" is a modal meditation on a two-chord vamp, recorded months before Kind of Blue.
The cover carries tribute quotes from Miles Davis, George Shearing, Ahmad Jamal and Cannonball Adderley. Evans asked Keepnews why he had not also got a quote from his mother, per Wikipedia.
The tape is not the cleanest in Evans's catalogue. Audible piano distortion appears at points on the original recording, present across every pressing rather than specific to one. It is not severe enough to undermine the record.
Two mastering credits worth checking
The Craft Recordings 2024 Record Store Day mono reissue is catalogue CR00751. Retailer copy everywhere credits Kevin Gray at Cohearent Audio for lacquers cut from the original master tapes. The official Record Store Day listing says the same.
Its Discogs release page, though, carries a contributor note stating that the Kevin Gray credit was printed incorrectly on the hype sticker. Who actually cut it could not be confirmed, so the tier table marks the credit unresolved.
That dispute has not dented the pressing's reputation. Owner reviews describe it as dead quiet and well centred, with rich piano tone and natural bass weight.
Sources also disagree on the edition size. The UK Record Store Day page gives 7,500 copies globally, while US retailer listings give 4,500.
The Analogue Productions 45rpm has the opposite problem. No standalone Discogs release page could be found for AJAZ 1129-45, which was broken out of the label's Bill Evans Riverside Recordings box. Its matrix runout independently confirms mastering by Kevin Gray and Steve Hoffman at AcousTech, which is stronger evidence than promotional copy.
Original Riverside pressings (1959)
A first pressing has a deep groove and the black "twin reels and microphone" Riverside label. It carries a Bill Grauer Productions Inc. credit.
The catalogue number was reissued repeatedly through the 1960s under Orpheum Productions after Riverside's founder died. Confirm the deep groove and label details before paying original prices for a later repress sharing the number.
Modern reissues
The Analogue Productions AJAZ 1129-45 is a 180g 45rpm 2LP, all-analog from the original master tapes.
Owner reports single this title out. Reviewers of the wider box describe it and Portrait in Jazz as more open and dynamic than the trio's later albums in the same set. They put that down to the earlier, smaller-ensemble recording rather than to mastering. Retailer quotes collected by Acoustic Sounds run the same way.
The Craft Recordings CR00751 is an all-analog mono cut pressed at RTI on 180g in a Stoughton tip-on jacket.
Original Jazz Classics OJC-068 (1983) is the standard affordable reissue, mastered by George Horn. Reviewers describe it as a solid, low-noise all-analog remaster, short of the modern audiophile cuts but legitimate.
Buyer's guide by budget
$$: The Original Jazz Classics OJC-068, a low-noise all-analog remaster.
$$$: The Craft Recordings CR00751 mono reissue, well reviewed whoever cut it.
$$$$: A clean Riverside RLP 12-291 or RLP 1129 original, priced on condition, or the Analogue Productions 45rpm.
Pressing tier summary
| Tier ⇅ | Pressing | Cat# | Year ⇅ | Format | Source / Mastering | Notes | Market ⇅ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| S | Analogue Productions 45rpm | AJAZ 1129-45 | – | Stereo, 45rpm, 2×180g | Kevin Gray and Steve Hoffman, AcousTech, confirmed by the matrix | Broken out of the Riverside Recordings box. No standalone Discogs page found | – |
| A | Riverside original | RLP 12-291 / RLP 1129 | 1959 | Mono and stereo, 33⅓ | Riverside lacquer, Bill Grauer Productions Inc. | First pressing. Deep groove, black "twin reels" label | – |
| A | Craft Recordings, Record Store Day mono | CR00751 | 2024 | Mono, 33⅓, 180g | Credit unresolved. Kevin Gray per retailer copy, disputed by a Discogs note | Pressed at RTI. Stoughton tip-on. Edition size given as 4,500 or 7,500 | $69VG+ $91NM $101M |
| B | Original Jazz Classics | OJC-068 | 1983 | Stereo, 33⅓ | George Horn | Standard Fantasy-era reissue | $93VG+ $122NM $136M |
References
- Wikipedia, "Everybody Digs Bill Evans": https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Everybody_Digs_Bill_Evans
- Record Store Day UK, "Everybody Digs Bill Evans": https://www.recordstoreday.co.uk/record/Everybody%20Digs%20Bill%20Evans
- Elusive Disc, "Bill Evans – Everybody Digs Bill Evans 180g 45rpm 2LP": https://elusivedisc.com/bill-evans-everybody-digs-bill-evans-180g-45rpm-2lp/
- Acoustic Sounds, "Bill Evans Trio – Everybody Digs Bill Evans – 45 RPM Vinyl Record": https://store.acousticsounds.com/d/12963/Bill_Evans_Trio-Everybody_Digs_Bill_Evans-45_RPM_Vinyl_Record
- Ten-Minute Record Reviews, "Bill Evans – Everybody Digs Bill Evans (Episode 434)": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kIVLP5qu9ww