Sunday at the Village Vanguard

Recording history and tape provenance

Sunday at the Village Vanguard was recorded live on June 25, 1961 at the Village Vanguard, New York City, by producer Orrin Keepnews and engineer Dave Jones – not Rudy Van Gelder, which matters technically. Jones used three microphones mixed through an Ampex tube mixer-preamp (described in some sources as an MX-35, though Orrin Keepnews's production notes indicate Jones used an older customised Ampex 350-series rack setup rather than the compact commercial MX-35 unit) onto an Ampex 350-2 or 351-2 two-track machine running Scotch 111 tape at 15 ips. The Scotch 111 formulation is widely regarded as one of the most stable and durable oxide formulations of the era – effectively bombproof – which partly explains the tapes' survival in good condition. It was Evans's fifth Riverside release and his first live record.

The trio of Bill Evans (piano), Scott LaFaro (bass) and Paul Motian (drums) played five sets across the day – two matinees and three evening sessions. Both Sunday at the Village Vanguard and Waltz for Debby were drawn from those same recordings: Evans and Keepnews structured Sunday to foreground LaFaro, opening and closing with his own compositions ("Gloria's Step" and "Jade Visions"), while Waltz for Debby is organised more as a piano showcase. LaFaro died in a car accident on July 6, 1961 – eleven days after the recording session. The crash occurred near Flint, New York (outside Stanley); LaFaro had been visiting a friend in Geneva earlier that evening and was driving back when he was killed. His death gave both albums a tragic finality and caused Evans to approach the sequencing of Sunday as an explicit tribute to the bassist.

Crucially: only one tape was running that day. Unlike the stereo/mono parallel-machine debates that complicate other jazz recordings, Dave Jones ran a single two-track stereo machine. The mono LP (RLP 376) is therefore a fold-down of the stereo master, not a parallel mono mix. This is confirmed by Steve Hoffman on the LondonJazzCollector comments and by the technical setup described above.

The original master tapes are held by Concord/Craft Recordings (which acquired Fantasy/Riverside via the Concord-Fantasy merger) and have been used for every serious modern reissue. Kevin Gray's statement to Fred Kaplan, on mastering the 2023 Craft OJC, confirms both albums' tapes were stored together and in roughly comparable condition. There is no documented tape-loss incident for this title comparable to the ALS master destruction – the Riverside tapes have survived.

One sonic mystery persists: even the best pressings of Sunday do not quite match the best pressings of Waltz for Debby sonically, despite sharing the same session, same tape, same engineer. Fred Kaplan has investigated this with Kevin Gray, who confirmed he approached both identically and the tapes seemed in similar shape. The slight edge for Waltz – more presence, more air, marginally better LaFaro weight – appears to be inherent to which sets were selected for each album. The evening sessions (predominantly on Waltz) may have been recorded at slightly higher levels or with marginally better room acoustics than the matinees. This gap is a genuine characteristic of the recordings, not a mastering or pressing artefact.

Original US Riverside pressings (1961)

Released in late 1961. The two catalogue numbers are firmly established:

• RLP 376 – mono
• RLP 9376 – stereo (sometimes seen as RS 9376 on later variants)

Note: the outer jacket on stereo copies often reads "RLP 9376" rather than "RS 9376" – the RS prefix notation was not always printed consistently on Riverside sleeves of this era, but the distinction is clear from the label itself.

The Riverside label variants

The Riverside label went through several distinct visual phases that allow precise dating of pressings. LondonJazzCollector's definitive Riverside guide is the essential reference:

Blue/white "Reel & Mic" label (1961–c.1964): The original label for this title. Deep blue with white lettering; the distinctive graphic shows a reel-to-reel tape machine and microphone, with "RIVERSIDE" in bold block letters across the top arc. This is sometimes casually called the "Bill" label by collectors, but that name strictly belongs to Riverside's sister sub-label Jazzland Records, whose label does feature "BILL" across the bottom arc. The genuine Riverside label for RLP 376/9376 says "RIVERSIDE" at the top, not "BILL." Carries "Bill Grauer Productions, Inc." at the footer – the presence of "Inc." is important: very early copies may read "Bill Grauer Productions" without "Inc." on the label, though LJC notes this distinction is more thoroughly documented for earlier catalogue numbers. The catalogue itself runs RLP 12-201 up through early 300s on different sub-labels; RLP 376 sits in the mature blue-label era. Deep grooves are not a reliable marker for this catalogue number range – the deep groove had been phased out for most pressings in the high-300s range, so absence of a deep groove does not indicate a later pressing.

Genuine first-press indicators for RLP 376/9376: the blue/white label; "Bill Grauer Productions, Inc." footer; the cover address should read 235 W 46th St, NYC (Riverside's address at the time, later changed to 553 W 51st St). No barcode anywhere. The gatefold jacket is not present on the US original – this is a single-sleeve record for the domestic pressing. However, the original UK Riverside release (distributed by Interdisc) was issued in a laminated gatefold jacket – so a gatefold does exist within the 1961 first-press ecosystem, just on the British side. Collectors hunting originals internationally should know that a gatefold is not automatically a sign of a later pressing.

Green "post-sale" Riverside label (c.1964–1972): After Keepnews and Grauer split and the label entered financial difficulties, later Riverside pressings appeared on a green label variant. These are sonically decent – LJC notes that the matrix codes often indicate Philips-plant pressing (670 code) or British Decca plant (420 code) for European copies – but clearly later than the blue-label originals.

White promo label: White-label promotional copies of RLP 376 are noted by LJC as "extremely rare, especially desirable for highly-prized titles like this Bill Evans title." Authenticated promos command serious premiums above standard market.

The Dutch and UK pressings

A critical piece of the Riverside puzzle: European pressings from the early 1960s, particularly Dutch (Philips plant, "670" matrix code) and UK (British Decca, "420" matrix code), are consistently praised by LJC and the Discogs community. LJC on the UK pressing: "Riverside sound sublime. These are a little more quiet than the British press (420) and benefit from pushing the volume up a couple of notches" – referring to the Dutch Philips pressing as marginally quieter. On the stereo Dutch pressing: "dim the lights, front row seat Village Vanguard, Bill Evans Trio at arms length in your living room, Bill's piano in front of the fireplace, Scott to one side by the indoor palm, Paul Motian squeezed in the corner." The UK pressing carries the matrix suffix "420" (Decca plant, West Hampstead). A confirmed comment from the LJC thread: "Got myself a beautiful French blue Riverside mono copy – matrix numbers are RLP 376 1L 1 670 11 3C" – the "670" suffix confirming Philips/Holland plant.

UK pressings appeared under the Riverside UK banner and later UK Riverside/Transatlantic arrangement. EMI/HMV issued some Riverside titles; the Evans Vanguard sessions appeared on Riverside RLP 376 (UK) with the Decca pressing plant. NM condition stereo commands a real premium over mono for this title.

Mono vs. stereo for this recording

Unlike A Love Supreme – where the hum in Van Gelder's stereo cut complicated the calculus – there is no such technical flaw in the Riverside stereo. The verdict from LJC (who owns both): "Irrespective of any theoretical principles, fold-down or whatever, I lean towards the stereo. With a trio, it is hard to put a foot wrong, the musical conversation works well as three discrete instruments." The stereo places Evans stage left, LaFaro right-centre to right, Motian left-centre – a natural small-club spread rather than aggressive hard panning. The broad collector consensus, and the format used for every significant modern reissue, is stereo. The mono is collected primarily for completeness and original-pressing cachet. Mark Smotroff (Analog Planet, 2023), who owns an original mono: "For what it's worth, my 1961 mono pressing does not display quite the same level of detail as the stereo edition does."

Market values for originals

NM US stereo RLP 9376 blue-label originals command the highest prices of any variant of this title, with exceptional sealed copies commanding more still. NM US mono RLP 376 blue-label sits meaningfully below the stereo, since stereo is the preferred format for this particular recording. Green-label Riverside stereo (c.1966) and UK/Dutch blue-label stereo originals occupy a broadly similar, more accessible tier below either US blue-label variant. White-label promos are rare enough that prices are highly variable, but consistently command a substantial premium above standard copies of the same pressing.

The condition caveat is severe for this title. LJC: "The big big issue is vinyl grade. Surface noise and wear can be really intrusive in such a spare acoustic environment. A lot of owners in the '60s and '70s played these albums to death, didn't take care." A VG copy of this album, with its quiet passages and exposed piano decay, will deliver a significantly degraded experience compared to the same album on a modern reissue. Budget for NM or near-NM only, or accept the trade-off consciously.

The twin albums: Sunday at the Village Vanguard and Waltz for Debby

These albums are inseparable in collector consciousness. Every serious reissue label that has touched one has issued the other simultaneously – Analogue Productions (2002 and 2024 UHQR), Mobile Fidelity One-Step (2017), and Craft/OJC (2023) all released both together. Practically, collectors almost universally pursue both.

The sonic difference between them is a matter of degree, not kind. Waltz for Debby consistently receives the higher sonic marks from critics who compare identical pressings side by side. The 2023 Craft OJC releases gave Kaplan the opportunity to do exactly this: "even the best Sunday doesn't sound quite as good as the Craft Waltz. It's a mystery why this should be." Given that both tapes are in comparable shape and both were mastered identically by Gray, the difference is embedded in the original recording itself. Sunday is nonetheless a masterpiece of recorded sound – the gap is narrow, the album ranks among the finest-sounding live jazz LPs in existence.

For pressing decisions: anything said about the pressing hierarchy for Sunday applies equally to Waltz for Debby, with the caveat that Waltz will sound marginally better on any given pressing. If budget forces a choice, buy Waltz first. But buy both.

The reissue hierarchy

Milestone 2LP "The Village Vanguard Sessions" (1973)

Cat. MSP-47002 (2LP gatefold compilation). The first major reissue, bundling material from both albums onto two LPs. Cut by unknown engineers from the Riverside tapes, pressed as a Milestone budget "two-fer." Sonically adequate for its era; noticeably inferior to the original in openness and depth. A 1980s repressing on Milestone with TM trademark marking carries matrix etching "GH" (George Horn). Fantasy reused the freshly completed OJC-140 metal stampers for Sides C/D of this Milestone repressing – meaning the GH-etched copies physically contain the OJC master plate, not a copy of it. Collectors rate these highly: "it sounds fantastic... it's more or less the first OJC pressings, but just with Milestone and including an extra track." This is the pre-OJC sleeper cut. Cheap for a clean copy.

Original Jazz Classics OJC-140 (1984)

Cat. OJC-140 (stereo, RLP-9376). The original Fantasy/OJC reissue, pressing the stereo version on standard-weight vinyl. LJC: "Pre-barcode OJC issues – I picked one up recently and was pleasantly surprised. Vinyl weight was 120g – heavier than I expected, a good fairly punchy mono. I wouldn't put them in the same league as most originals, but an acceptable listen." The deadwax notes key: OJC pressings numbered below OJC-150 are generally acknowledged to be cut from analog tape, making them sonically superior to later digital-era OJC issues. Steve Hoffman has endorsed these early OJC cuts. Pre-barcode = pre-1983, so the 1984 OJC-140 carries a barcode and is at the cusp of the analog-cut era – verify via deadwax. OJC-140 on Discogs: matrices read "OJC 140 A RE7 33159.2(3)... A·MS" confirming Artisan Sound mastering. Later 2008 OJC reissue exists; this mid-period OJC-140 is the preferred vintage OJC.

Analogue Productions 45rpm 2LP (2002)

Cat. AJAZ 9376, UPC varies. 2×180g at 45rpm, tip-on gatefold. Mastered by Kevin Gray and Steve Hoffman (co-mastering, from the original Riverside analog tapes). Pressed at QRP. Limited run, now out of print. The reviewer at Positive Feedback, who compared directly with the 2017 MoFi One-Step, rated this "around an 8.7 – the bass lacking some weight and precision" compared to the One-Step. Tracking Angle/Kaplan: "If you already own a MoFi pressing of Sunday – or, for that matter, the one in Analogue Productions' QRP boxed-set of Evans' Riverside albums, also in 45rpm – there is no reason to buy the Craft." Trades at a substantial premium on the secondary market. A companion HQ-180 33⅓ edition (mastered by Doug Sax in 1992 for Waltz for Debby, later by the same team) also exists in the AP catalogue; Kaplan actually prefers the Sax-mastered Waltz to Gray's 2023 Craft recut.

Mobile Fidelity UltraDisc One-Step UD1S 2-002 (2017)

Cat. UD1S 2-002. 2×180g at 45rpm, SuperVinyl compound, numbered box set limited to 3,000 copies. Mastered and cut by Krieg Wunderlich at Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab from the 1/4" / 15 IPS analog master tape. Plated and pressed at RTI. Two 8×10 black-and-white photos by Steve Schapiro (including one of Evans at the piano and one of the trio at a table, with Motian smoking Kools) included. Has appreciated dramatically on the secondary market since its original release, with sealed copies now commanding many multiples of the launch price.

Fremer (Analog Planet, 2017): "Pressing quality is key on a generally quiet recording with a great deal of empty space between the notes and here RTI knocks it out of the park. Backgrounds on my sealed pressing were drop dead quiet throughout. Not a pop or click on all four sides." The Positive Feedback reviewer rated the One-Step 9.6 overall, Remastering + Lacquer Cutting: 10, Pressing: 10, calling it "impossible that the [original Riverside] would surpass or even approach the quality of this remastering." Multiple Discogs reviewers: "the best from their UltraDisc series, but probably the best sounding record I've ever listened to."

Importantly: the MoFi UD1S predates the 2022 "MoFi-gate" controversy and is listed as mastered from the 1/4" / 15 IPS Analog Master – the One-Step process eliminates two plating steps (bypassing the mother record) and uses SuperVinyl rather than standard PVC. This is distinct from the DSD controversy around the Kind of Blue MoFi; no DSD intermediate has been alleged for this title. Even post-MoFi-gate reassessment, the UD1S format using a genuine analog master tape does not carry the same taint as the standard MoFi pressing process exposed in 2022. Kaplan's 2023 assessment, comparing directly with the Craft OJC: "The MoFi's piano is warmer, though no less detailed or dynamic... The MoFi also reveals a bit more air around the cymbals." He still rates it marginally above the Craft for Sunday specifically (though not for Waltz).

A note from one Discogs reviewer who owns both the 2002 AP and the 2017 MoFi: "I prefer the Mofi. And I'm not one that usually prefers Mofis." Not every direct comparison agrees, though: one detailed four-way A/B against the Craft OJC, the 2024 UHQR, and the 2002 AP 45rpm found the MoFi favoring the top end in a way that read as "slightly unnatural" on two different systems, ranking it clearly last of the four – not recommending it be sought out at current secondary-market prices given how close the Craft OJC and UHQR come at a fraction of the cost. As with most comparisons on this title, system and room dependence was explicitly flagged as a major factor in the rankings.

Craft Recordings / OJC 180g 33⅓ (2023) – the new standard-bearer for value

Cat. CR00609 (Discogs r28861354). Single 180g LP at 33⅓, tip-on jacket, pressed at RTI. Kevin Gray at Cohearent Audio, AAA, from the original analog tapes. Released November 17, 2023. A separate clear-vinyl variant (cat. CR10094) appears to be an older Fantasy-era OJC pressing – verify via deadwax before purchasing.

This is the current universal recommendation for first purchase. Smotroff (Analog Planet): "The recording sounds very nice... delivers a better sense of the club's ambiance, along with a clearer soundstage. LaFaro's slapping on the strings is more pronounced and emphatic. The new OJC version does a better job of capturing the woody, warm feel of a big stand-up bass in a small club environment." Audiophilia.com: "Very highly recommended." Kaplan (Tracking Angle): "If you already own a MoFi pressing of Sunday – or the Analogue Productions QRP boxed set – there is no reason to buy the Craft. At the same time, it's worth noting that the MoFi is out of print... so the Craft is the one to get."

The critical nuance from Kaplan: the Craft is not definitively better than the MoFi UD1S on Sunday – the differences are real but not large, the MoFi is warmer on piano, the Craft has more distinct low bass. By contrast, Kaplan rates the Craft Waltz for Debby as definitively superior to all prior pressings including the APs. So the relative standing of Craft vs MoFi flips depending on which album you're evaluating.

Analogue Productions UHQR 45rpm Clarity Vinyl 2LP box (2024)

Cat. UHQR 0017-45, Discogs r31293074. 2×200g Clarity Vinyl at 45rpm, limited to 5,000 copies, deluxe dowel-spine box with 8-page Bob Blumenthal booklet. Kevin Gray at Cohearent Audio (KPG@CA in the matrix), from the original analog tapes. The Clarity Vinyl metalwork traces to the 2002 AP 45rpm edition, co-mastered by Kevin Gray and Steve Hoffman at AcousTech – the 2024 UHQR presses from those same metal parts rather than a new cut, meaning Hoffman's original EQ decisions are embedded in the sonic character. Hand-pressed at QRP on Finebilt press. Released July 19, 2024. Matrix etching: "AJAZ9376-(45)-D KPG@CA 40141.4(3)."

Discogs reviewers: "This UHQR release is obviously aimed exclusively at the most discerning Jazz collector... Analogue Productions has delivered once again exactly that." "Definitely the best sounding this record has ever been." The Acoustic Sounds product description quotes a YouTube review comparing directly with the MoFi: "On the UHQR there's a real band playing together making sense in a real space with a real kind of interaction between them and it just sounds natural open and free. And the Mofi, you know, don't get me wrong it sounds wonderful but up against this it sounds slightly disjointed... definitely not as natural, a little bit forced and a little bit sucked out at the same time." A key reviewer note: "the differences aren't revelatory – there's only so much that can be pulled from these tapes – but they are there especially if you're listening as 'one large ear.'"

One Discogs owner who has both the 2002 AP 45rpm box and the UHQR: "Has anyone done a detailed listening between this UHQR version and the Analogue Production box... is it worth buying the UHQR if you already have the Analogue Production box?" – a question that went unanswered definitively in the thread, reflecting the honest reality that the gap between the 2002 AP and 2024 UHQR is narrower for Sunday than for some other UHQR titles.

Note: the UHQR was also issued simultaneously with a Waltz for Debby UHQR (UHQR 0018-45). They are designed as a pair.

Earlier Analogue Productions 33⅓ HQ-180 editions

AP issued both Village Vanguard albums on HQ-180 33⅓ vinyl in 1992 (Waltz for Debby cut by Doug Sax; Sunday by the same team). These are the precursors to the 2002 45rpm editions. Kaplan's assessment of the 1992 Sax cut of Waltz: "I've been in love with that record ever since – it's one of the stars of my collection." The 1992 AP HQ-180 cuts are out of print, with Waltz generally commanding somewhat more than Sunday on the secondary market.

Japanese pressings

Japanese Victor/JVC and King pressings of Riverside titles from the late 1970s and early 1980s are consistently praised for their pressing quality and quiet vinyl. Specific Japanese editions of Sunday at the Village Vanguard exist but are less thoroughly documented than the major US audiophile reissues. IMP- prefix Victor Japan pressings from this era are the ones to seek. A confirmed Discogs reference: Victor Japan IMP- series for Riverside titles. Typically found with obi. The Japanese pressing community rates these highly for surface quietness – relevant for this album given its demanding low-noise requirements.

The Milestone "Village Vanguard Sessions" 2LP – the budget two-fer

Cat. MSP-47002 (also seen as M-47002). Milestone acquired the Riverside catalogue in the early 1970s and reissued both albums on a single 2LP compilation. While sonically inferior to originals and the major audiophile reissues, the early-80s repressing with George Horn etching in the deadwax is the pick of this format – Horn was one of Fantasy's best engineers and his cuts have a warmth and analog integrity that later digital-era Milestone issues lack. A Discogs expert cracked the code: "Around '83, Milestone started putting TM under the logo on the labels... My Side C even has the GH (George Horn) etching. It's more or less the first OJC pressings." This is more than equivalence: Fantasy reused the freshly cut OJC-140 metal stampers directly when repressing the Milestone compilation around 1982–83, meaning a GH-etched Side C/D on MSP-47002 physically is the OJC master plate – not a copy of it. Buy it confidently if found cheaply.

What makes this recording particularly demanding of good pressings

Three sonic characteristics make Sunday at the Village Vanguard uniquely revealing of pressing quality:

The silence between notes. Evans's piano style – the space, the decay, the breath before the next phrase – requires absolute vinyl quiet to communicate fully. A noisy surface collapses this into mush. Every significant review of every pressing of this album returns to background noise as the decisive variable. The MoFi UD1S's RTI SuperVinyl pressing achieves "drop dead quiet backgrounds throughout, not a pop or click on all four sides" (Fremer). The 2024 UHQR goes further still. Even the Craft OJC on 180g RTI is "almost perfectly dead-quiet."

LaFaro's bass register. The double bass – played with unusual melodic independence by LaFaro – ranges from plucked high notes to deep resonant fundamentals. Pressing and mastering decisions dramatically affect whether you hear the woody body of the instrument or a thinned-out approximation. The 2023 Craft, with Kevin Gray's deliberate +2dB deep bass boost, addresses this directly. The 2024 UHQR carries this further into greater resolution and decay.

Paul Motian's brushwork. Constant brushwork on cymbals creates a particular test of upper-frequency resolution and surface noise – the "sandish" quality noted by the Positive Feedback reviewer is intrinsic to the recording, but amplified by surface noise into genuine fatigue on lesser pressings. On the best pressings, you hear the texture of the brush against the cymbal surface; on inferior ones, it simply reads as hash.

Pressings to avoid

EU grey-market pirates: As with A Love Supreme, a persistent grey market exists. Labels including Waxtime, DOL, Jazz Wax, Vinyl Lovers and similar EU bootleg operations have issued Sunday at the Village Vanguard. These are digitally sourced from CDs or streaming. A Discogs commenter on a VP-catalogue 2LP: "Given it's a Euro public domain label it has to be digital sourced. Are we in effect listening to a CD on vinyl?" The Riverside catalogue is licensed through Concord/Craft and these releases carry no legitimate tape access. Avoid at any price.

Standard-weight OJC issues post-barcode (post-1983): The later OJC series progressively deteriorated in vinyl quality and by the mid-to-late 1980s was pressing on thin, noisy vinyl. For a recording this demanding of quiet surfaces, these are the worst of all worlds – a decent mastering on mediocre vinyl. The 2008 OJC reissue on Discogs (cat. OJC 140, the post-Keepnews collection era issue) gets mixed reviews, some praising it and some finding it inferior to the pre-barcode 1984 issues. Verdict: acceptable for casual listening, not a serious listening copy.

The 1970s Milestone budget copies (non-George-Horn): Standard Milestone pressings without the GH deadwax etching and on oil-crisis-era thin recycled vinyl. Smotroff compared one directly to the 2023 Craft: "The Milestone edition sounds okay for what it is – a budget line release. The 1970s vinyl was already getting noisy from that decade's oil crisis and other manufacturing corner-cutting." A noisy surface on this album is particularly cruel.

Buyer's guide by budget

$ (Budget): The 2023 Craft Recordings / OJC 180g LP (CR00609) is the answer, and it is a genuinely excellent one. Kevin Gray, AAA from the original tapes, RTI pressing, tip-on jacket – all the ingredients of a serious reissue at an accessible price. It is what Smotroff called "a total bargain." Pair it with the equivalent Waltz for Debby release (CR00608) for a complete picture of the June 25, 1961 session.

$$$ (Mid-range): The pre-barcode 1984 OJC-140 is the vintage analog-cut option in this range, if you can find a clean NM copy. The George Horn-etched Milestone MSP-47002 is the equivalent two-fer option, giving you both albums on two LPs for a single price. Both are inferior to the 2023 Craft in pressing quality but offer the pleasure of period vinyl.

$$$$ (Premium): A clean NM green-label Riverside stereo (c.1966) or a UK/Dutch blue-label Riverside stereo becomes accessible here. These are the closest you get to the original RVG-adjacent tape transfer without paying original-pressing prices – the Dutch Philips pressing in particular is praised by LJC as offering near-original quality on quieter vinyl. Also in this range: the 1992 AP HQ-180 33⅓ if found on the secondhand market.

$$$$$ (Grail / Rare): The 2024 UHQR (UHQR 0017-45), with used copies beginning to appear, is the current outright best pressing available for purchase, combining Kevin Gray's analog mastery with 45rpm groove width, 200g Clarity Vinyl, and QRP's hand-inspection process. For those who don't want to pay UHQR prices, the 2002 Analogue Productions 45rpm 2LP (AJAZ 9376) occupies this tier on the secondary market and delivers essentially equivalent Kevin Gray mastering, albeit on standard 180g vinyl rather than Clarity Vinyl.

$$$$$ (Grail / Rare): The Mobile Fidelity UD1S 2-002 One-Step is the alternative pinnacle – warmer piano presentation, potentially superior to the UHQR in specific ways depending on system. Buying sealed is strongly advised; the pressed mark from the SuperVinyl can be an issue on played copies and the price premium for sealed is justified. Also in this range: a NM US stereo blue-label Riverside RLP 9376 first pressing – the holy grail for completeness, acoustic beauty, and collector history, with the caveat that condition is everything on this album.

Practical two-copy solution: the 2023 Craft OJC (Sunday + Waltz together) for an excellent, affordable, current-manufacture listening experience, and the 2024 UHQR if budget allows for the ultimate. Everything between those two price points represents incremental improvement at escalating cost. The Craft's gap to the MoFi/UHQR is audible but not vast; the gap from the Craft to the grey-market pirates or late-OJC pressings is enormous.

Pressing tier summary

References

• Discogs (master): https://www.discogs.com/master/104372-Bill-Evans-Trio-Featuring-Scott-La-Faro-Sunday-At-The-Village-Vanguard
• YouTube, The Pressing Matters and Let There Be Sound!, "The Bill Evans Trio - Sunday at the Village Vanguard AAA Shootout with High Res Files!!": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Qbkp0l_hK8
• LondonJazzCollector, "Bill Evans Trio 'Sunday at the Village Vanguard' (1961)": https://londonjazzcollector.wordpress.com/2011/12/28/bill-evans-trio-sunday-at-the-village-vanguard-1961/
• AnalogPlanet, "'Sunday at the Village Vanguard' Mobile Fidelity Ultradisc Sells Out" (Michael Fremer, 2017): https://www.analogplanet.com/content/sunday-village-vanguard-mobile-fidelity-ultradisc-sell-out
• AnalogPlanet, "Bill Evans Trio's Seminal 1961 Live Album Sunday at the Village Vanguard Shines on New 180g All-Analog... Edition From Craft Recordings" (Mark Smotroff): https://www.analogplanet.com/content/bill-evans-trio%E2%80%99s-seminal-1961-live-album-sunday-village-vanguard-shines-new-180g-all-analog
• Tracking Angle, "Bill Evans' Sunday at the Village Vanguard Gets a New Vinyl Shine" (Fred Kaplan): https://trackingangle.com/music/bill-evans-sunday-at-the-village-vanguard-gets-a-new-vinyl-shine
• Tracking Angle, "A UHQR Go Round For The Classic Bill Evans Village Vanguard Albums Gets Some Blowback": https://trackingangle.com/music/a-uhqr-go-round-for-the-classic-bill-evans-village-vanguard-albums-gets-some-blowback
• Positive Feedback, review of the Mobile Fidelity UD1S One-Step: https://positive-feedback.com/reviews/music-reviews/bill-evans-trio-sunday-at-the-village-vanguard/
• Discogs release and community listings for all pressings referenced in the tier table above (original mono RLP 376/stereo RLP 9376 blue-label, AP 45rpm 2002 and UHQR 2024, MoFi UD1S 2-002, Craft/OJC CR00609, UK/Dutch blue-label, Milestone MSP-47002, pre- and post-barcode OJC-140, Japanese Victor/JVC IMP-88063)

Related guides: The Incredible Jazz Guitar of Wes Montgomery · Waltz for Debby · Portrait in Jazz