Thank you for buying this record. What follows is its documentation: the pressing identified, the matrix / runout transcribed by hand from the dead wax, and the condition as assessed before it was listed. It is yours to keep with the record.

— Paul, Vinyl Curator

Keith Jarrett

The Köln Concert

1975 · ECM Records ECM 1064/65 · Stereo · US (Terre Haute plant) · 2xLP, gatefold · 33 1/3 RPM

Pressing details

Label	ECM Records
Catalogue number	ECM 1064/65
Year	1975
Mono / Stereo	Stereo
Country	US (Terre Haute plant)
Format	2xLP, gatefold
Speed	33 1/3 RPM
Genre	Jazz - Solo Piano / Improvisation
Producer	Manfred Eicher
Composer	Keith Jarrett
Musicians	Keith Jarrett (piano)

Matrix / Runout

Side A:  ST-ECM 1064-65-A
Side B:  ST-ECM 1064-65-B
Side C:  ST-ECM 1064-65-C
Side D:  ST-ECM 1064-65-D

Condition

Cover: VG+
Vinyl: NM-

Variant chronology

1975 - US issue, green ECM Records/Polydor-era labels, gatefold, plant not identified in the runout  <- this copy
1975/1976 - Germany 1st/early issue, green ECM labels, ECM 1064/65 ST
1979-1986 - Germany/Spain/Yugoslavia reissues, green ECM labels
1994-2011 - US/Japan CD reissues and limited vinyl reissue
2010-2025 - EU/US/Worldwide 180g audiophile vinyl reissues

This Pressing

1975 US pressing (stereo) - green ECM/Polydor label, gatefold jacket; the pressing plant is not identified in the runout.

The Album

Recorded live at the Cologne Opera House on January 24, 1975, this fully improvised solo piano concert became the best-selling solo album in jazz history and the best-selling piano album of any genre. Jarrett arrived exhausted and in pain after a sleepless drive, on an ill-prepared, out-of-tune rehearsal piano the promoter had substituted for the requested Bösendorfer, and nearly cancelled before ECM producer Manfred Eicher persuaded him to go on. Working around the instrument's thin upper register and weak bass, Jarrett built a continuous, hymn-like improvisation of ostinato vamps, gospel-tinged melody and rolling left-hand patterns that transcended the piano's limitations. The performance sits at the center of Jarrett's mid-1970s emergence as ECM's flagship solo artist, following his earlier Facing You and preceding the extended Sun Bear Concerts. It became a touchstone recording for the

Tracklist

Side 1

1. Köln, January 24, 1975 - Part I (26:15)

Side 2

1. Köln, January 24, 1975 - Part IIa (15:00)

Side 3

1. Köln, January 24, 1975 - Part IIb (19:19)

Side 4

1. Köln, January 24, 1975 - Part IIc (6:59)

The Label

The label shows the standard green ECM Records design (white ECM logo box top centre, 'RECORDS' beneath it, rim text 'DISTRIBUTED BY POLYDOR INCORPORATED, NEW YORK, N.Y.' running the full lower arc, no additional ring/arc band) with catalogue number ECM 1064/65 and 'STEREO' at left. No deep groove; flat label. This green Polydor-distributed design was used across both plants that pressed this title in 1975-76 (Terre Haute and Pitman), so the label alone does not indicate a specific plant; the runout ST-ECM 1064-65-A/B/C/D carries no plant letter, stamper suffix, or STERLING stamp, so the plant is not identified. No other pressing tells (promo, eye count, or other) are present.

Fidelity

Mastered/cut at Sterling Sound from the original session tapes; US pressings from this era (Terre Haute or Pitman) are generally regarded by collectors as solid, quiet 1970s vinyl, though collectors on the forums vary on which US plant edges out. This original US stereo pressing ranks above later 1980s-90s reissues and the CD, and is generally considered comparable to or slightly ahead of contemporaneous German pressings in transparency, though many collectors prize the 2015-era 180g audiophile reissue for the quietest surfaces at some cost to the immediacy of the original cut.

Notes

1975 US ECM 1064/65 stereo issue - green Polydor-era labels, runout ST-ECM 1064-65-A/B/C/D. The plant is not identified on the label or in the runout; this catalogue number was pressed at both Terre Haute and Pitman in 1975-76. Jacket back carries the 810 Seventh Avenue/Polydor Incorporated address and 1975 ℗/© lines consistent with a first-year US pressing. Label design (flat, no deep groove) matches the standard Polydor-era US ECM design used at both plants, so it cannot itself distinguish the two.

Documenting collections

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