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

Miles Davis Quintet

Workin' with the Miles Davis Quintet

1960 · Prestige PRLP 7166 · Mono · US · LP · 33 1/3 RPM

Pressing details

Label	Prestige
Catalogue number	PRLP 7166
Year	1960
Mono / Stereo	Mono
Country	US
Format	LP
Speed	33 1/3 RPM
Genre	Jazz - Hard Bop
Producer	Bob Weinstock
Musicians	Miles Davis (trumpet), John Coltrane (tenor sax), Red Garland (piano), Paul Chambers (bass), "Philly" Joe Jones (drums)

Matrix / Runout

Side A:  PRLP-7166-A RVG
Side B:  PRLP-7166-B RVG VBW

Condition

Cover: NM-
Vinyl: EX

Variant chronology

1959/1960 - US Prestige yellow/black 'fireworks' label, 203 South Washington Ave., Bergenfield NJ address, deep groove, RVG stamp  <- this copy
1964 - US Prestige reissue, later red-tone cover variant
c.1960s - UK Esquire 32-108 pressing of PRLP 7166
1980s-2000s - Fantasy/OJC OJC-296 reissue

This Pressing

1960 mono 1st press - Prestige yellow/black fireworks Bergenfield NJ deep-groove label with RVG stamped in deadwax.

The Album

Workin' with the Miles Davis Quintet was drawn from two marathon sessions - May 11 and October 26, 1956 - recorded to fulfill Davis's remaining contractual obligation to Prestige before his move to Columbia Records, sessions prolific enough to yield the four "Marathon" LPs Cookin', Relaxin', Steamin', and Workin'. The quintet of Davis, John Coltrane, Red Garland, Paul Chambers, and "Philly" Joe Jones is widely regarded as one of the most influential small groups in jazz history, its telepathic interplay helping to define the hard bop idiom and launching Coltrane toward his own singular path. The repertoire blends standards like Rodgers and Hart's

Tracklist

Side 1

1. It Never Entered My Mind (Rodgers & Hart)
2. Four (Miles Davis-Prestige Music-BMI)
3. In Your Own Sweet Way (Dave Brubeck)
4. The Theme (take 1)

Side 2

1. Trane's Blues (John Coltrane-Prestige Music-BMI)
2. Ahmad's Blues (Ahmad Jamal)
3. Half Nelson (Miles Davis)
4. The Theme (take 2)

The Label

This copy carries the classic yellow-and-black "fireworks" Prestige label with the "203 South Washington Ave., Bergenfield, N.J." address and pronounced deep groove on both sides, the label style used by Prestige from roughly 1957 into the early 1960s before the switch to the dark blue "trident" design in 1964. The album was first issued in late 1959/1960 despite the sessions dating to 1956, and this Bergenfield yellow-label pressing represents the true first-issue label configuration for PRLP 7166. RVG is stamped into the deadwax on both sides, consistent with Van Gelder-cut lacquers pressed during this Bergenfield era. This places the copy squarely as an early/first-pressing example, ahead of the later blue trident, Fantasy/OJC, and modern audiophile reissues.

Fidelity

Mastered by Rudy Van Gelder directly from his own Hackensack session tapes, this Bergenfield-era yellow label pressing is regarded by collectors on the forums as sonically superior to later Fantasy/OJC reissues, delivering natural, well-balanced mono sound. It ranks below only the very earliest stamper generations within the Bergenfield run (differences there are subtle), and above the 1964-71 blue trident repress, the 1980s-90s OJC reissues, and most CD remasters; the 2000s Analogue Productions mono/stereo audiophile reissue is a respected modern alternative, but original Van Gelder-cut Bergenfield copies remain the sonic benchmark.

Notes

This is the original mono first pressing of PRLP 7166 on the yellow-and-black "fireworks" Prestige label with the Bergenfield, NJ address and deep groove on both sides, the design in use when the album was first released circa 1959/1960. "PRLP-7166-A RVG" is stamped in the deadwax on side A and "PRLP-7166-B RVG VBW" on side B, the RVG stamps confirming Van Gelder mastering, consistent with an early Bergenfield-era pressing rather than the later blue trident label (1964-71) or subsequent Fantasy/OJC reissues.

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