It’s a natural that Preservation Hall, the bare-bones French Quarter nightspot world-renowned for presenting New Orleans traditional jazz, should spawn its own record label. So much so that some folks may even have presumed a label heralding the name already existed.

It wasn't until this fall that the 42-year-old institution launched its own Preservation Hall Recordings. In December, the fledgling label released its first two albums, Sweet Emma and Her Preservation Hall Jazz Band and Prese...