Best recorded albums of all time? - Page 3

Ditto on the Chabrier - It's currently my ultimate reference vinyl (on the Classic reissue). I expect never to hear anything that sounds much better.

just a tad too close-miked on her vocal for me.

try Janis Ian - Breaking Silence, esp. the title cut Really Loud

Besides Rebecca Pidgeon's Raven which has already been mentioned, another Chesky recording I find top notch is Ana Caram's "The Other Side of Jobim".

"Live in Paris" by Diana Krall is flawlessly recorded imho.

One of my favorite Diana Krall recordings is "Love Scenes", but it has some recording artifacts, so I don't put it among the very best (just as a recording). For one thing, Love Scenes has quite some background white noise. While it's perfectly bearable, for example in "I don't stand a ghost of a chance with you", if you listen closely you can hear that background noise go significantly higher right before her voice first appears in the song, she sings "I love you oooohh so... madly...", and then right afterwards the background noise goes down. Right before her voice comes back again, background noise goes up, she sings her second phrase "I need your love so... badly...", and then right afterwards background noise goes down again. This happens a few more times, as if her mic (or the corresponding channel) was being completely shut off when she wasn't singing, or as if the mixing simply showed different levels of background noise in the different channels being mixed. (Has anyone noticed these issues I'm mentioning in this CD btw?) Whatever technique caused this, maybe it lowers the noise in some parts of the song, but it introduces these unnatural imbalances in the background white noise that clearly remind you that you are just listening to a recording that went through some stuff in a studio etc. Despite all this nitpicking, that is a great CD too, hugely recommended.

I have the 'Love Scenes' - Diana Krall CD, and I never notices the noises that u mention. but thats probably because I didnt listen to the song in a very detail and analytical manner.

I'm going to listen to it tonight, and i'll post up if i found anything

Yeah, that in & out noise is there exactly as you described. I long ago found it best to not think about, so it doesn't get in the way of the listen. Agreed on the recommendation, too - "Peel Me A Grape" is one of my very favorite DK tracks.

The Police - regatta de blanc
Dire Straits - love over gold, brothers in arms

Can't argue with this one at all. One of the best produced and recorded albums I've ever heard. It doesn't matter about the format - LP, CD, SACD - they're all good!

Can't argue with most of these. Also Steely Dan's "Aja" esp. in the recent remaster.

wow, Sailing The Seas Of Cheese by Primus sounds fantastic! i hadn't listened to this album on a real system until tonight, and it's a real treat.

Hehe, Jerry Was A Racecar Driver... man, that brings back memories.

Decay

The original CD release is terrible, closed in, flat, and veiled. The remaster that came out a few years ago is really good, expansive, great soundstage, and detailed. I got the limited edition cardboard Original Album Art version.

I meant to put that one on my list, but got busy thinking about others and forot. A VERY good album technically...I really like the title track. One of my reference cuts.

I will have to check out that remaster. I've been back-filling my collection with "the Dan", getting rid of older CD's or even cassette tapes. I've almost bit a couple of times lately on some of their SACD's.

The redbook CD remasters of Paul Simon's "Graceland" and Peter Gabriel's "So" also demonstrate some pretty nifty sound and playing. Sorry about your wallet, Tom.

These make most "best" lists and deservedly so:

Muddy Waters: Folk Singer. I've got this on MFSL Gold Disc and recently acquired the Classic Records DAD/HDAD. An indescribable realism in reproduction of instruments, voice, and the space they're performing in. Both recordings are amazing - but the 24-bit version is something else. I've never heard much difference among digital sources with CDs so I was shocked when a real time comparison between the two discs through the DAC1 left no doubt that the hi-res version must definitely come closer to what's on the analog tape. Helped convinced me to order an SACD player to further explore hi-res...

The Weavers: Reunion at Carnegie Hall-1963. On Classic Records DAD. This is it. The single best recording I've heard, ever. Can't describe it; an uncanny sense of being there that had me sitting up in my chair the first time I heard it. Anyone with a DVD player and a DAC hooked up to a hi-fi HAS to hear this sucker.

Both of these have been available (and raved about) on vinyl for years; would love to hear impressions of folks who've compared digital, especially hi-res, with the analog.

Best,
Beau