Best POP audiophile recording/album...

Dire Straits-1st Album.

Laurie Anderson/Life on a String

A couple that I love for their music and the recording....
Little Feat, "Waiting for Columbus"
Tom Waits, "Get behind the mule"
Jack Johnson, "In between dreams"

Ditto on the XTC... also "Oranges and Lemons"
Joe Jackson "Night and Day"
Joan Baez "Diamonds and Rust"
CSNY "Deja Vu"
Bruce Cockburn "Stealing Fire"
Supertramp "Crisis What Crisis"
Santana "Welcome"

Jennie Warnes, "Famous Blue Raincoat" is tough to beat. These listed below are great sonically (on my system) and are excellent music.

Eels, "Electro Shock Blues"
Eels, "Beautiful Freak"
Janis Ian, "Breaking Silence"
Stevie Ray Vaughn, "Couldn't Stand The Weather"
Kate Bush, "Aerial"
Daniel Lanois, "For Beauty of Winona"
The Doors, "An American Prayer"
GoldFrapp, "Felt Mountain"
Tori Amos, "Boys for Pele"
Bjork, "Post"
Cassandra Wilson, "New Moon Daughter"
Rickie Lee Jones "Pop Pop"
Rickie Lee Jones "Traffic from Paradise"
Dead Can Dance, "Serpents Egg"
Roger Waters, "Amused to Death"
Yello, "Flag"

Evaluated from my LP's, I don't have any of these on CD.