No Quarter - remaster version. Wish You Were Here - Harvest label import CD Red Barchetta - MFSL CD Why - MTV Unplugged Collection, Volume One Hands With A Hammer - Zappa/Dunbar The Thing That Should Not Be The Great Gig In The Sky - vinyl
Dave Brubeck and the Take Five album is not only a great album but has the widest range of good clear 'music' to test new equipment. From the tiny bells and triangles to longer bass solos you can hear it all. When that is all settled then try some Captain Beefheart and the Magic Band doing 'I'm Gonna Booglerize You Baby". Turn it up.
Famous Blue Raincoat - Leonard Cohen My Favorite Things - John Coltrane Bitches Brew - Miles Davis Caravan, Ocht O'clock Rock - Duke Ellington Overture - Tommy - The Who Sisters of Mercy - Leonard Cohen St. Thomas - Sonny Rollins
Apparently classical listeners never get new systems. For my last upgrade, the Druzhinin/Muntyan recording of the Shostakovich viola sonata that I ripped myself from a virgin Melodiya lp. Some of the Bostridge /Ades Winterreise, and a Mahler symphony (maybe 5?).
Important to have several ~~Reference recordings~~~ when determining if a new piece of equipment is great,,avg or poor,,,and also for revealing mods,, if a success or a failure,,,Knowing how a reference cd sounds pre mod post mod, , tube rolling. Faith Hill, is one such reference,,,opening track You were Right There, ,,, how much passion comes through, Diana Krall. Others include, Sophie Milman, , Gatemouth Brown Diana Krall
Yaz - "Situation" from the Upstairs at Eric’s album. Norah Jones - "Lonestar" (female voice demo) and Painter Song from her Come Away with Me LP. EP version of Steve Winwood's Higher Love.
Bryan Ferry - Don’t stop the Dance Roxy Music - Avalon Joni Mitchell - Court and Spark-Supertramp - Even in the Quietest Moments-Cat Stevens- How can I tell You- Eric Clapton - She’s Waiting- The Police - Voices in my Head David Grey - This Year’s Love- Ry Cooder- I Like Your Eyes - Sting - Fortress Around Your Heart
If I want to get a feel for a systems overall reach and capability while still listening to real music I find a good pressing of the eponymous Rickie Lee Jones essential. The parts where Mr. Scott and the horn section are stretching out are brilliant from a evaluation perspective. Musics pretty hot too. Any of the 'audiophile classics' that you like, especially the well done direct-to-disc ones are perfect tools to help review a system.
New speakers are a huge event for us music lovers and can have the most obvious and immediate effect on what you hear. Changes like cartridges and amps and power cables can sometimes make improvements that take a while to sink in. If the speakers are a genuine improvement much of that jumps right at you (in general, no quibbles please).
My new speakers were two weeks old yesterday and they are begging me for a coffee break. Get back to work I respond!
Some great music here. Thanks for all the suggestions. I've found some artists I like that I wasn't aware of.
Here's a few a like. I think a few of these might have been listed already.
"Birds" by Dominique Fils-Aime on Nameless
"Kiss in Blue" by Yello/Heidi Happy on Touch "Why" by Sophie Zelmani on Time to Kill "Hallelujah" by Jeff Buckley on Grace "Fading Sun" by Terje Isungset on Winter Songs (great bass and bells) "Way Down Deep" by Jennifer Warnes on The Hunter "With All My Love" by Melanie De Blasio on No Deal "Tin Pan Alley" by Stevie Ray Vaughan on Couldn't Stand The Weather "Show Biz Kids" by Rickie Lee Jones on It's Like This "Thanks to You" by Boz Scaggs on Dig
I burned the following on CD for auditioning systems since I know the tunes well and it tests various aspects I’m interested in...
Shirley Horn - The Music That Makes Me Dance
Rebecca Pidgeon - Spanish Harlem
Michael Franks - Dragonfly Summer
Dianne Reeves - Never Too Far
Fourplay - 101 Eastbound
Steely Dan - Jack of Speed
Grace Jones- Don't Cry - It's Only The Rhythm
Larry Carlton & Lee Ritenour - Take That
Herbie Hancock - Butterfly
Lee Ritenour - Boss City
Dave Brubeck - Take Five
Miles Davis - So What
Buddy Guy - Sweet Black Angel (Black Angel Blues)
Cassandra Wilson - A Little Warm Death
i would like to compliment you for your outstanding taste in music 👍
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