recommended redbook classics

I sugest you eschew the "beautifully recorded" requirement and go for the musical performance.
Of course each has his or her own favourite, "best" performance. Here are some ideas.
For Beethoven look for Furtwangler /Berliner or Wiener. There is also a good performance of the 9th recorded at Beireyth after WW2. Also look for Karajan's old (1962?) Beeth cycle. Generally, you can find outstanding performances of individual symphonies...

For Chopin look up Schnabel and Gould.

For Berlioz look for Munch /Radio Canada SO (unusual recommend, I know) Munch/Boston, Sir Thomas Beecham/ Orch National de la Radiodiffusion Francaise. The latter is outstanding and was my reference for a while.

For Scheherazade (Rimski-Korsakov -- not Rach), look up Ansermet/OSR, Sir T Beecham/RPO.

For E Grieg piano, look for Karajan/Zimmermann, Schwarovski/Langer.

These come to mind

Thanks for the suggestions, Gregm. I agree that stellar performance is more important than recording quality but I am hoping that, while rare, both can be found together and the amazing goners will know about it.
I know that I have heard some brilliant soloists lately. Not sure what orchestras are magic at this time. Apologies to Rimski (late night and jet lagged from Vegas return). Also really looking for a a great version of Vilvaldi's Four Seasons.

Great question. ArkivMusic.com has a recommended list that they rated 10/10 for both "Artistic Quality and Sound Quality", that might be a good resource if you have not already seen it. But I'd also like to see what other Gon'ers think on this topic.