Your Not-So-Obvious Best Fidelity LPs


I’ve spent over three years building up to the system I have now.  I’m really happy with it and my wife and I love sitting in our listening room spinning various vinyl most evenings.  Rather than researching and testing gear, I want to spend this year adding great recordings to our collection.

So what are the albums you have that every time you play it you're continually amazed at its fidelity?  You might have spent $80 on it or just $1 or maybe it was a hand-me-down decades ago.  Any genre really.

And if we can please avoid the most obvious choices (which are truly wonderful) such as Pink Floyd, The Eagles, Diana Krall, etc.  I’m looking for albums, (vinyl only please) that probably fly under the radar for most folks.

I'll start….

James Taylor - Dad Loves His Work - this was just given to me by a friend a couple of weeks ago as he had an extra copy.  I have plenty of JT albums but I didn’t have this one yet.  As soon as I put it on I could tell it was special.

Edie Brickell - Shooting Rubberbands at the Stars - My wife requested this one so I found a NM copy on Discogs for a reasonable price.  This kind of blew my socks off.  Sounds really wonderful and present and the music still holds up.

Counting Crows - August and Everything After - I surprised my wife with this one as it’s one of her favorite albums.  They really nailed the recording and pressing on this one.  It’s quite impressive. 

Ben Folds - What Matters Most - He’s one of our favorite songwriters but trying to find a copy of anything of his or Ben Folds Five for under $80 is nearly impossible.  This album was released just last year and they obviously paid special attention to the recording quality.  Sounds just phenomenal. 

Steely Dan - Northeast Corridor - Obviously everyone knows how amazing their studio recordings are but this album might be unknown to some as it came out just a few years ago.  I bought it on a whim knowing nothing about it.  It’s amazing.  As if they would release an album with less than stellar fidelity.  If you’re a Dan fan, this album is a no-brainer.

REM - Automatic for the People - Completely hypnotic.  Stunning recording.

OK, that’s enough from me.  

paulietunes

Jakob Dylan - Seeing Things

Ian Dury - New Boots and Panties

In classical

Haendel Duetti et Cantate Da Camera on Harmonia Mundi is one I keep coming back to along with...

The Film Music of Ingmar Bergman (Mozart, Chopin, Handel, Scarlatti) by Kabi Lareti on Proprius - difficult to find now and unfortunately Proprius's vinyl was never very good even when new. But the recording is outstanding.

Buddy Guy - A Man and The Blues on Vanguard - from the 60’s when he was playing a grittier, more sparse style. 
 

+1 Curtis Mayfield Live - love it. John Hyatt, Crossing Muddy Waters is a good one and I like David Bowie, Hunky Dory too

ZZ Top Deguello

Another Bernie Grundman masterpiece. Turn up "Fool for your Stockings" and listen to what your system can do.

Two more spectacular recordings that I have heard, and own, only in reissued versions:

1)  "Satchmo Plays King Oliver"--1960, Audio Fidelity (original issue), Classic Records reissue.

2)  "Alternate Blues" (Gillespie, Terry, Hubbard, Peterson)-1980, Analogue Productions reissue.