What LP shows what analog can do?

I have a couple of copies I squirreled away a few years back. Strings a little steely sounding (compared with the Firebird or some of the Decca reissues), but otherwise a terrific record. Some of those Readers Digest recordings were far better than the records they pressed--same goes for some of the Voxes, such as the Ravel and Gershwin boxed sets. The original vinyl I've found is easily surpassed by the Analog Productions and Reference Recordings reissues. Lets you see how good Wilkinson and the Aubort/Nicrenz team really were.

Have you guys heard the Reference Recordings' Gershwin Mastercut Reissues? A specific cut, "Variations on I Got Rhythm" got me boogying and twirling an invisible baton like a crazy mofo! It's not as explosive as the Firebird, but the overall sound is so natural and utterly convincing. Check it out. These records are still available from Acoustic Sounds or Elusive Disks.

That's one of the reissues I was referring to. Their Ravel and Rachmaninoff are excellent as well, the former a nice complement to the Analogue Productions reissues from the same Vox Box. Interesting to compare the Reference and AP reissues of those sets to the Classic Records DADs from those tapes, and RR's remastering chain to Doug Sax's tubed remastering job. Same master tapes, three different sonic signatures, all of them highly enjoyable and working to show how good the original recording really was (although I still can't figure how Classic mixed up the right and left channels on the DADs, even within the same piece, such as the Gershwin Concerto in F). It's too bad that Reference couldn't make any profit from their fine efforts to do more vinyl in the series, but such are the economics of this business, I guess.

Ralph Towner and Gary Burton on "matchbook". Absolutley KILLS the cd version. Suzanne Vega, " Solitude Standing"....Dire Straits, "Alchemy Live"...There are so many! I keep finding more gems that I've forgotten about everytime I dig thru my collection.

Rcprince wrote, "I still can't figure how Classic mixed up the right and left channels on the DADs, even within the same piece, such as the Gershwin Concerto in F."

I have a Smithsonian recording of Bach's Brandenburg #5 that does the same thing in MID-MOVEMENT! The harpsichord begins in a continuo role and is placed right rear. Halfway in there's an extended cadenza for solo harpsichord, the first such in musical history BTW. Just as its solo begins the harpsichord, all 500 lbs. of it, suddenly leaps to center stage front! Once the solo is finished this amazing harpsichord retreats to right rear to resume its continuo role.

What an amazing combination of athleticism and musicianship! Wish I'd been there to see it live. :)