I've always been skeptical of those "gold" CDs. There's no magic technology out there that makes CDs sound worlds better. The real difference is in remastering, and JVC seems to do it better than anybody else. I'll echo the Bill Evans plug, but don't miss the live albums (Waltz for Debby and Sunday at the Village Vanguard).
Also, JVC licenses its jazz (some of it, at least) from Fantasy (www.fantasyjazz.com, I think), which sells the same remasterings for a lot less than the high-end catalogs charge for XRCDs. You can even find them in record stores. Just make sure that a JVC engineer (and the K2 process) are mentioned on the back of the CD.
Also, JVC licenses its jazz (some of it, at least) from Fantasy (www.fantasyjazz.com, I think), which sells the same remasterings for a lot less than the high-end catalogs charge for XRCDs. You can even find them in record stores. Just make sure that a JVC engineer (and the K2 process) are mentioned on the back of the CD.