Best CD

Give the Chandos recording of Carl Neilsen's "Alladin" a try,make sure it's the full version. It's got to be one of the greatest dynamic orchestral recordings ever made. On a big system it is a mind blower. Every time I listen, I don't know whether I should run or not it's so powerful.

Let me add Eva Cassidy's live at Blues Alley. Although not all the tracks are recorded at the same level,most are pure bliss.

High Endition Society produces and distributes some phenomenal sounding CD's, my favorite manufacturer. They're rare and expensive, but soundstaging, nuances and musical content is superb. My favorite is Volume 9-Life Stories.

You can read more about this German audiophile group and their CD offerings here: http://www.highendsociety.de/english/society/ueberuns.php

Note- I am in no way affiliated with these folks.

'easy living genre'? YIKES

To fulfill the 'jazz' category,an easy pick for best sound quality,'Dick Hyman-From the Age of Swing' on reference recordings,in HDCD.It is of such a calibre of quality that you,(or I do anyway)perceive that you can 'feel' the chuffing out the bells of the saxes on certain cuts,and I do not mean chuffing from the speakers.Cymbal work also is a clear indication of the quality of the recording. OT,I wonder how much 'ribbing' Mr.Hyman has suffered in his life with those names.