What vinyl recordings would you bring to an audio show to use for auditioning gear?

[philb7777]

RMAF is coming up quick. What five records would you bring to use for auditioning gear? Curious to see what the answers are as I am still pondering what to bring....

[Johnny Vinyl]

I'm not going, but if I were I'd bring:

Dido - No Angel (Classic Clarity)
Supertramp - Crime of the Century (Speakers Corner)
Aaron Neville - Warm Your Heart (ORG 45RPM)
Marvin Gaye - What's Going On (MFSL)
Neil Young - Massey Hall 1971 (Reprise)
John Lee Hooker - The Healer (Classic)

Good cross-section of various genres. I wouldn't bring any Jazz or Classical since there would likely be plenty of that being played everywhere.

[MylesBAstor]

I usually bring more because being a reviewer, often get more of an opportunity to audition gear. Plus I will change up albums through the show to avoid boredom. I try to bring along at least one rock, jazz and classical album. In addition to which, these albums are selected to assess dynamics, low end (for what it's worth at shows), male and female vocal, large scale orchestral and soundstaging.

Off the top of my head, several examples of albums that I've brought to shows include:

Lou Reed: Transformer (Speakers Corner)
Super Percussion (Super Analogue Records)
Schuller: Seven Studies on Themes of Paul Klee (Mercury Records, 2nd and 3rd movements)
Elvis '57 (Analogue Productions)
Dean Martin: Dream with Dean (Analogue Productions)
Doors: LA Woman (Analogue Productions)
Sonny Meets Hawk (Classic Records/RCA)
Imada: Now (TBM, 180 gm reissue)

[Goheelz]

The LPs listed thus far are well-recognized audiophile recordings, but I prefer to demo audio gear with well-recorded but non-audiophile albums. This way, I can get a sense of how equipment will sound with the vast majority of my collection, which consists mostly of relatively ordinary LPs, rather than tweaked-for-the-spectacular recordings. For example:

T-Bone Walker, "Plain Ole Blues" (Charly)
Lucinda Williams, "The Ghosts of Highway 20" (Highway 20)
Elvis Presley, "Elvis's Golden Records" (RCA reissue, stereo)
Shawn Colvin, "Uncovered" (Fantasy)

[Gusf]

Love the Lucinda Williams album.

[Johnny Vinyl]

The LPs listed thus far are well-recognized audiophile recordings, but I prefer to demo audio gear with well-recorded but non-audiophile albums. This way, I can get a sense of how equipment will sound with the vast majority of my collection, which consists mostly of relatively ordinary LPs, rather than tweaked-for-the-spectacular recordings. For example:

T-Bone Walker, "Plain Ole Blues" (Charly)
Lucinda Williams, "The Ghosts of Highway 20" (Highway 20)
Elvis Presley, "Elvis's Golden Records" (RCA reissue, stereo)
Shawn Colvin, "Uncovered" (Fantasy)

Fair and good point actually. I know for myself that I listen to many more non-audiophile releases, so here are a few I'd bring:

Cat Stevens - Tea for the Tillerman (German Pink Island)
Pink Floyd - Dark Side of the Moon (UK Harvest a3/b3)
Janis Ian - Between the Lines (Columbia Canada)
Roxy Music - the high road (Warner Canada)
Led Zeppelin - LZII (Atlantic Canada RED label)

[1morerecord2clean]

Ain't they yummy!

[Bill Hart]

Johnny- you know I'm a big fan of Between the Lines. Is your red label Canadian a TG in the deadwax? The red label of III with TG is comparable to the UK first and is a relative bargain. Not easy to find outside of Canada, though.

[Johnny Vinyl]

Unfortunately mine does not have the TG inscription (W SD 8236 S-1 G M), but it still sounds very nice. I'm not a super ZEP fan, so I'm ok with the copy I have.

[david k]

While reviewers get a pass asking to play several different records unless you know the exhibitor the average person has to contend a track or two specially if it's busy. Make your own pick and take along a few records that you really like and know well, some people bring records to impress others that won't tell you anything about the product. The one thing I recommend is to start with the same track that you use for setting up your own arm & cartridges at home to figure out the state of their setup first. Shows are tough, time is limited and often the analog setups can be far from acceptable.

david

[MylesBAstor]

Yes and sometimes we can even get a little after hours listening in too!

[david k]

Always happy to oblige, we're often in the room until very late demoing during CES.

[Goheelz]

david k I've only been to a few audio shows, but I agree that sometimes dealers at shows are not exactly eager to hear non-audiophile-approved music supplied by (potential) customers. This is crazy, in my opinion, and yet there's always a chorus in various audio publications complaining that the industry is in trouble. Maybe it's the way music-loving, music-toting customers get treated? I liked the model at AXPONA that allowed for arranging in advance for private listening sessions with dealers. A great concept.

[Bill Hart]

David- like the "No Stairway" sign in Wayne's World, you might put up a sign prohibiting sonic banalities. I was once researching something about professional clowns (don't ask, this was years ago, before the recent pandemic of creepy clowns) and one of the first hits I got was from a professional clown trade association seeking to ban "clown porn." Now, I don't want to spend too much time thinking about what that involves, but the concept of the international "NO" sign (red circle with transverse bar) and the words "sonic porn" might be funny.
Don't take me the wrong way- I haven't had much sleep lately.

[Goheelz]

Bill Hart "Sonic banalities": an excellent and apt phrase to describe music that's both awful and played to death! I shall borrow your fine phrase, with your permission, but plan to use it only on occasion, to avoid the dreaded rhetorical banality effect (endemic among audio writers).

[david k]

Bill- I wonder if they wanted the ban because the clowns were giving it or taking it, certainly worth a google search! Sonic banalities it is, we'll use that term for next CES!

david

[Steve Lefkowicz]

Last show (Newport) I bought three LPs with me. All three were "suspect" when I asked to have them played, but all three also helped stop people in their tracks and got them to to sit and listen,
Samantha Crain - Under Branch & Thorn & Tree (100% analog)
Sublime - Sublime reissue, 180 gram two record set)
Alec Lytle and them Rounders - The End of Ours (a digital recording, but beautifully done, and the LP still sounds better than the CD)

Of course I also bring a USB stick with a variety of digital files for those exhibits that don't do LP.

[JCOConnell]

That's a good idea with the USB stick. You could even put some familiar vinyl rips on there.

[siddh]

I actually have considered requesting lps with lesser quality in audiophile terms...albums that don't blow me away sonically. Not referring to crappy mixes or poor bootlegs, but rather good recordings that just don't shine. An example would be Joe Henderson At The Lighthouse. I much enjoy the music; have listened to dozens of times; curious if it the high-end systems are capable of an even more involving presentation.

[allenh]

Not going either, but my picklist would be:

- Jacintha: Here's To Ben
- Shelby Lynn - Lost Highway
- Fanfare for the Common Man: RR/Oue
- then either Dream With Dean (AP) or Nat King Cole Love Is the Thing

Myles, Super Percussion is a great LP. Surprised not to see DCD ITL :-)

[MylesBAstor]

Not going either, but my picklist would be:

- Jacintha: Here's To Ben
- Shelby Lynn - Lost Highway
- Fanfare for the Common Man: RR/Oue
- then either Dream With Dean (AP) or Nat King Cole Love Is the Thing

Myles, Super Percussion is a great LP. Surprised not to see DCD ITL :-)

Ha! I forgot. I always forget DCD. It's for some reason for me eminently forgettable.

I also am considering Bob and Ray (that sounds amazing on the right system) and Blade Runner. But things are fluid at this point!

[Johnny Vinyl]

Some other non-audiophile LP's I'd consider bringing:

Maria Muldaur - S/T
Phoebe Snow - S/T
Tracy Chapman - S/T
Bruce Cockburn - Stealing Fire (Most of BC's work on the True North label is excellent)

[philb7777]

Thanks for the responses everyone. As for DCD, I brought Into the Labyrinth to RMAF in 2014. Its a great recording and great music.

Here is my tentative list which I need to trim down a bit before heading to Denver:

Bonnie Prince Billy and the Cairo Gang - The Wonder Show of the World - great new folk stuff on Drag City (DC 2012)

War - Why Can't We Be Friends? (UA441H) Yeah - but believe it or not, the recording is dynamic as hell and really fun music; excellent recording

Willie Dixon and Memphis Slim - WIllie's Blues (Prestige/Bluesville 1003 - Analogue Productions Reissue) - great music and great recording. The lead off track, "Nervous" is exceptional.

Sofia Pfister - Sophia Pfister (self-released) - this is great, singer from LA, you may have heard about her on Fremer's website. Think Norah Jones crossed with Hope Sandoval.

Shelly Manne and His Men - Live! Shelly Manne and his Men at the Manne Hole (Contemporary S7593/4 Japanese Reissue) Great live jazz record that rivals Shelly's at the Blackhawk Vol 1-4.

Lou Reed - Transformer (180 Gram RCA reissue)

Rob Wasserman - Duets (MCA Records) - One of the best recordings of pop music out there. Rob's duet with Jennifer Warnes called 'Ballad of the Runaway Horse' is a track that Sonus Faber uses to train dealers how to set up their speakers.

Sonny Stitt - Now! (Japanese white label promo Impulse) Perhaps the most under appreciated jazz sax man and album out there. Trust me - it has the 'in your room' illusion on every track.

Shelly Manne and Jack Marshall - Sounds Unheard Of! (Contemporary Analogue Productions Stereo reissue). Phenomenal sound effects recording of drums, various precision and acoustic guitar.

Nic Jones - Penguin Eggs (Topic Records UK ) - great UK folk revival from the early 80's. Very good recording of close-miked voice and percussive acoustic guitar

[MylesBAstor]

Thanks for the responses everyone. As for DCD, I brought Into the Labyrinth to RMAF in 2014. Its a great recording and great music.

Here is my tentative list which I need to trim down a bit before heading to Denver:

Bonnie Prince Billy and the Cairo Gang - The Wonder Show of the World - great new folk stuff on Drag City (DC 2012)

War - Why Can't We Be Friends? (UA441H) Yeah - but believe it or not, the recording is dynamic as hell and really fun music; excellent recording

Willie Dixon and Memphis Slim - WIllie's Blues (Prestige/Bluesville 1003 - Analogue Productions Reissue) - great music and great recording. The lead off track, "Nervous" is exceptional.

Sofia Pfister - Sophia Pfister (self-released) - this is great, singer from LA, you may have heard about her on Fremer's website. Think Norah Jones crossed with Hope Sandoval.

Shelly Manne and His Men - Live! Shelly Manne and his Men at the Manne Hole (Contemporary S7593/4 Japanese Reissue) Great live jazz record that rivals Shelly's at the Blackhawk Vol 1-4.

Lou Reed - Transformer (180 Gram RCA reissue)

Rob Wasserman - Duets (MCA Records) - One of the best recordings of pop music out there. Rob's duet with Jennifer Warnes called 'Ballad of the Runaway Horse' is a track that Sonus Faber uses to train dealers how to set up their speakers.

Sonny Stitt - Now! (Japanese white label promo Impulse) Perhaps the most under appreciated jazz sax man and album out there. Trust me - it has the 'in your room' illusion on every track.

Shelly Manne and Jack Marshall - Sounds Unheard Of! (Contemporary Analogue Productions Stereo reissue). Phenomenal sound effects recording of drums, various precision and acoustic guitar.

Nic Jones - Penguin Eggs (Topic Records UK ) - great UK folk revival from the early 80's. Very good recording of close-miked voice and percussive acoustic guitar

I sometimes bring the two Shelly Mannes you listed to shows too. The Contemporary/Analogue Productions 45 rpm release has been a long time reference for me. Barney Kessell's playing and the sound of his guitar is unbelievable. Not to mention Manne's drum solos. Wow.... Only thing with my reissue copy is that it's slightly less than 12-inches in diameter and ergo my ring clamp won't hold the album down.

Sounds Unheard Of has been an even longer reference since Sid Marks introduced it to me some 20+ years ago (I also think he wrote about it for my magazine Ultimate Audio back in the late '90s). Superlative sound though just a little too ping pongy at times. I have a number of originals, Chad's original (not on the same level sadly as the original) and a test pressing of the soon to be released new reissue from Chad. I wish though someone would have released it at 45 rpm.

I also have the Nick Jones album around too (just haven't seen it in a while)! Great album. Was imported at one time by Rega Records (late '90s) and Mike Trei had given me a copy back then. I think we also talked about some of the other artists on Topic Records (don't get the Shanachie versions) such as June Tabor and her album Aqaba.

I just got the latest 33 rpm version of the Willie Dixon but haven't had a chance to give it a spin yet.

Will have to check out some of your other suggestions!

[philb7777]

I sometimes bring the two Shelly Mannes you listed to shows too. The Contemporary/Analogue Productions 45 rpm release has been a long time reference for me. Barney Kessell's playing and the sound of his guitar is unbelievable. Not to mention Manne's drum solos. Wow.... Only thing with my reissue copy is that it's slightly less than 12-inches in diameter and ergo my ring clamp won't hold the album down.

Sounds Unheard Of has been an even longer reference since Sid Marks introduced it to me some 20+ years ago (I also think he wrote about it for my magazine Ultimate Audio back in the late '90s). Superlative sound though just a little too ping pongy at times. I have a number of originals, Chad's original (not on the same level sadly as the original) and a test pressing of the soon to be released new reissue from Chad. I wish though someone would have released it at 45 rpm.

I also have the Nick Jones album around too (just haven't seen it in a while)! Great album. Was imported at one time by Rega Records (late '90s) and Mike Trei had given me a copy back then. I think we also talked about some of the other artists on Topic Records (don't get the Shanachie versions) such as June Tabor and her album Aqaba.

I just got the latest 33 rpm version of the Willie Dixon but haven't had a chance to give it a spin yet.

Will have to check out some of your other suggestions!

One of the best things about audio shows is meeting people and sharing great music! I always leave a show with a list of records I have to find! Hope to see you there and share a bit of music Myles. I am always interested in what you post your are currently playing!