Music first or sound first?

Music 1st, without a doubt. I can listen to and enjoy music anywhere, on any playing platform. I love music, 1st and foremost. When I listen to my system, the advantage here for me is that it creates a greater sense of I am there, or they are here. Following the " musicianship " and enjoying the " composition " is easy on my main rig. Listening in the car as an example, my brain needs to fill in some of the nuances that are missing, plus the attention being given to the driving. My system allows me to be immersed & engaged, feeling as if the musicians and I are sharing a space. The home rig simply gets me closer to the enjoyment, without interruption, because it just does. Music is always on, unless I am watching a movie or a show, I am sleeping, or out and about. Obviously, I must like the music, enjoy it. My best, MrD.

Music first.  I definitely prefer to listen to good music that suits my mood than a demo disc that has great sound but not-so-great music.  Fortunately, I own some discs that have both, but the combination is unfortunately rare.  The good recordings are helpful for selecting gear, especially if I'm familiar with them, but I an enjoy lesser recordings as much or more if the music is great.

A catch 22 question as both are important. We probably all fell in love with music first as that is what communicated to us and continues to touch us in a deep way. Then we were exposed to that music being played on a HiFi set up and what grabbed us was how great the music sounded and what detail we had been missing on the radio or a more modest music system. With music my friends phrase 'too much music too little time' springs to mind as I continue to seek out  new artists, but at the same time sound is key too. So I'm going to cheat, and say I put both first, it's not an either, or - but both that deliver me enjoyment.

Growing up, my parents owned a small, indie record store in Denver back in the late 70s and early 80s. It's where I not only was exposed to my parents' taste in music that ran the gamut from the delta blues, R&B, soul, jazz, rock, zydeco, swamp pop, rockabilly, and classical but also allowed me to discover my musical taste for punk, ska, reggae, dub, early hip hop, new wave, industrial, Americana, early ambient and electronic music as well.  My mid-fi setup has always been about the music and upgrading over time has been a way to enjoy my collection even more. Graduating from the early Montgomery Ward all-in-one stereo I had as a kid to the hand-me-down separates my father gave me was a gateway to finally hearing the music in a way that was just not possible via the radio.

Now I'm in my early 50s and there isn't a day that doesn't go by where I'm not listening to music. Whether it's casual background music or later at night after the kids are in bed and I can put my headphones on and enjoy a few hours of purposeful listening - revisiting old favorites or discovering new artists or new-to-me albums/artists I ignored in my early years. It's not about getting the absolute perfect sound, just the best sound for enjoying music. 

A person who’s a natural tinkerer / gear person and just likes the science / tech side of things? More power to ya.

And bad mastering is just a bad, bad thing.

However, it’s very sad to me to think a person couldn’t enjoy beautiful music because the recording doesn’t resemble whatever their idea of a “well-recorded piece of music” is.  
For a multitude of reasons, I find that very sad.