Great topic, tough to choose just three so going with three from 3 different genres:
Classical:
Mozart Divertimento K.563 Cummings String Trio on Meridian (CD). Great for assessing string tone and ability to distinguish musical lines
Mozart Piano Uchida Live Phillips (CD). Great piano tone and hall acoustics. Check out the Adagio which is the final track.
Brahms Violin Sonata Abel Wilson (LP). Great all around chamber music recording
Jazz:
Patricia Barber "Nightclub" Autumn Leaves. (MOFI LP) Great acoustic bass and super clean vocals. Good test for excess sibilance.
Sonny Rollins "Way Out West" (Acoustic Sounds LP) "Old Cowhand" Great live drum feel and sax immediacy.
Linda Ronstadt and Nelson Riddle "What's New" (MOFI LP) I love the final cut "Goodbye" which is great for vocal texture and immediacy.
Rock (ish):
Fagen "The Nightfly" (MOFI One Step) and "Morph the Cat" (LP). Love the title track of the former for system drive and projection--if your feet don't move your dead! The bass guitar in Morph the Cat goes super deep and you should be able to follow the line clearly throughout the song.
Shelby Lynn "Just a Little Lovin". (Acoustic Sounds LP). The title cut is killer--yes, the kick drum should hit you in the chest but I mostly listen for the rim shots on the snare at the start--they should reverberate and echo in the studio with real percussive shock.
Nick Drake "Pink Moon" (Island LP Reissue). Great percussive guitar sound, should be able to really hear the intricate work and fingering. Pretty good for vocals too! I'll also throw in Michael Hedges "Breakfast in the Field LP and Alex Degrassi "Slow Circle" for great sounding (but different) acoustic guitar recordings.
I'll force myself to stop.....
Classical:
Mozart Divertimento K.563 Cummings String Trio on Meridian (CD). Great for assessing string tone and ability to distinguish musical lines
Mozart Piano Uchida Live Phillips (CD). Great piano tone and hall acoustics. Check out the Adagio which is the final track.
Brahms Violin Sonata Abel Wilson (LP). Great all around chamber music recording
Jazz:
Patricia Barber "Nightclub" Autumn Leaves. (MOFI LP) Great acoustic bass and super clean vocals. Good test for excess sibilance.
Sonny Rollins "Way Out West" (Acoustic Sounds LP) "Old Cowhand" Great live drum feel and sax immediacy.
Linda Ronstadt and Nelson Riddle "What's New" (MOFI LP) I love the final cut "Goodbye" which is great for vocal texture and immediacy.
Rock (ish):
Fagen "The Nightfly" (MOFI One Step) and "Morph the Cat" (LP). Love the title track of the former for system drive and projection--if your feet don't move your dead! The bass guitar in Morph the Cat goes super deep and you should be able to follow the line clearly throughout the song.
Shelby Lynn "Just a Little Lovin". (Acoustic Sounds LP). The title cut is killer--yes, the kick drum should hit you in the chest but I mostly listen for the rim shots on the snare at the start--they should reverberate and echo in the studio with real percussive shock.
Nick Drake "Pink Moon" (Island LP Reissue). Great percussive guitar sound, should be able to really hear the intricate work and fingering. Pretty good for vocals too! I'll also throw in Michael Hedges "Breakfast in the Field LP and Alex Degrassi "Slow Circle" for great sounding (but different) acoustic guitar recordings.
I'll force myself to stop.....