Which track do you demo to your friends?

Ricki Lee Jones, Chuck Es in Love, from Naked songs, is the best pop live recording I have ever heard. Lyle Lovett, North Dekota, from Joshua Judges Ruth. Hard times Come Again No More, with James Taylor, from, Appalachian Journey, Yoyo Ma, Edgar Meyer and Mark Oconnor.

whatever they find in my selection of albums/cd's that interests 'em...

Same for me Doug. If they can't find something they like in my selection they don't really like music anyway

I guess I do both. First, I play something I want to hear (and share) and then I turn the controls over to my victim. My favorite has to be the "I've listened to this a thousand times and I never knew they did THAT." The other night I played the Rebecca Pigeon track for my brother. A good one. Usually I lead with a cut from the Victor Wooton solo CD, Brother John, because it is one of the more fun tracks for imaging and such. It starts as a fairly straightforward bluesey piece with fun instrumentation, all very centered, but then there is a full gospel-style chorus that kicks in that simply blossoms around and engulfs the listener. If you don't know it's coming, it's almost startling. The choir then claps along, with varying syncopated rhythms, and you can hear where each of them is standing around you. And my favorite part, one of them evidently brought a little kid along, standing in the back right of the soundstage, who chimes in from time to time. That usually gets’em. It gets me. When folks ask how much it all cost, I invariably shake my head and admit, with unfeigned chagrin, "too much." Rarely do they get more than that out of me.

Rebecca Pidgeon does it for me. Another goods are track 8 and 10 of Strunz and Farah Primal Magic where you get bird chirps and percussion instruments that switch chanels in the back part of the soundstage. Pictures at an exhibition organ played by Jean Guillou good for Bass and also for large church ambience. Long Black veil from Chieftains track #7 Coast of Malabar Regards