What are your reference tracks... and why?

What are the reference tracks that you listen to to evaluate systems and why?

I posted this list in the hi-fi forum but wanted to re-post it here to get some feedback.

I have a disc that I feel are the tracks that will paint me a pretty good picture of what a particular system sounds like. Recordings I know well. I keep it in my car at all times so it is there when needed. Many of these recordings are flawed in some way or another, like so much great music is, and I want to see how a system handles them. Any decent system should be able to represent a 'perfect' recording, but I also want a system that presents a flawed recording in a way more pleasing than being force fed a lizard.


Carmen - Paula Cole, This Fire - This is a great example of 'demo-itis'. Try as they might, they couldn't surpass the original, casual demo so on the record it went. Recorded in Paula's NYC apartment, this recording is open and airy with a strange sounding vocal, probably a Shure 58 or similar with a bit of a strange effect added. I want to see that this track makes sense rhythmically and that the vocal is not impossible to listen to.

Chan Chan - Buena Vista Social Club - Gorgeous, lots of natural ambience. A near perfect recording. I would suspect there is not a single person reading this page who does not own this.

I Love You - Daniel Lanois, Shine - M. Lanois is a genius. Period. I once read an interview that he said he wanted this whole album to be very warm, with no harsh sounds at all... and that's exactly how it should sound. If your system is up to it, the opening bass notes should shake the room!

Isa Lei - Ry Cooder and VM Bhatt, A Meeting By The River - If there has ever been a perfect recording, this is it. 'Isa Lei' is a very beautiful, delicate piece of music. Pay careful attention to the sound of, and the space around, the tabla. It is startling how many systems you can hear the attack and the reverb but not the note of the drum or the resonance of the shell.

Living With The Law - Chris Whitley, Living With The Law - A great recording by Malcolm Burn with Chris' passionate vocal over a heavily layered yet somehow quite natural background. The kick drum and bass guitar should have authority and you should be able to follow all the various parts without the background becoming a wall of sound... and not in the good Phil Spector way!

Nothing - Nikka Costa, Everybody Got Their Something - An amazingly sexy vocal but it can bunch up in the upper-mid frequencies. If you can,try listening to this track on ProAcs with a decent source. It's really special. The cello, bass guitar and percussion prior to the drum entrance provide lots of deep low frequencies.

Recordae - Mozart's Requiem - William Christie, Les Arts Florissants - Another near perfect recording. Great for soundstage evaluation as the voices float from various positions on the stage.

Scherzo No. 2 - Håvard Gimse, Chopin : Scherzi and Preludes - A very dynamic performance that, like most of Ken Christianson's recordings, can be a bit muddy if the system cannot unravel it.

Spanish Harlem Incident - Chris Whitley, Perfect Day - A live off the floor analog recording, complete with tape hiss, with Billy Martin and Chris Wood. Whitley's vocal is vintage flavoured, probably an old RCA 77, and quite wooly but should not sound too much so. Add Martin's understated bass and Wood's hypnotic drumming and you get a delicious track with lots and lots of open space.

The Night We Called It A Day - Chris Anderson and Charlie Haden, None But The Lonely Heart - Definitive. This requires absolutely no explanation to anyone who knows Naim.

Wasting My Time - Sam Phillips, Fan Dance - The lovely and talented Ms. Burnett's vocal is a touch sharp, but the cello steals the track. Same cellist, three times. One left, one right, one centre, exquisitely arranged with wonderful interplay. Beatles...? Who are the Beatles...?

Where Will I Be - Emmylou Harris, Wrecking Ball - Emmylou's haunting vocal and Daniel's stunning production, though not nearly as warm as 'Shine'. I listen mainly to the vocal, the way the track builds and want to really hear the fundamentals of the bass.