What song do you consider to be sonically perfect?

[pixletwin]

Slow Nerve Action by the Flaming Lips

[Peadar 'Big Dinner' O'Driscoll]

1st one that comes to mind is most of "Nilsson sings Newman" also thinking the "The World Won't End" album by the Pernice Brothers.

[Wrightfan]

Here, There, and Everywhere is VERY high up there. Stereo version kicks the mono version's butt big time.

[mysticmoon1993]

Basically everything by Steely Dan... save Gaucho and everything post-Gaucho I guess. Someone here mentioned Black Cow-- totally agree on that one. Everything on Aja is flawlessly done, as is nearly everything on The Royal Scam, especially Kid Charlemagne. Donald Fagen and Walter Becker were notorious perfectionists, to the point they'd end up infuriating their musicians, I've heard. But it was totally worth it.

[Hot Rod]

Beach Boys - Hushabye
Flaming Lips - Yoshimi battles the pink robots pt. 1

I love how these songs sound.

[Jukka]

I'll skip classic Brian Wilson productions and songs recorded by Stephen Desper, or my list would consist mainly of those... So here goes!

Robert Johnson: Kind Hearted Woman Blues

Just microphone in a corner and a guy with a guitar facing it. No mixing afterwards. And hey, you got the perfect balance, vocal tone and guitar tone. Sometimes it doesn't take much.

Led Zeppelin: When The Levee Breaks

Grandeur of English country manor blended with desperation of blues and captured on tape. "Epic" is an overused word, but it's the only one doing that does this record justice.

Marvin Gaye: What's Going On (whole album)

The sound is so thick and dense, it has just the right amount of murk! By the way, I think Come Together is The Beatles' best-engineered song for the same reason.

Sex Pistols: Anarchy in the UK

Sounds huge, exciting, unstoppable. That flanging on guitar(s) is the icing on the cake, adds to that almost cosmic swirl of noise.

The Stone Roses: Second Coming -LP

One of the best drum sounds ever. And this one's got the murk too!

[RangeRoverA1]

Marvin Gaye: What's Going On (whole album)

Never got the hype for this iconic () record; it's like every next track is inferior to the last one. So by default, it's not sonically perfect for me. I agree with john k (reply #16).

however, I agree with you on Robert Johnson. Not just that song, overall.

[Jukka]

Well, What's Going On is definitely a grower, it takes quite a few listens to really sink in. It's not really about individual songs but overall vibe and Groove... And sonically, that wall of dark funk IS quite mesmerizing. Like a jungle you have to wade through.

[RangeRoverA1]

Believe me, Jukka, I heard it enough times, it's simply not my music. And that's okay by me, thank goodness there are tons of stuff to choose from.

[donald]

Of what is mentioned here, Aja and What's Goin On.  some one mentioned some ABBA, that's up there too.

[bringahorseinhere?]

Apache - The Shadows...

RickB

[Aum Bop Diddit]

Many great choices here; of bands previously mentioned I want to ditto Steely Dan, Big Star (1st 2), and the Beatles as "Classic" rock bands that put sonics at the fore (along with great songs and playing!).  Oddly the Beach Boys, who are so musically advanced, had earlier AM-oriented monaural mixes as their high point, excepting the sublime "Sunflower."  "Pet Sounds" and the "Smile" stuff, arguably their (Brian's) artistic peak,  all brilliantly written, played, arranged, sung, still sound like they were channeled through a refrigerator full of food or something.

Of course I still dig 'em!

[Jukka]

Yeah, compared to his contemporaries, from the engineering point of view Brian was of the old guard. Could have been the one-ear thing, though.