There’s something very special about listening to music on headphones. A sense of closeness to the artist, and, of course, with the right headphones, just enough isolation from the hustle and bustle of the outside world to make listening a real pleasure.
And while a great album is always a great album, sometimes a particular recording will lend itself to the intimate atmosphere of a great pair of headphones. Whether those headphones are connected to your home hi-fi or to an iPod for listening on the move, the experience can transport you.
We’d love to know what your favourite headphone listening pleasures are. Whether it happens to be on a pair of Bowers & Wilkins P5 mobile hi-fi headphones or something else.
Here’s a selection of ours just to get you started.
Pink Floyd – Dark Side of the Moon
Read about it here.
Richard Buckner – Devotion and Doubt
Wonderfully recorded, simple guitar and wonderful voice.
David Crosby – If Only I Could Remember My Name.
Gloriously produced, and wonderful on headphones.
Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy – I see a Darkness
A great hi-fi album full stop. Wonderfully intimate recording.
Massive Attack – Mezzanine
If your headphones can do great bass, this is a must-have recording.
What’s your favourite headphone album?
Pink Floyd surely…”Dark side of the moon” unforgettable!!!!!
Posted: Monday, 27 September 2010Try something You don’t know:
Funki Porcini – Headphone Sex, Plod, ON
Grasscut – 1 Inch/ ½ Mile
Rainstick Orchestra – The Floating Glass Key in the Sky
Tosca – No Hassle
Amon Tobin – The Foley Room
Daedelus – Love to make Music to
Enjoy
Posted: Monday, 27 September 2010Radiohead – KidA
Posted: Monday, 27 September 2010My top 3 headphones albums:
Depeche Mode – Ultra
Posted: Tuesday, 28 September 2010Yello – Touch Yello
Interpol – Interpol
Goodbye and Hello- Tim Buckley
Astral Weeks- Van Morrison
Bryter Later- Nick Drake
Foxbase Alpha- Saint Etienne
Contra- Vampire Weekend
That is a good start….
Posted: Wednesday, 29 September 2010How about the Jellyfish record Spilt Milk? There is so much going on and with a good pair of open back headphones (currently using the Sennheiser HD238) the sense of space is dizzying at times.
Posted: Wednesday, 29 September 2010My favorite headphones albums:
Posted: Wednesday, 29 September 2010- Frankie goes to hollywood – Welcome to the pleasuredome
- Brookly Bounce – Restart
- Def Leppard – Rock of ages
- Dire Straits – Brothers in arms
- Eagles – Eagles MTV Special night (especially Hotel California)
- Pink Floyd – Wish you were here
Tracey Chapman, Give me one reason
Sounds really nice and is really grooovey
Posted: Wednesday, 29 September 2010The Gorrilaz are amazing with the headphones on!
My all time favourite is Wish You Were Here though.
Posted: Friday, 1 October 2010Some Great recommendations here. Anybody fancy compiling them into a playlist (iTunes, LastFM or the like)?
Posted: Friday, 1 October 2010If I had to choose one “headphone” album, it would be The Way Up by the Pat Metheny Group. The sound quality is superb, but also, there are so many little nuances that are missed when listening in the car or elsewhere where there’s ambient noise around. The second one I’d recommend would be Imaginary Day, also by the Metheny Group. Both albums are sonically exceptional.
Posted: Friday, 1 October 2010Gorillaz – Plastic Beach [Rhinestone eyes, White Flag]
Armin Van Buuren – Wall of Sound, Cut and Run
Jimi Hendrix – Little Wing
Lynyrd Skynyrd – Free Bird
Tool – Sober
Bob Marley – Is this Love
Just to name a few, if not this list will not end. :)
Posted: Saturday, 2 October 2010“Like Children”-Jan Hamer, Jerry Goodman Anything by early Genesis and/or Peter Gabriel, “Meddle”-Pink Floyd, too many to mention.
Posted: Monday, 4 October 2010Le Noise – Neil Young
Hitchhiker is fantastic
Posted: Monday, 4 October 2010Norah Jones – Come Away With Me (the SACD version)
Exceptional detail and texture, unbelievable dynamics. Possibly the best demonstration ever of why high resolution music is a good idea.
Incidentally I read above a guy in Mexico wants to get the listed albums on iTunes. Don’t. Apple likes to charge you a full fat price for half fat (i.e. compressed) music. It’s in their power to take the music distribution revolution they themselves created to the next step and distributing better-than-CD music. Step up Apple!
Posted: Tuesday, 5 October 2010B.B. king – Blues summit
Jorge Aragao -Da noite pro dia
John Mayer -Continuun
Waterboys -Room to Roam
Posted: Saturday, 16 October 2010Hello from Bob Schulein,
I found many of the recommended recordings engaging and encourage more coverage of this topic by B&W.
In an effort to bring binaural sound into the mainstream and in essence create a true 3D audio art form, my research has shown that the synergy of sight an sound is a very powerful force in creating convincing “you are there experiences”.
I call the results ImmersAV Technology meaning the creation of an immersive experience using sound and sight (Audio and Video).
An additional element of production that I have found to be important is to present the video image from the perspective of a “you are there ” listener.
I have lectured on the subject around the world and at the Audio Engineering Society
I have produced a number of representative examples that may be viewed on You Tube.
For a 10 minute introduction to the technology with demonstrations, please visit:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pi1dKjwFdhU
All comments encouraged and welcome.
Thank you
Bob Schulein
Posted: Sunday, 17 October 2010Dire Straits – Brothers in Arms (SACD).
I like listening to Mark Knopfler .He is amazing.
Posted: Sunday, 17 October 2010Pink Floyd – Atom Heart Mother Suite
Buddy Guy – Buddy´s Baddest
Jerry Lee Lewis – Mean Old Man
Chico Buarque – Construção
Posted: Thursday, 21 October 2010Oh, there is another one.
Rolling Stones – Stripped
Excelent sound quality
Posted: Thursday, 21 October 2010Mr. Bungle – California.
Analog recording, many different musical styles mixed together, many layers of sound.
Their Disco Volante sounds good on headphones as well.
Posted: Friday, 22 October 2010Hello All,
most albums sound great on these headphones but if you want to appreciate the phones more, try out any instrumental music particularly any of Chris Botti’s albums and you will note their distinction. The trumpet never sounded any better if i can say so.
Posted: Saturday, 13 November 2010Pink Floyd – Dark side of the moon
Posted: Monday, 15 November 2010Depeche Mode – Violator
Led Zeppelin – IV
David Bowie – The man who sold the world
MGMT – Congratulations.
Eric Clapton – Change the World & Blue Eyes Blue
Posted: Monday, 14 March 2011Dire Straits – Telegraph Road
Muse – The Resistance
Eva Cassidy – Fields of Gold
and many more!!
Yes-Close to the Edge
Posted: Wednesday, 5 October 2011Jethro Tull-Thick as a Brick
Jackson Brown -Late for the Sky
Steely Dan-Aja
Floyd – Dark side of the moon
Floyd – Wish you were here
Jethro Tull – Broadsword & the Beast
Eric Clapton – Pilgrim
Norah Jones – Come Away with Me
Enya – The Memory of Trees
Enya – And Winter Came
Ok its more than 5 but its a tough call……:)
Posted: Wednesday, 18 April 2012Kid A–Radiohead
Posted: Sunday, 24 June 2012Skylarking–XTC
My #1 favorite is the Tron Legacy soundtrack.
Other great ones are:
Radiohead-In Rainbows
Ladytron-Witching Hour
Andreas Vollenweider-Book of Roses
Steve Roach-On This Planet
Toumani Diabate-Symmetrical Orchestra
(For what it’s worth, my current favorite headphones are AKG K550.)
Posted: Tuesday, 9 October 2012As other mentioned before, Kid A is great…
some albums that surprisingly no one mentioned:
- Dave Matthews Band – Crash (speccially the song “Say Goodbey” ….great soundscape…
Posted: Saturday, 3 November 2012- Dave Matthews Band – Before These Crowded Streets
- Alice in Chains – Unplugged
- Fleetwood Mac – Rumours
- Miles Davis – Kind of Blue
- Leftfield – Leftism (for those who like electronic)
- Anything from Nine Inch Nails, specially The Slip, The Fragile
Since my last post, I have switched to the P5s. To me, it feels less like a lateral move than a genuine upgrade. Not only are the build quality, isolation, looks and comfort superior, but so is the sound (which surprises me given that my AKGs are classified as reference cans.
Oh, and here is a new release to add to the best listening list: The Haunted Man by Bat for Lashes.
Posted: Saturday, 17 November 2012An absolute masterpiece from start to finish.
Eels -Electro Shock Blues
Posted: Sunday, 24 March 2013Em:t 1194 – Woob
Em:it 3396 – Russell Mills – Undark
Murcof – The Versailles Sessions
I have yet to hear the Yello Touch album but I’ve also heard the sound is supposed to be superb.
Posted: Thursday, 2 May 2013