Stevie Wonder, "Pastime Paradise"
The capstone of maybe the best run of any artist, ever, Songs in the Key of Life is a sprawling double album covering an incredible amount of ground, both musically and lyrically. Wonder tackled social issues and spiritual ones, found time for some gorgeous pop songs, funk, just about everything under the sun. And he just pulls it all off with aplomb.
Spawn of Possession, "Apparition"
Symphonic tech death metal band Spawn of Possession had several albums, but I've only listened to this one. And mostly, it kind of drove home that this kind of symphonic stuff really isn't my bag.
Squarepusher, "Tundra"
The first Squarepusher record, Feed Me Weird Things, found Tom Jenkinson still forming some of his ideas. He was marrying jazz to frenetic drum'n'bass at this early stage, of course, but he was only beginning to explore the boundaries of his music. He would find some of the outer limits of breakbeats in his next record, and then see how much fusion he could pull in with the one after that. So this record is in a bit of a no man's land - there are some good things on this album (this track in particular is a highlight), but without the inventiveness that would make so many of his later records great.
The Pharcyde, "Officer"
I'd say this is a highlight from the first Pharcyde record, but honestly, that album is kind of nothing but highlights. Anyway, the Flavor Flav impression on here is truly on-point. And "I got a letter from the DMV, the other day" is such a perfect way to open this track.
The Supremes, "Baby Love"
It really is amazing how often picking a random song from the Motown singles produces some killer tune like this.