Favorite "live" mix: "Soul" by Seal. Big band, live audience, but crystal clear and nuanced. Produced by David Foster (who also played faux-bass using Trilogy), engineered and mixed by Jochem van der Saag (who also played keyboards and programmed drums using Addictive Drums). It's a mixture of live tracks and studio overdubs. Feels live, sounds studio.
For a by-the-book tutorial on pop mixing: "Breakaway" by Kelly Clarkson. Widely criticized for being overly bright, but the mixing is superb even if not particularly imaginative - but it is, after all, mainstream pop.
For pop-country: "Wide Open Spaces" by the Dixie Chicks. The year that record came out, the Chicks sold more records than the entire country music industry combined. That was mainly due to the catchy pop-country tunes, but the quality production didn't hurt.
For acoustic modern folk: "New Favorite" by Alison Krauss and Union Station. So clean that on good headphones, it's like being there. Jerry Douglas' dobro is especially detailed, and with a master of that caliber playing you want to hear every squeak.