Mastering for vinyl - back when it was an artform - properly done, would bring all the desired information of the recording out, based on the dynamic limitations of the medium. When CD's first arrived, the sound mastering was often 'engineered' to maximize the available dynamic range and not the pleasing qualities of the music. A lot of those older CD's are nasty.
People often forget that recorded music is not live music, and never will be. The true genius in the mastering process to to present the music in such a way that the listener will 'forget' they are listening to a simulation of the real thing and immerse themselves in enjoying the message and not the medium.