Traffic's installment of
20th Century Masters -- The Millennium Collection rounds up ten of the group's biggest songs, concentrating heavily on their first two albums, with the first seven coming from
Mr. Fantasy or
Traffic, which isn't an entirely bad thing, because that's when the band concentrated on individual tunes more than long, extended jams. It's also when classics like "Paper Sun," "Dear Mr. Fantasy," "Feelin' Alright," "You Can All Join In," and "Pearly Queen" were recorded, and those are what propels this collection and makes it worthwhile as a sampler. The only tracks casual fans would wish are here are "Glad" (which really should be here) and "Freedom Rider," but if they want those that badly, they should spend the extra money and get the comprehensive 15-track collection Feelin' Alright: The Very Best of Traffic. Many may find they'd rather stick with this very fine mid-priced sampler. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine