The Essential Boz Scaggs in Bloomington, MN

Boz Scaggs
was subjected to a double-disc retrospective in 1997 with the excellent
My Time: The Anthology (1969-1997)
. That was a lavish archival project, whereas 2013's
Essential
is part of
Sony
's ongoing one-size-fits-all series, but it's nevertheless the superior set, containing all but six of that 33-track collection's cuts in its 32 songs. Naturally,
covers more ground than
My Time
, going all the way up to 2013's fine
Memphis
LP, but it also digs slightly deeper into
Boz
's early years (it also helps that "Loan Me a Dime" is placed toward the front of the first disc instead of the back). This greater scope, combined with all the classic hits -- "Dinah Flo," "Slow Dancer," "What Can I Say," "Lowdown," "Lido Shuffle," "JoJo" -- makes this something close to a truly essential
. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine