The compilation albums put together from Yanni’s previous releases must be outnumbering the albums Yanni himself assembled by now! That this one was titled The Very Best of Yanni piqued my curiosity, and I’m sure I’m not the only one who would have included other pieces and removed some from this collection. I have to wonder which of his pieces Yanni would have selected as his very best - that could be an interesting collection! “Aria,” “The Mermaid,” “Looking Glass,” “Santorini,” “The Rain Must Fall,” and “Marching Season” are essential Yanni. “The Mermaid” was the first of his pieces that I heard on the radio in about ‘87, and it was one of the pieces that launched his career - as were “Nostalgia” and “Paths on Water.” I don’t understand how the latter two pieces could be omitted from a “Very Best” collection. And why did they include “The End of August” and leave off the wonderful “Felitsa”? Both songs have a similar feel, but “Felitsa” is far better. “In the Mirror” and “Face In the Photograph” are nice pieces, but definitely not among Yanni’s best. For those new to Yanni’s music, this is a great starter package. However, the selections only go through Yanni’s time at Private Music, which ended in the early ‘90’s. So, as most of the compilation albums have been, this one is a tease. It’s a really good album, but beware that this is not a true representation of all of Yanni’s music to date. And also be aware that Yanni had nothing to do with the selection of pieces included.