Traffic were an English rock band formed in Birmingham in April 1967 by Steve Winwood (formerly of the Spencer Davis Group), Jim Capaldi, Chris Wood and Dave Mason. They began as a psychedelic rock group and diversified their sound through the use of instruments such as keyboards (the Mellotron and harpsichord), sitar, and various reed instruments, and by incorporating jazz and improvisational techniques in their music. After Winwood left the Spencer Davis Group in April 1967, the quartet formed Traffic. Soon thereafter, they rented a cottage near the rural village of Aston Tirrold, Berkshire to write and rehearse new music.
Mason left the group at the end of 1967, due to artistic differences. He rejoined in the spring of 1968, writing five of the ten songs on Traffic's self-titled second album, released in late 1968, including "Feelin' Alright", which was later covered with great success by both Joe Cocker and Three Dog Night. Once again, personnel problems wracked the band, as Grech and Gordon were fired in December 1971 due to excessive drug use, which proved to be the beginning of a long and successful solo career. The album included a surplus recording from The Low Spark of High-Heeled Boys, "Open Your Heart", and the new tracks featured drummer Roger Hawkins and bassist David Hood, from the Muscle Shoals Sound Studio house band. Capaldi soon recruited Hawkins and Hood into Traffic to replace Grech and Gordon. After the tour, Winwood informed the Muscle Shoals trio that he was returning to a smaller lineup more like their original one, and their services were no longer needed. Meanwhile, Wood's problems with drug use and depression were increasing. When the Eagle Flies, released in 1974, was yet another Top 10 album in the US, and moderately successful in the UK. However, a subsequent tour of the US, while successful in terms of ticket sales, was emotionally exhausting for the band.
Capaldi later recalled "Rosko Gee and I were the only ones in anything like normal shape. Steve was having recurrent problems with the peritonitis, and Chris's body was suffering from chemical warfare."
Mike McEvoy joined the lineup playing keyboards, guitar and viola, and Walfredo Reyes, Jr. played drums and percussion. As a duo, Winwood and Capaldi recorded and released a new Traffic studio album, Far from Home, which broke the Top 40 in both the UK and USA. The Last Great Traffic Jam, a double live album and DVD released in 2005, documents the band's 1994 reunion tour.
The four original members of Traffic were inducted for their contributions in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on 15 March 2004. Winwood, Capaldi, Mason, and Stephanie Wood standing in for her late brother Chris, all attended the ceremony. Winwood and Capaldi performed "Dear Mr. Fantasy" at the induction performance, and were joined by Mason for "Feelin' Alright" during the grand finale, which also featured Keith Richards, Tom Petty, and the Temptations. Bramblett also performed at the ceremony, though he was not one of the members inducted.
Tentative plans for another Traffic project were cut short by Jim Capaldi's death from stomach cancer at age 60 in January 2005, ending the songwriting partnership with Winwood that had fueled Traffic from its beginning. Winwood subsequently dedicated The Last Great Traffic Jam "to the man without whom Traffic could never be: my lifelong friend and partner, Jim Capaldi."
The band's 1970 instrumental "Glad" was sampled on American singer Christina Aguilera's track "Makes Me Wanna Pray" (from her 2006 album Back to Basics), with Winwood credited as a featured artist.
Dear Mr. Fantasy was a celebration for Capaldi that took place at the Roundhouse in Camden Town, London on 21 January 2007. Guests included Winwood, Paul Weller, Pete Townshend, and many more. Dear Mr. Fantasy featured the music of Capaldi and Traffic, and all profits went to the Jubilee Action Street Children Appeal.