There is no doubt about Edgar Meyer's musicianship, creativity or talent. This CD features 14 new works, all by Meyer and all played by him (through the magic of multi-track recording and overdubbing). In addition to his usual double-bass, Meyer plays piano, mandolin, dobro, guitar, and gamba (sometimes bowed, sometimes plucked, at points overdubbed nine times), all in various combinations. Each piece, it seems, is in a different style or genre. The first, a duet for piano and bass, is a long pop ballad without words. Another is (almost) pure bluegrass. There are some artsy pieces that experiment with sounds a la new-age music. The result is never boring but, at the same time, it gives the CD a feel of being neither fish nor fowl. As a means of showing off Meyer's considerable abilities it is splendid, but after the listener finishes oohing-and-aahing over the cleverness, it all seems like hors d'oeuvres with no main course. Different people will absolutely love different parts of this CD; as a unified listening experience, it's somewhat of a puzzle. --Robert Levine