Bruce Hornsby gets serious on Spirit Trail, and – despite the idiotic cover photo of his uncle with a cigarette sticking out of his ear – Hornsby wants you to know it. Two CDs; twenty songs; pages of lyrics on themes like race, religion, lost friendship and the American dream; busy virtuoso playing; titles like "Variations on Swan Song and Song D" – all of this screams Major Statement.

But subtlety, not screaming, is Hornsby's true talent. Predictably, then, he comes closest to achieving his ambitions when he strains the least to do so. He has rhythmic grace; a warm, soulful voice; and a gift for melodies that suggest both wistfulness and hope. On tracks like "Resting Place," "Line in the Dust" and the album's first single, "Great Divide," he trusts those virtues, and his message of tolerance comes across before you've even registered what he's singing about. His tribute to Jerry Garcia, "Sunflower Cat (Some Dour Cat) (Down With That)," which samples the guitar figure in the Dead's "China Cat Sunflower," is loving and fun in ways that perfectly suit its subject.

But all too often, Hornsby overplays his hand – more specifically, his piano (apparently, he has been practicing "three to five hours" a day) and his writing skills – and the excess notes and words amount to musical clutter. That baggage weighs listeners down as they move along Spirit Trail and conceals the one strong, articulate, cohesive album that lurks within this two-disc set. (RS 800)

ANTHONY DECURTIS