is 's first album in four years and only his fifth album overall in a career over 30 years long as of the 2000s. At least, that's true if you only count the albums issued by regular record companies; anyone who attends a concert finds he has available for sale an array of self-produced CD-Rs as well. Nevertheless, he acts as if this is his first recording opportunity in a while and wants to make maximum use of it. The album contains 19 tracks and runs over 76 minutes. For its contents, he remarks in the liner notes, he has assembled a sort of advance compilation of highlights from as-yet unrecorded future projects, to wit: "1. A musical tribute to . 2. Songs revisiting my hometown of Bristol, TN-VA. 3. A bouquet of valentine/lullaby/love songs. 4. An all-singing, all-dancing pop musical of Jack and the Beanstalk. 5. An adventure saga of the heroine child Morgana in Fairyland. 6. A sequel of Morgana's exploits in Pirateville. 7. A collection of postmodern protest songs." There are songs on the album answering to all of these descriptions, which would seem to suggest a disparate collection. But, in fact, there is a theme running through the album, and that is heroism. On the album cover, presents a collage of photographs a la , people lined up in rows before an image of MacDougal Street in Greenwich Village (recently given the added moniker "Dave Van Ronk Street," in tribute to the late folksinger). A few faces are recognizable to anyone -- Mark Twain, George McGovern, himself -- but many are people important in 's personal universe, doubtless including members of his family and friends. Similarly, the album pays tribute to his heroes, starting with , who is evoked in both original songs ( ) and in covers of songs associated with him ( ). doesn't really sound like , naturally, though he can do a mean imitation of the gruff-voiced folk-blues singer. What matter is that is part of his pantheon of independent misfits, along with Jack of beanstalk fame, a football coach ( ), and a school bus driver ( tells their stories with his typically inventive sense of wordplay, accompanying himself on simple, familiar guitar or mountain dulcimer riffs. And there's also a villain. s clearly a lambasting of President George W. Bush, though he isn't mentioned by name. really is a sampler of future projects for , and it whets the appetite for the full-length versions. ~ William Ruhlmann