Ponder the Mystery

by William Shatner

Overview

William Shatner approaches his recording career from the perspective of an actor: he's not driven to say something but give him a good role and he'll show up at your studio. Cleopatra Records and producer/songwriter/guitarist/keyboardist/general mastermind Billy Sherwood -- perhaps best-known as a member of a latter-day '90s incarnation of Yes -- did come up with a good role for Shatner on 2013's Ponder the Mystery. They had him, well, ponder the mystery of life to the sound of old-fashioned prog rock, a canny move that acknowledged the advancing age of the former Captain Kirk along with his deep associations with sci-fi. Ponder the Mystery seizes upon this vein of Shatnerdom, nearly burying his inherent hamminess beneath the glistening gloss of analog synthesizers and some serious shredding by the likes of Steve Vai, Mick Jones, Vince Gill, Edgar Froese, and Zoot Horn Rollo. While Has Been, Shatner's 2004 collaboration with Ben Folds, played off the unintentional camp of the Transformed Man, Ponder the Mystery acknowledges the silliness but never celebrates it; there's a sincerity here -- a sincerity that was largely missing from Seeking Major Tom, his 2011 collection of covers for Cleopatra -- that brings this album closer to the Transformed Man, where it never was clear what was real and what was fake. It adds mystery to a record that's all about enigmas, and, when combined with Sherwood's clever aural interpretation of Roger Dean's album art, it makes for a record that's more enjoyable than it has any right to be. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Product Details

Release Date:	10/08/2013
Label:	CLEOPATRA
UPC:	0741157092721

Tracks

1. Red Shift
2. Where It's Gone...I Don't Know
3. Manhunt
4. Ponder the Mystery
5. So Am I
6. Change
7. Sunset
8. Twilight
9. Rhythm of the Night
10. Imagine Things
11. Do You See?
12. Deep Down
13. I'm Alright, I Think
14. Where Does Time Go?
15. Alive

Album Credits

Performance Credits

William Shatner   Primary Artist
Zoot Horn Rollo   Soloist,Featured Artist,Guitar
Simon House   Violin,Featured Artist
Steve Vai   Guitar,Featured Artist
Edgar Froese   Guitar,Soloist,Featured Artist
Edgar Winter   Soloist,Saxophone,Featured Artist,Moog Synthesizer
Vince Gill   Soloist,Mandolin,Featured Artist,Guitar (Acoustic)
Joel Vandroogenbroeck   Flute,Featured Artist
Robby Krieger   Sitar,Guitar,Soloist,Featured Artist
Rick Wakeman   Soloist,Keyboards,Featured Artist
Nik Turner   Flute,Saxophone,Featured Artist
Mick Jones   Guitar,Soloist,Featured Artist,Featured Artist
George Duke   Soloist,Keyboards,Featured Artist
Dave Koz   Featured Artist,Saxophone
Al Di Meola   Guitar,Soloist,Featured Artist

Technical Credits

William Shatner   Composer,Lyricist
Brian Perera   Executive Producer
Billy Sherwood   Mixing,Composer,Engineer,Producer
Cherry Hepburn   Publicity
Maor Appelbaum   Mastering
John Lappen   A&R
Michi Sherwood   Photography