Ben Folds [ tickets ] made his name by balancing the heartfelt and the humorous. On "Songs for Silverman," the vocalist/pianist's first studio album since 2001's "Rockin' the Suburbs," he embraces the former and nearly abandons the latter; "Silverman" is the most straightforward CD of his eclectic career.

That new approach definitely works at times. In fact, "Silverman" features some staggeringly beautiful moments, including the opening "Bastard" and poignant "Jesusland." Most of the highlights can be credited more to Fold's falsetto vocal delivery and emotional piano playing--both of which have seldom sounded better--than to the actual songwriting. Much of the time, Folds is writing too noticeably with his heart on his sleeve. That's especially true on the song for his daughter, "Gracie," which features the lyrics "You're not a baby/Gracie, you're my friend." Sure, that's a sweet sentiment, but it hardly rates as the type of clever songwriting that we've come to expect from Folds.

In all, it's hard to listen to "Songs for Silverman" and not feel like it's missing something. Perhaps Folds used up too many of his humorous ideas while working on William Shatner's "Has Been." But before one starts worrying that Folds' witty well has run dry, take a listen to the special-package version of "Silverman" that includes the drop-dead funny cover of Dr. Dre's "Bitches Ain't S---."