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It's got to be a bit strange for Vonda Shepard. This is her album--she sings and writes the songs--and yet she takes second billing to the TV show that features her as the singer in the unnamed bar. Granted, Shepard had released many solo albums on her own before Ally made her a known commodity, and the songs here are geared to mirror Ms. McBeal's many moods. Here, Shepard is helped out by an impressive cast. Her backing band includes drummer Pete Thomas (Elvis Costello), bassist Davey Faragher (Cracker), and guitarist Val McCallum (Peter Gabriel), and her guest vocalists include the Reverend Al Green for a stunning duet on Lulu's To Sir, with Love," and the Indigo Girls' Emily Saliers on "Baby, Don't You Break My Heart Slow." Rounding out the anthemic originals are covers of Don McLean's "Vincent," Peter & Gordon's "World Without Love," and the Isley Brothers' "This Old Heart of Mine" that unfortunately serve to insinuate that Shepard is not a singer-songwriter but merely a cover girl. --Rob O'Connor