The Dominican pianist Michel Camilo has been a jazz star of sorts since at least 1988 when he debuted impressively on Columbia. His performances with his Latin-jazz-on-steroids trio, quartet or big band are typically the cutting edge of excitement, but he has always displayed a strongly lyrical side as well.

This Telarc release is Camilo’s first solo CD and is a bit disappointing. “A Dream,” “Reflections,” and the Brazilian “Atras da Porta” show an elegant touch, and “Round Midnight” is a clever exercise in Astor Piazzolla mimicry. But the stride essays “Frim Fram Sauce” and “Someone To Watch Over Me” are a little thin, and even the overtly Latinesque “Un Son” and “Suntan” don’t match the intensity of his extroverted band sound.

Which is not to say Solo is a bad album. He certainly doesn’t commit one of the cardinal sins of band pianists going solo: banging mercilessly on the keys. His touch is too fine for that. Solo is a letdown only in comparison to the brilliance of his trio output.