The AllMusic review by Scott Yanow awarded the album 4 stars stating "Charles Gayle takes some heartfelt solos on piano and fiddles up a storm on viola, but it is his very intense tenor solos that (as one would expect) leave the biggest impression. To use a cliché, this powerful recording is not for the faint-hearted!".[2]
The authors of the Penguin Guide to Jazz Recordings called the album "another great one," and commented: "Gayle's doubling lends context and breadth, and when all four men are playing strings... the results turn string quartet music inside out. 'Earthly Things' and 'Shout Merrily' are terrific group performances as well as signature Gayle."[3]
Track listing
All compositions by Charles Gayle
"This Cup" - 10:00
"Our Sins" - 6:42
"Inner Joy" - 7:10
"Drink" - 3:57
"Earthly Things" - 10:41
"Watch" - 5:33
"Rest Awhile" - 8:01
"Offering to Christ" - 15:41
"Shout Merrily" - 8:22
Recorded at East Side Sound in New York City on October 25, 26 and 28, 1995