There is indeed a mystery that surrounds this project: what was Mickey thinking?!?!?! I first want to establish that Mickey Hart is one of my heroes; I've seen him live in various incarnations and I have all of his recorded releases. Now that I've set down my credentials, I can write that this is Hart's worst album. Beyond weak songwriting, the Mystery Box sound is sickeningly conventional. I would only expect this recording to appeal to 16 year girls on Long Island circa 1994. This misadventure occurred despite good ingredients and a decent recipe. The project included Robert Hunter, Zakir Hussain and conguero Giovanni Hidalgo. The Mint Juleps sing well. Beyond these qualities, the Mystery Box was a genuinely unique project for Hart. Moreover, the idea of a pop crossover in itself wasn't a bad idea -it just didn't work in this situation. So what went wrong? That's the mystery! Now if I could only find that darn box, the answer to this enigma may be inside.