Brian Soergel of JazzTimes gave the album a positive review and complimented Sheldon Reynolds on his work.
The JazzTimes review by Thomas Conrad said "Songways is one of the prettiest piano trio albums of the new millennium... In jazz, “pretty” is often an adjective that damns with faint praise. Battaglia’s music is pretty but neither shallow nor soft".
The JazzTimes review by Lloyd Sachs said "What makes Wisława (pronounced vees-WAH-vah) striking is Stanko’s ability to push into a more assertive, wide-awake style, rhythmically as well as melodically, without sacrificing the dark-glowing, middle-of-the-night emotion for which he’s known".
Bill Meredith quipped in the JazzTimes that the album "simply lacks the unbridled improvisation and interplay of his stage shows" and that "the guests are also so numerous that things feel contrived".