Ben Folds

Benjamin Scott Folds is an American singer and songwriter from North Carolina. Until 1998, he was the frontman for Ben Folds Five, a piano-rock band that released three full albums to moderate critical success. The band broke up for unknown reasons, but judging from interviews and the fact that they had a reunion concert, it didn't seem to be a bitter break-up. After 2000, he began a reasonably successful solo career. In addition, he produced Has Been, a surprisingly well-regarded album by William Shatner. His album "Lonely Avenue" was a collaboration with Nick Hornby writing the lyrics.

In 2009, Folds began judging on The Sing Off, an NBC a capella contest. He's frequently cited as the most competent judge on the panel.

This page Needs More Love.

Discography
Ben Folds Five
 * Ben Folds Five (1995)
 * Whatever and Ever Amen (1997)
 * Naked Baby Photos (1998) (general mish-mash of odd songs left over from old albums, etc.)
 * The Unauthorized Biography of Reinhold Messner (1999)

Ben Folds
 * Rockin' the Suburbs (2001)
 * Songs for Silverman (2005)
 * Way to Normal (2008)
 * Lonely Avenue (2010)

Tropography
"It gets me real pissed off, makes me wanna say,
 * Album Title Drop: Rockin' the Suburbs had a single of the same name.
 * Lonely Avenue is also title dropped in the chorus in "Doc Pomus".
 * And Way to Normal's title is dropped in "Effington".
 * "Whatever and Ever Amen" is quoted in "The Battle of Who Could Care Less".
 * The compilation album The Best Imitation of Myself includes the song of the same name.
 * Atomic F-Bomb: From "Rockin the Suburbs,"

It gets me real pissed off, makes me wanna say,

It gets me real pissed off, makes me wanna say,

FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK!"

"I'm a fuckin' redneck, I live to hang out with the boys,
 * Break Up Song: A few - "The Last Polka" is probably the first, and "Song For The Dumped" is probably the most well-known.
 * Cluster F-Bomb: Parodied in Rockin' the Suburbs.
 * Played straight, if slightly downplayed, in the chorus of Levi Johnston's Blues To quote:

Play some hockey, do some fishin', and shoot some moose.

I like to shoot the shit, do some chillin' I guess.

You fuck with me and I kick your ass."

"Y'all don't know what it's like
 * The chorus is actually taken from an infamous My Space posting from Johnston.
 * Creator Cameo: In Ben's music video for Weird Al Yankovich, who helped make the video.
 * Epic Riff: Ben frequently does a piano version; notable ones include "One Angry Dwarf and 200 Solemn Faces" and "Annie Waits".
 * Foiler Footage: His band rerecorded alternate lyrics for all the songs on the Way to Normal album and leaked the "fake" versions on the internet.
 * Foreign Cuss Word: Inverted. In the "Song for the Dumped" music video, Folds sings an entire verse and refrain in Japanese until he gets to "You bitch," which he sings in English.
 * Grief Song: "Carrying Cathy"
 * Lonely Piano Piece: Since the piano is Ben's primary instrument, these naturally come up.
 * Lyrical Dissonance: Oh, he is a master at this.
 * "Carrying Cathy" is a fairly upbeat, light song.
 * "Still Fighting" is a very melancholy song.
 * "You Don't Know Me" is a cheery song about a couple who barely know each other and can't figure out why they stay together.
 * "All U Can Eat" is a upbeat, bubbly song about the deterioration of society.
 * "From Above" is an energetic and extremely catchy song. It's also about people never knowing their soul-mates and (presumably) either dying alone or unhappy.
 * "Zak and Sara" is a 50's style rock and roll ballad about a schizophrenic and a drug dealer.
 * "Jesusland" is a rather upbeat tune about the Second Coming of Christ and Jesus becoming disgusted the people who believe in him.
 * His cover of "Bitches Ain't Shit". That is all.
 * "Brick", while not the most happy, is still rather upbeat for a song about
 * "Hiroshima" is an energetic song about him attempting to dive into a crowd... only for he crowd to not understand and let him fall. He got a concussion. Depending on how dark you like it, It could double as a Crowning Moment of Funny.
 * "Password" is a crooning, mellow song about a jealous boyfriend hacking into his ex-girlfriend's email account, only to find out she's been cheating on him this whole time.
 * "Steven's Last Night In Town" is about a self-important asshole... done as a klezmer song.
 * "You to Thank" is probably the happiest song you'll ever hear about marrying too soon and being trapped in a loveless marriage.
 * Non-Indicative Name: Ben Folds Five only had three members in it.
 * Precision F-Strike: "The Battle of Who Could Care Less", "Rockin' The Suburbs", among others
 * Shameless Self Promoter: In Rocking the Suburbs:

Being male, middle class, and white.

It's a bitch if you don't believe.

Listen up to my new CD!"

"And down in Nashville, Elvis sings Suspicion
 * Shout-Out: Ode to Merton
 * Several in Rocking the Suburbs, including Michael Jackson, Queit Riot, and Jon Bon Jovi.
 * From the chorus of Doc Pomus:

Pomus/Shuman, 1962"

""I'm rockin' the suburbs!
 * Single-Stanza Song: "Cigarette"
 * Small Name, Big Ego: The basis for There's Always Someone Cooler Than You
 * The Something Song: "The Frown Song"
 * Spell My Name with an "S": "Zak and Sara" (The song constantly insists it's spelled without a "C" or an "H," respectively)
 * Take That: "Rockin' the Suburbs" is a direct Take That to Korn after they called out Ben Folds Five for not being a heavy rock band in Spin Magazine.
 * Take That Me: Like so, from the same song:

Just like Michael Jackson did!

I'm rockin' the suburbs!

Except that he was talented!

I'm rockin' the suburbs!

I take the checks and face the facts

That some producer with computers

Fixes all my shitty tracks!""


 * Also present in "Army," which was based on a conversation Ben had with his dad (quoted at the beginning of the song) and parodying his early years.
 * Teasing Creator: "Uncle Walter." When asked if the song was about a real person, Ben and the band would make up outrageous stories.
 * "The Villain Sucks" Song: There's Always Someone Cooler Than You Well, it's more of a "The Guy the Song is Directed to is an Asshole" Song, but the feeling's still there.