It’s Christmas week! My tradition is to spend this week posting new or classic Christmas songs, or a mixture of both. And that’s what I shall do!
Kicking things off is a track from Ben Folds’ just-released Christmas album, Sleigher.
Tag Archives: Ben Folds
Song of the Day #5,918: ‘Landed’ – Ben Folds
Continuing a countdown of my favorite albums of 2005…
#4 – Songs for Silverman – Ben Folds
Ben Folds’ second solo album dropped the tongue-in-cheek, juvenile elements of his previous work in favor of a more mature, thoughtful song cycle. Some fans were disappointed in the direction, but I was delighted.
Don’t get me wrong… I love many of Folds’ silly songs. But I also love to see artists evolve and explore new territory, especially when they are as talented musically and lyrically as Ben Folds.
Song of the Day #5,459: ‘Kristine from the 7th Grade’ – Ben Folds
Concluding my countdown of the songs on Ben Folds’ new album, What Matters Most…
#2 – ‘Winslow Gardens’
The album’s first single impressed me right out of the gate and has only grown on me since. This is the song most directly tied to the pandemic. Winslow Gardens is an apartment complex in Sydney, Australia, where Ben ended up settling down after being stranded in the city on tour.
The song uses the details of Folds’ experience to muse on the way unexpected events change our lives all the time. “Oh, just when plans are made,” he sings, “you find you’ve started all over again.”
Song of the Day #5,458: ‘Paddleboat Breakup’ – Ben Folds
Continuing my countdown of the songs on Ben Folds’ new album, What Matters Most…
#4 – ‘Fragile’
Folds has been married five times (his current marriage, knock on wood, is the only one not to end in divorce) and his song catalog is well-stocked with evidence of his relationship difficulties.
He’s written a few straight-up love songs (‘The Luckiest‘ is probably my favorite) but he’s had more success writing about the tough times. And he’s never shy about digging into the uncomfortable dynamics that rarely make it into songs.
Song of the Day #5,457: ‘Clouds With Ellipses’ – Ben Folds
Continuing my countdown of the songs on Ben Folds’ new album, What Matters Most…
#6 – ‘What Matters Most’
The title track finds Folds discarding things from an old storage space during the pandemic when he learns about the death of a close friend. That friend was actor/comedian Bob Saget, who passed away in January of 2022.
Both the pandemic and the loss of his friend have Folds contemplating his priorities. If the song is a bit on the nose lyrically, that isn’t to its detriment. Folds has a knack for delivering simple platitudes with sincerity and heart. It’s one of his superpowers as a songwriter, and he puts it to good use here.
Meet Me In Montauk 