I’m trying something new on the blog over the next couple of weeks. I’ve done a lot of theme weeks tied to both topics and artists, but I’ve never dedicated a series of posts to a single album.
Until today!
My next 11 weekday posts (skipping weekends for the usual Elvis Costello posts) will cover Ben Folds Five’s self-titled debut album. I will skip the one song that has previously enjoyed the Song of the Day honor but present the rest of the tracks in order.
If I had to name a modern heir to Randy Newman, I’d go with Ben Folds. Folds has a similar gift for storytelling, irony and humor and he’s able to pull off the smart-ass and the sincere with pretty much equal success. He’s not quite up to Newman’s caliber as a satirist — yet — but he’s in the same ballpark.
Musically, Folds is even more adventurous than Newman, finding inventive ways to make familiar instruments sound brand new. Ben Folds Five used a simple lineup of piano, bass and drums to produce some of the most exciting pop music of the 90s without ever really getting the credit they deserved.
Ben Folds Five’s third (and final) album, The Unauthorized Biography of Reinhold Messner didn’t live up to the promise of their first two. Studio gimmickry too often stands in for strong songwriting, especially in the album’s second half.
The first half, however, features several fine songs, including the lilting Bacharach-esque ‘Don’t Change your Plans,’ the crowd-pleasing ‘Army,’ and ‘Magic,’ a somber ballad about the loss of a grandparent.
While Ben Folds Five’s debut album is a seemingly impossible act to follow, the band’s second CD Wherever and Ever Amen was absolutely up to the task. Folds expanded his palette, making use of strings, horns and studio trickery to produce a stunning collection of songs. It would be a struggle to find another artist or band whose first two albums are as satisfying as these.
As with Ben Folds Five, it is hard to choose a song to highlight from Whatever and Ever Amen. From the hard-rocking opening track ‘One Angry Dwarf and 200 Solemn Faces’ (incidentally, the only song in my catalog of over 8,000 that contains the word “dwarf”) to the delicate closer, ‘Evaporated,’ all of these songs are worthy of the spotlight.
Welcome to another single-artist theme week, this one focusing on the wonderful but short-lived Ben Folds Five as well as Ben Folds’ solo work. As usual, I will tackle the songs in chronological order.
That means I’m starting with Ben Folds Five’s self-titled debut album, which could very well be my favorite album of all time. Honestly, if I was in that desert island scenario and was allowed only one CD, I’m pretty sure this would be it.
Meet Me In Montauk 