Tag Archives: bff

by

Song of the Day #879: ‘Boxing’ – Ben Folds Five

Ben Folds Five closes out with one of its most modest songs, musically, at least in terms of the sort of acrobatics the band members go through on the rest of the tracks. The introduction of the string section is a nice touch.

And Folds’ piano work here, though more traditional than his usual percussive rock-n-roll style, is just gorgeous. He performs this delicate waltz with a sensitivity and maturity well beyond his years.

The song is an imaginary conversation between a worn-down Muhammad Ali and Howard Cosell, but it can be read as a metaphor for anybody who has reached the end of his run.

Continue reading →

by

Song of the Day #876: ‘The Last Polka’ – Ben Folds Five

The penultimate track of Ben Folds Five is a tour de force that serves as a climax for the whole album. ‘The Last Polka’ certainly ranks among the best songs the band ever recorded.

It’s a song about the collapse of a relationship — a marriage I’m guessing — and the passive aggressive ways the man and woman ignore what’s staring them right in the face.

The atmosphere here is summed up by the wife’s biting words in the opening verse: “If he really loved me, I wouldn’t have to be so mean.”

Continue reading →

by

Song of the Day #875: ‘Video’ – Ben Folds Five

Here’s where I have to break my pattern and skip a song because I’ve featured it already. I wish I’d known back in early 2009 that I’d be featuring this album in full nearly two years later, but alas, I don’t plan that far ahead.

And I’m not going to break my most important rule, that I feature a different song every single day, by posting my first repeat. So instead I encourage you to visit my long-ago post on the song ‘Best Imitation of Myself‘ and then return here to read about ‘Video.’

Continue reading →

by

Song of the Day #874: ‘Uncle Walter’ – Ben Folds Five

‘Uncle Walter’ is the second half of the one-two punch I mentioned yesterday and it’s a fitting partner to ‘Sports and Wine,’ especially musically.

If Robert Sledge’s bass line on ‘Sports and Wine’ is sick, his work on ‘Uncle Walter’ is downright bubonic. You could strip every other instrument out of this record and still have an incredible song based solely on Sledge’s work. Just listen to that solo at the end!

I love how Folds finds such interesting topics for his songs. In this case, it’s a situation where you’re left in the room with a boorish relative of a friend who is late coming home. Exactly the sort of thing that should have a song written about it.

Continue reading →

by

Song of the Day #873: ‘Sports & Wine’ – Ben Folds Five

Following ‘Underground,’ Ben Folds Five moves to what I consider the most underrated one-two punch on an album full of excellent songs.

First up is ‘Sports and Wine,’ a song I rarely see mentioned on lists of the bands’ finest achievements but one I rank up there with their best work. Perhaps more than any other song on this album, ‘Sports & Wine’ showcases how insanely good each of these guys is on his instrument.

Continue reading →