*I'm taking the song challenge to mean "of all time," not genre-specific. Any of these songs are subject to change at any time.
"Best Imitation of Myself" by Ben Folds.
"I feel like a quote out of context Withholding the rest So I can be for you what you want to see I got the gesture and sound Got the timing down It's uncanny, yeah, you think it was me Do you think I should take a class To lose my southern accent Did I make me up, or make the face till it stuck I do the best imitation of myself The "problem with you" speech You gave me was fine I liked the theories about my little stage And I swore I was listening But I started drifting Around the part about me acting my age Now if it's all the same I've people to entertain I juggle one handed Do some magic tricks and The best imitation of myself Maybe I'm thinking myself in a hole Wondering, who I am when I ought to know Straighten up now time to go Fool somebody else, fool somebody else Last night I was east with them And west within Trying to be for you what you wanna see But I can't help it with you The good and bad comes through Don't want you hanging out with No one but me Now if it's all the same It comes from the same place And if my mind's somewhere else You won't be able to tell I do the best imitation of myself Yes it's uncanny to see You'd really think it was me The best imitation of myself The best imitation of myself"
*I'm taking the song challenge to mean "of all time," not genre-specific. Any of these songs are subject to change at any time.
This one really shouldn't surprise anyone who knows me, although it will mortify a few of you. Sue me, I'm a horrible person, but Ben Folds singing "Bitches Ain't Shit" is awesome - that's some real conversation for your ass. Come on, it's not like I'm playing it in front of the kids.
*I'm going taking the song challenge to mean "of all time," not genre-specific. Any of these songs are subject to change at any time.
"Still Fighting It" is really a phenomenal song for a few reasons. It reminds me of several things -- growing up, children, home, and what we hope to be. When Ben sings "and you're so much like me, I'm sorry" it kills me. I feel that way sometimes when my children do certain things. So, it's not so much as a "this song reminds me of someone" as it is a song that reminds me of what life is right now for me and for so many of my friends. There are many songs I could have listed here and I've gone back and forth with two or three of them, but I'm not going to do post them because it's my blog and I'll do what I want.
As you know, I took a little trip last week and while I drove, I listened to Ben Folds and Nick Hornby's new album, Lonely Avenue. It's quite lovely. Not lovely in the sweet and adorable sense, lovely in the sense that these are real song gems and there are little surprises in each one. Each one tells a story, each one could be a novel on its own and the music is simply wonderful. I really wish someone would turn Lonely Avenue into a movie with vignettes with each song. Hollywood -- get on that.
One of these songs, "Doc Pomus" got stuck in my head and there was something recognizable about it and the more I listened to it, I realized I knew the name Pomus as a songwriter.
Listen to this as you read.
I went to the Wikipedia and searched "Doc Pomus" to find out why I knew that name, only to find out he wrote some of the biggest hits of the last half century.
During the late 1950s and early 1960s, Pomus also wrote several songs with Phil Spector: "Young Boy Blues"; "Ecstasy"; "Here Comes The Night"; "What Am I To Do?"; Mike Stoller and Jerry Leiber: "Young Blood" and "She's Not You", and other Brill Building-era writers. Pomus also wrote "Lonely Avenue", which became a 1956 hit for Ray Charles.[6]
It also says Pomus had polio as a boy and was confined to a wheelchair in later life and reference Folds and Hornby's song and the lyric they paraphrased from Doc Pomus’ uncompleted memoir, February 21, 1984: I was never one of those happy cripples who stumbled around smiling and shiny-eyed, trying to get the world to cluck its tongue and shake its head sadly in my direction. They’d never look at me and say, “What a wonderful, courageous fellow.”
Now, that's a song.
From Pomus to another writer/songwriter, Nick Hornby, "Working Day" must some up what every writer working today thinks: some guy on the net thinks I suck and he should know, he's got his own blog.
Take a listen if there are no kids in the room. It's a short one.
I kinda love that.
I also really love "Password." It's a thoroughly modern slow-jam about how well you know someone by how you know their passwords and the quirky things you know about people. And not everyone can work "you have a thing for David Blaine" into a song. That's brilliant.
One more. One that a lot of you will be able to identify with. "Claire's Ninth" is the story of Claire's 9th birthday and her parent's divorce, from her perspective and the parents'. The melody is fantastic and the lyrics are sincere and telling.
I bet half of you reading have been in Claire's shoes, having two birthdays. I happened to me as a thirty year-old, but I can identify.
So, combined with last week's Tunes Tuesday that's almost all the songs on Lonely Avenue. And I promise I won't write about Ben Folds for at least a week. Maybe.
P.S. I wasn't going to put up "Picture Window" because it's a sad song, but everyone goes through pain and you never know who may be reading and may be dealing with pain and needs to know they're not alone. Pain is hard, pain is miserable and these lyrics are from a place of hurt, hurt that comes through in the song. As I've said before, it takes talent to write music that makes you feel. A lot of people can write a hit song, but not all of them can make you think or make you feel. That's truly something.
There hasn't been a Tunes You Need Tuesday in quite some time, but Ben Folds put out a new album, so I'm bringing it back, baby.
Lonely Avenue is the new album by Folds with lyrics by author Nick Hornby. Yes, Nick Hornby, author of High Fidelity and About a Boy. If you've read Hornby's novels or seen the films based on them, you know that music plays an important part in all of his work, but it's rare to see a novelist turned songwriter.
My review: Hornby and Folds make a dynamite combination. I'm a fan of both, but together they really bring it. The lyrics are great - very much a story-telling vibe, something unlike anything you'll hear on the radio today and the music is pure Folds.
Folds and Hornby introduce the album and explain how it was written as well as have excerpts of the songs in this lovely little video.
This is "From Above." Folds says Hornby wrote it about soulmates and how we must pass each other on the street, never meeting.
And because after hearing it I said "wow," here is "Levi Johnston's Blues." Yes, as in Bristol Palin's baby daddy. The chorus is from his My Space page. It's kind of insane. In a good way.
I'm sure I'll post more as more live videos pop up on the You Tube, as I'd rather give you the videos rather than just the audio. I do love the Ben Folds live videos, he's such a great performer. So enjoyable, just like the new album.
Just when you thought I couldn't feature Ben Folds in any other way -- HA! I go and serve up my favorites from the University A Cappella contest on You Tube. This is enjoyable stuff.
This is a great song, done well by the Spartones. Love the energy.
"Gone" is one of my favorite songs period. Well done.
Shut up. That was great. And color coordinated.
"Zak and Sara" works well as an a cappella song. I think this guy moonlights as DJ Lance on Yo Gabba Gabba. I'm not kidding.
Hope y'all enjoyed the a cappella stuff. It's a fun change from the norm, I suppose. Plus, they're Benny songs.
I dig the Ben Folds. I'd been listening to his stuff all morning, then thought I'd seek out some of his fake songs for fun. When Ben released his latest album, Way to Normal, he recorded a bunch of "fake" songs with the same or similar titles as the real tracks and leaked them online. Ben likes to mess with people. Some of the songs are good, some are obvious jokes; I'm just glad they're out there. Enjoy.
I really like "Lovesick Diagnostician." This should have been on the album.
"Free Coffee Town" isn't bad.
This "Frowne Song" is just silly.
I prefer this "Bitch Went Nutz" to the album version.
I've been in a mood all week. As with everything in my life, there has been a soundtrack to this mood. It's been generally an angry mood, and that's not necessarily a bad thing. More on that later in another post.
Usually angry moods are good for Ben Folds for some reason. Maybe it's the cursing, I'm not sure. Not all Ben's songs have cursing, but they're not to be listened to with the kids present. What I love about Ben is that he can write emotionally, he can write harshly, he can say things in ways you don't often hear. He also plays a mean piano. Love that.
I should have made it Ben Week on the blog. I've done two Ben Folds posts. I could have done a Ben Lee post, profiled my favorite Ben Affleck movie (Chasing Amy), and put up a recipe featuring Uncle Ben's rice!
This song is called "Zak and Sara," which Ben Folds has said is about about a boy in 1984 playing guitar and writing songs for his girlfriend, who sits on his amp all day watching him play, and in her head is discovering techno - not the music the boyfriend is playing at all. This is why I love Ben Folds. The video is typography set to "Zak and Sara." Shut up, someone took my two loves, music and graphic design and made a video. This is the kind of stuff that makes me happy, people. And the colors! If hot pink does nothing for you, I'm sorry, check your pulse. Something's wrong wit ya. The font is Helvetica. Yes, I know it on sight. Hel-to-the-vetica!
"Dr. Yang" is about all the alternative medicine voodoo witch doctor psychics out there. Coolness. I like the yelling.
Finally, "All U Can Eat," which sums up America in a sarcastic tone. Now, I am an American all-you-can-eat, never been camping kind of girl, but I totally get it. If you have sensitive ears, please move along. Nothing to see here.
P.S. Here's "Rockin' The Suburbs." Just because Ben Folds got an audience to yell "Preperation-H" and the F-word and he's the man. Goes without saying, They yell the F-word. Deal.
In lieu of a proper Tunes Tuesday post, here are some of my favorite Ben Folds songs. First up is "Annie Waits" because I love it. Because the clock never stops, never stops, never stops, never waits, she's growing old, and it's getting late. And that's why.
Here's a much younger Ben with Ben Folds Five singing "Selfless, Cold, and Composed." Love the lyric "you just smile like a bank teller, blankly telling me 'have a nice life.'" It's a break-up song. A bad break-up song.
And now for something completely different, this clip is from a real British morning show that obviously didn't know what kind of guy Ben was. Ben and band lipsynched to the album track, a roadie sat in on drums, the drummer was a back-up singer, and Ben was awesomely cheesetastic. Love it, makes me laugh.
And for those of you who may not be big Ben Fold Fans, there is one special song, a song you have to hear live. Fortunately for you, it's on the You Tubes. You see, Ben plays live A LOT. Once in Chicago in 2001, a fan yelled out "Rock this bitch!" and being Ben, he busted out a song improv-style called "Rock This Bitch," and it became a running thing at his concerts for years until he retired it. Here is the masterpiece with the West Australian Symphony Orchestra.
