Ben Folds
Not Forgotten: Ben Folds Five – The Unauthorized Biography of Reinhold Messner
Woah, did I misjudge this album when I first heard it. I’ve never known an album take so long to burn into my psyche, but The Unauthorized Biography of Reinhold Messner is a case where patience and occasional replays eventually pays off. The last of the trio of Ben Folds Five studio albums from their …
Not Forgotten: Ben Folds – Supersunnyspeedgraphic, The LP
An odds and sods release which lifts the majority of its material from a trio of previously released EPs, rather than a full album in its own right, Supersunnyspeedgraphic, The LP, is nevertheless one of the most out and out enjoyable releases that Ben Folds has ever put his name to. Those of us who …
Not Forgotten: William Shatner – Has Been
Can you imagine trying to pitch a William Shatner album to a record label in 2003? For decades he had been sniggered at for his various attempts at ‘singing’, with his much derided rendition of “Mr Tambourine Man” being a subject of much criticism down the years, though the reaction to that was nothing compared …
Playlist: R.I.P. Muhammad Ali – 10 songs
And so the champion made his exit, and the man born Cassius Clay, the ‘Louisville lip’, the three time Heavyweight champion of the world left us, surrounded by his family at the age of 74. Ever since winning Olympic gold medal at the 1960 games and turning professional he told us he was the greatest, …
Album Review – Ben Folds – So There
The history of rock and pop artists dabbling in orchestral music is long and uneven. From Deep Purple’s lumpy Concerto for Group and Orchestra, to the splendid soundtrack work of Randy Newman, it’s been a mixed bag and unless the musician in question has the appropriate grounding in music theory, it can result in something …
A Buyers Guide to Ben Folds
Habitual piano botherer Ben Folds is one of those artists in rock and roll whose reputation far exceeds their sales. Both as a solo artist or leading his misnamed Five, he has been much admired, having been regularly being sought out for collaborations, contributions to soundtracks and generally being considered a musician’s musician and a …