As of fall 2006, Ben Folds has released five solo LPs. His first album, Fear of Pop: Volume 1, an album of spoken word and instrumental compositions, was recorded and released while Ben Folds Five was still together. Since it was an uncharacteristic release, and officially released under the moniker of 'Fear of Pop', it is widely considered that his first "proper" solo album was Rockin' the Suburbs (2001), on which he played all the instruments by himself. A year later, in 2002, he released Ben Folds Live, a collection of live solo recordings. In late 2003, two solo EPs, Speed Graphic and Sunny 16, were released, with a third entitled Super D released in mid-2004. In 2005, Folds released a second studio album called Songs for Silverman. Most recently Folds has released the album "Supersunnyspeedgraphic, the lp" a compliation of his EPs, a The Bens track called "Bruised," "Still" from the motion picture of 2006 "Over the Hedge" for which Folds wrote all the songs, his cover of the Dr. Dre song "Bitches Ain't Shit", and, with the kind permission of his good friend Neil Hannon, a cover of The Divine Comedy song "Songs of Love". "Supersunnyspeedgraphic, the lp" otherwise includes remastered takes from the three internet EPs from 2002-2004. Ben claims that he wanted to have the CD in hard format so he could "put it past him."
Ben resides in Nashville. He often tours the United States, the United Kingdom, other countries in Europe, Japan, and Australia.
Folds' tours are famous for his solo act as "Ben Folds and a piano", often having the audience become involved by "playing" the accompanying instruments (such as the trumpet and saxophone harmonies in "Army") and singing choir-like backing vocals on "Not the Same". His concerts are charismatic, yet calm - an enjoyable experience for most. And although Folds is constantly putting out new songs, his concerts rarely omit classic fan favorites such as "Philosophy," "One Angry Dwarf and 200 Solemn Faces," and "Army." Also, a seemingly fan favorite that started in Chicago, IL was "Rock this Bitch," a song where Folds has to come up an impromptu new tune with the words "Rock this Bitch" in it; though the song seems to be phasing out, it still makes appearances on tours, such as the November 2006 tour and the Spring US College tour of 2007 and 2008.
Folds also produced and arranged the William Shatner album, Has Been (2004); he previously worked with Shatner on the songs "In Love" and "Still in Love" for Fear of Pop.
Folds described his former band, Ben Folds Five, as "punk rock for sissies," and his oddball lyrics often contain nuances of depression, melancholy and self-conflict. Folds also provided a number of songs for film soundtracks. Some of these include "Lonely Christmas Eve" for the Jim Carrey film How the Grinch Stole Christmas! (2000), and a rendition of the Beatles' "Golden Slumbers" for the film I Am Sam (2001). He (as The Bens) has also done charity compilations, from singing "Wicked Little Town" (from film and stage show Hedwig and the Angry Inch) on the benefit album "Wig in a Box" (2003) to appearing on No Boundaries, a benefit album for Kosovo refugees, with the song "Leather Jacket." (written by Darren Jessee)
On a planned tour of Australia, Folds teamed up with solo artists Ben Kweller and Ben Lee to travel the country together as The Bens, at the suggestion of a fan on Ben Kweller's official website. The trio also went on to record a four-track EP together, entitled The Bens.
In summer of 2004, Folds co-headlined an American tour with fellow rockers Rufus Wainwright and Guster. His second solo studio album, entitled Songs for Silverman, was released in the U.S. on April 26, 2005, featuring Jared Reynolds on bass, and Lindsay Jamieson on the drums, thus returning to the trio format, which had been so successful earlier, in earnest. This album includes the track "Late," a tribute to the late singer-songwriter Elliott Smith, and also features backing vocals from "Weird Al" Yankovic on "Time." (Folds had played piano for Yankovic's song "Why Does This Always Happen to Me?" and "Weird Al" directed Folds' music video for Rockin' the Suburbs). In January of 2007 Lindsay Jamieson left the band and was replaced by Sam Smith, of The Comfies on drums.
Folds performed with Rufus Wainwright and Ben Lee in the summer of 2005 as part of the "Odd Men Out" tour. In addition, Folds has performed with many other famous musical names, including Weezer. Folds has also shown the complexity behind his authentic sound by performing with the West Australian Symphony Orchestra, in March 2005, and the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, in November 2005. A DVD recording of Folds playing with the West Australian Symphony Orchestra was released in December, 2005.
Folds was the first artist to do a "Live at Myspace" concert, held on October 24, 2006 in his recording studio in Nashville, the show was an hour long and had requests from the internet submitted via Myspace's Messenger. It also entailed several stunts, including a suicide attempt, and a falling audience member during "Jesusland". The DVD of the broadcast (almost whole) was released in February of 2007.
Folds supports the independent music scene, creating his own record label (Attacked By Plastic) and doing promotional work for independent record stores across the country.
In 2008, September 16 marked the release of Amanda Palmer's solo album which was produced by Folds. Two days following that release, Ben Folds Five had a one-time reunion concert held in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, the same place the band was formed. Weeks later, he released his third solo album entitled Way To Normal, released on September 30. Folds also recorded a fake album that was leaked intentionally during the summer to please fans and in an attempt to stop the real album from leaking. The fake tracks were recorded and mixed over a period of only several days. The leak contained 6 fake songs with names similar to the real songs or the album, and three songs from the actual release (except the song Cologne, which was an orchestral version of a song by the same name on the final album).
Since December 2008, Folds has been collaborating with English novelist Nick Hornby, writing the music while Hornby writes the lyrics. This album was originally planned to be recorded over a course of 3 days, the same amount of time in which the fake album was recorded, but Folds has since been recording the album in a more standard format, albeit attempting to retain the live recording format. He has also played several songs from the upcoming album at live shows since mid-2009, and the album is slated to be released on September 27th of 2010.
From December 14 through 21, 2009, Folds was featured as a judge on NBC's a cappella competition The Sing Off alongside Nicole Scherzinger and Shawn Stockman and offered insightful, constructive comments and criticisms to the contestants. On the final show, in a departure from his a cappella purism, showcased his talents and played the roaring, riffing piano background on "Why Can't We Be Friends?" sung by the two finalist groups, Tufts Beelzebubs from Tufts University near Boston and Nota, from San Juan, Puerto Rico. He again returned for the show's second season, and has been confirmed to return for the third season in September 2011 alongside Stockman and new judge Sara Bareilles.
Recently Ben Folds was assumed to be the anonymous pianist playing songs to random ChatRoulette users, named "Merton." Although Ben Folds has admitted to NOT being Merton, he paid tribute to the YouTube star at a concert in Charlotte in "Ode To Merton."
Ben Folds recently released his first album since So There, What Matters Most in June of 2023 after a 12 year hiatus.
Best Imitation of Myself
Ben Folds Lyrics
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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
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 want to 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
Do the best imitation of myself
The lyrics of “Best Imitation of Myself” by Ben Folds are introspective and self-analyzing. He starts with a clear assertion that he feels like a “quote out of context” because he is withholding the rest of himself to conform to what others want him to be. He believes that he is so good at masking himself that others think his imitation could be the real thing. This is possibly why he asks whether or not he should take a class to lose his southern accent which he seems to believe is just a conscious act he’s put on. He wonders if he made himself up entirely, or if he just made a face until it stuck, hence the conclusion: “I do the best imitation of myself.”
Ben recalls being criticized for his behavior on stage in his “problem with you” speech, which he accepted with grace. However, as he began drifting, he unconsciously starts performing his juggling act, magic tricks, and the best imitation of himself to keep audiences entertained. Perhaps, he is unhappy with his imitative tendencies and contemplates who he really is at his core. “Maybe I’m thinking myself in a hole/Wondering who I am when I ought to know” speaks to this nagging sense of uncertainty about identity. His last night could be interpreted as a turning point where he ditches imitation to be himself, both the good and bad parts of him because he doesn't want to compete for someone's attention with others. He agrees to himself that he does the best imitation of himself because it comes from the same place, and he does it with such precision that no one can tell the difference.
Line by Line Meaning
I feel like a quote out of context
I feel like people only see a part of me, and not the whole picture
Withholding the rest
I am keeping parts of myself hidden from others
So I can be for you what you want to see
I am pretending to be the person that others want me to be
I got the gesture and sound
I have mastered the art of imitating others
Got the timing down
I know when and how to imitate others
It's uncanny, yeah, you think it was me
I am so good at imitating others that people think it's actually me
Do you think I should take a class
Should I work on improving my imitation skills?
To lose my southern accent
To change my identity and become someone else entirely
Did I make me up, or make the face till it stuck
Am I really acting like myself, or just pretending to be someone else?
I do the best imitation of myself
I am really good at pretending to be who I'm not
The 'problem with you' speech
The speech where you told me what's wrong with me
You gave me was fine
Your feedback was okay
I liked the theories about my little stage
I enjoyed hearing your opinions about my life
And I swore I was listening
I pretended to listen to your feedback
But I started drifting
I lost focus and stopped paying attention
Around the part about me acting my age
I didn't like hearing that I need to grow up
Now if it's all the same
If it doesn't matter either way
I've people to entertain
I have other things to do besides listen to you
I juggle one-handed
I am skilled at multitasking
Do some magic tricks and
I can distract you with my abilities
The best imitation of myself
I am really good at being someone else
Maybe I'm thinking myself in a hole
Maybe I'm overthinking things and getting myself stuck
Wondering, who I am when I ought to know
I should know who I am, but I am still unsure
Straighten up now time to go
Get it together and move on
Fool somebody else, fool somebody else
Pretend to be someone else for someone else
Last night I was east with them
Last night I was with some friends in the eastern side of town
And west within
But I was really feeling lost and confused
Trying to be for you what you want to see
I am pretending to be someone else for your benefit
But I can't help it with you
When I'm around you, my true self comes out
The good and bad comes through
You see both my positive and negative traits
Don't want you hanging out with
I am possessive of you and don't want you around other people
No one but me
I want you to only spend time with me
Now if it's all the same
If it doesn't matter either way
It comes from the same place
My imitation and true self both come from within
And if my mind's somewhere else
If I'm not focusing on the present
You won't be able to tell
You won't be able to see that my mind has wandered
I do the best imitation of myself
I am really good at pretending to be someone else
Yes it's uncanny to see
It's surprising to see how well I can pretend to be someone else
You'd really think it was me
You might think that I really am the person I'm pretending to be
The best imitation of myself
I am really good at pretending to be who I'm not
Do the best imitation of myself
I am really good at being someone else
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: BEN FOLDS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind