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.
Saskia Hamilton
Ben Folds Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
But that's enough, I want to make her mine
Never heard her voice, never seen her smile
But I'm in love with Saskia Hamilton.
Well she's a poet, just like I want to be
But her passport alone is great poetry
She got more assonance than she knows what to do with
I'm in love with Saskia Hamilton
She got two sibilants, no bilabial plosives
Saskia Hamilton, Saskia Hamilton. Yeah! Right!
Saskia Hamilton, Saskia Hamilton.
Saskia, Saskia, Saskia
Already got a girl but she sounds real bad
I'm in love with Saskia Hamilton
She got alliteration and her surname is Dagg
Saskia Hamilton
No hard consonants in my girl Saskia
Every single syllable sounds like Shakespeare
I'm in love with Saskia
Gonna live with her and it'll all be harmonious
How could it not be, when she's that euphonious?
Gonna marry her and it'll be idyllic
And my teacher just told me that she's dactylic!
Saskia Hamilton, Saskia Hamilton. Yeah! Right!
Saskia Hamilton, Saskia Hamilton.
Saskia, Saskia, Saskia
The song "Saskia Hamilton" by Ben Folds and Nick Hornby portrays a deep infatuation with Saskia Hamilton, an acclaimed poetry editor and professor. The lyrics describe a love for her even though the singer has never seen her or heard her voice, as he has only come across her name on book spines. The song highlights Saskia's poetic sophistication as the singer marvels at the beauty of her name, passport, and literary devices such as assonance, alliteration, and sibilance.
The lyrics of "Saskia Hamilton" reveal a lot about the infatuation and admiration the singer has for Saskia. The song depicts his fascination with Saskia Hamilton's name and work, which transcends beyond mere physical attraction. By using Saskia's linguistic and poetic prowess as a symbol of his love, the song showcases how her knowledge and excellence in poetry inspires the singer.
Line by Line Meaning
I've only ever seen her name on a spine
I have never seen or met Saskia Hamilton before, but I know her name from a book spine.
But that's enough, I want to make her mine
Despite not meeting or knowing Saskia Hamilton, I am interested in having a relationship with her.
Never heard her voice, never seen her smile
I have never had any physical contact with Saskia Hamilton, I only know her through her name on a book cover.
But I'm in love with Saskia Hamilton.
Despite not having any personal connection with Saskia Hamilton, I feel a strong emotional connection with her and am in love with her.
Well she's a poet, just like I want to be
Saskia Hamilton is a poet, which is a career that I aspire to have.
But her passport alone is great poetry
Even Saskia Hamilton's passport, a typically mundane item, is so impressive that it could be considered great poetry.
And I'm in love with Saskia Hamilton.
Despite not having met her or spoken to her, my love for Saskia Hamilton continues to grow.
She got more assonance than she knows what to do with
Saskia Hamilton's name has a lot of similar vowel sounds, creating assonance, more than she may even realize.
I'm in love with Saskia Hamilton
Despite not having any real connection with Saskia Hamilton, I feel deeply in love with her.
She got two sibilants, no bilabial plosives
Saskia Hamilton's name has two sibilant sounds, but no abrupt or explosive sounds made with the lips.
Already got a girl but she sounds real bad
I am currently in a relationship, but I am considering ending it because my feelings for Saskia Hamilton are so strong.
Saskia Hamilton, Saskia Hamilton. Yeah! Right!
I am expressing my enthusiasm and affection for Saskia Hamilton through repetition of her name and exclamation.
Saskia, Saskia, Saskia
Repeating Saskia Hamilton's first name expresses an even deeper affection for her.
She got alliteration and her surname is Dagg
Saskia Hamilton's last name begins with the same sound as her first name, creating alliteration, and is also unique and interesting.
No hard consonants in my girl Saskia
Saskia Hamilton's name is made up of softer consonant sounds which flow together seamlessly.
Every single syllable sounds like Shakespeare
Each part of Saskia Hamilton's name is poetic and could belong in a Shakespearean work.
Gonna live with her and it'll all be harmonious
I imagine living with Saskia Hamilton would be peaceful and pleasant for us both.
How could it not be, when she's that euphonious?
Saskia Hamilton's name is so pleasing to the ear that living with her would certainly be harmonious and enjoyable.
Gonna marry her and it'll be idyllic
I hope to marry Saskia Hamilton and imagine our life together would be ideal and peaceful.
And my teacher just told me that she's dactylic!
My teacher has informed me that Saskia Hamilton's name can be classified as dactylic, a poetic term that further emphasizes her name's beauty.
Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: BEN FOLDS, BENJAMIN SCOTT FOLDS, NICHOLAS PETER JOHN HORNBY, NICK HORNBY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind