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.
The Ascent Of Stan
Ben Folds Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
From the room upstairs
How's the view there
Do you read what they're sayin' about you
That you're no fun
Since the war was won
In fact you have become
All of the things you've always run from
The ascent of Stan
Textbook hippie man
Get rest while you can
So where'd the years go
All the time we had
Being poor was not such a drag in hindsight
And you wonder why your father was so resigned
Now you don't wonder anymore
The ascent of Stan
Textbook hippie man
Textbook hippie man
Get rest while you can
Stan, once you wanted revolution
Stan, now you're the institution
Stan, how's it feel to be the man
It hurts to be the man, It's no fun to be the man
La~ dada, la dada dada, la dada
La dadada dadada da~
And I watched it all go down
The ascent of Stan
Textbook hippie man
Stan
Textbook hippie man
Get rest while you can
Stan, once you wanted revolution
Stan, now you're the institution
Stan, how's it feel to be the man
It hurts to be the man, It's no fun to be the man
The lyrics of The Ascent Of Stan by Ben Folds tell a story of a man named Stan who once wanted to change the world, but as time passed he found himself becoming the very thing he once despised. The opening lines "Pangs of silence from the room upstairs, how's the view there?" suggest that the song is being sung from a lower level, looking up at Stan from the bottom, observing his life from the sidelines. The lyric "Do you read what they're saying about you?" highlights the fact that Stan is aware of people talking about him and possibly criticizing his choices.
The lines "All of the things you've always run from, the ascent of Stan, textbook hippy man" suggest that Stan is no longer the counterculture revolutionary he once was, but instead has become a member of the establishment. The chorus "Once you wanted revolution, now you're the institution, how's it feel to be the man? It's no fun to be the man" reinforces this idea, with Stan realizing that being in power isn't as fun as he thought it would be. The final line "It's no fun to be the man" suggests that despite his successes, Stan is not happy with his current situation.
Overall, the lyrics of The Ascent Of Stan by Ben Folds are a commentary on the price of success and the danger of losing oneself in the process. They suggest that sometimes the very thing we run from can be the thing we become, and that being in power and having success isn't always as fulfilling as it may seem.
Line by Line Meaning
Pangs of silence
Feeling of pain and discomfort caused by the absence of sound
From the room upstairs
The origin of the quietness is from a higher location
How's the view there?
Curious about the perspective from the specific location
Do you read what They're saying about you?
Are you aware of the negative opinions people have of you?
That you're no fun
You are not enjoyable or amusing to be around
Since the war was won
After the end of a battle, a change in behavior occurred
In fact, you have become
It has been realized that you have transformed into something undesirable
All of the things you've always
The characteristics that you've always avoided embodying
Run from
Evaded and avoided in the past
The ascent of Stan
The progression of Stan becoming more influential and powerful
Textbook hippy man
Stereotypical portrayal of an idealistic, peace-loving man
Get rest while you can
Take advantage of the opportunity to relax
So where'd the years go?
Questioning where all the time has passed
All the time we had
The time that was previously available to us
Being poor was Not such a drag in hindsight
Reflecting on the past and realizing that being financially unstable wasn't as difficult as imagined
And you wondered
There was confusion or curiosity in the past that is being referred to
Why your father was
Questioning the behavior or emotions of your paternal figure
So resigned
Being passive or compliant without any resistance
Now you don't wonder anymore
Realizing there's no longer a reason to speculate about the reasoning behind your father's actions
Once you wanted revolution
A previous desire existed for a significant change or rebellion
Now you're the institution
You are now a part of the system that was once fought against
How's it feel to be the man?
Inquiring about the emotional experience of having power and control
It's no fun to be the man
Having influence or authority isn't as enjoyable as expected
And I watched it all go down
Observing the progression of events that led to the current situation
Textbook hippy man
Stereotypical portrayal of an idealistic, peace-loving man
Get rest while you can
Take advantage of the opportunity to relax
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Gulp Emoji
Lyrics
Pangs of silence
From the room upstairs
How's the view there?
Do you read what they're saying about you?
That you're no fun
Since the war was won
In fact, you have become all of the things you've always run away from
The ascent of Stan
Textbook hippie man
Get rest while you can
So where'd the years go?
All the time we had?
Being poor was not such a drag in hindsight
And you wonder why your father was so resigned
Now you don't wonder any more
The ascent of Stan
Textbook hippie man
Textbook hippie man
Get rest while you can
Stan: Once you wanted revolution
Stan: Now you're the institution
Stan: How's it feel to be the man?
It's no fun to be the man
And now, watch it all go down
The ascent of Stan
Textbook hippie man
(Stan)
Textbook hippie man
Get rest while you can
Once you wanted revolution
Now you're the institution
How's it feel to be the man?
It's no fun to be the man
NLP
I just got a really great pair of head phones for the first time in my life and now I’m listening to this on repeat and crying because of all the beautiful audio nuances I never experienced before... the woppy-funk bass line that kicks in at 3:28 is giving my goosebumps goosebumps ✨💟✨
NLP
SRSLY- if you have ear buds or good headphones, crank the bass, close your eyes and wait for it around 3:25- you’ll feel it in the depths of your bones cells!
Hakim AR
N😂❤ 😂
Gulp Emoji
Lyrics
Pangs of silence
From the room upstairs
How's the view there?
Do you read what they're saying about you?
That you're no fun
Since the war was won
In fact, you have become all of the things you've always run away from
The ascent of Stan
Textbook hippie man
Get rest while you can
So where'd the years go?
All the time we had?
Being poor was not such a drag in hindsight
And you wonder why your father was so resigned
Now you don't wonder any more
The ascent of Stan
Textbook hippie man
Textbook hippie man
Get rest while you can
Stan: Once you wanted revolution
Stan: Now you're the institution
Stan: How's it feel to be the man?
It's no fun to be the man
And now, watch it all go down
The ascent of Stan
Textbook hippie man
(Stan)
Textbook hippie man
Get rest while you can
Once you wanted revolution
Now you're the institution
How's it feel to be the man?
It's no fun to be the man
David P
"why your father was... so resigned...
now you don't wonder any...-moooorrreee"
10/10 awesome. What an underrated album this masterpiece is.
Ezra C
This song is so nostalgic. My older brother used to play this on the piano, but I never knew it was a Ben folds song and had never heard the original. Nostalgia is a bittersweet and lonely experience.
James Moriarty
This is perfection condensed and distilled into a song
Eon
Kind of sad to see how few comments this gets, it's still wonderful and I hope a new generation picks this up
Wii Pro Controller
I always thought that Ben Folds was very popular because my parents talked about him all the time. I've picked up their taste and, oh man, this is very underrated. Gonna recommend this to anyone in my generation.
Feather
I hope more people in my generation will find him. One viral tiktok is all it would take...