The members of the band are Ben Folds, the lead singer and pianist, who also wrote most of the songs; Robert Sledge on bass; and Darren Jessee on drums. The group enjoyed the success of the single Brick in 1997, a ballad written by Folds (with a chorus by Jessee) about his high school girlfriend getting an abortion. This song has, to a large degree, misrepresented the band to fans who aren't familiar with their other work; "Brick" is a serious ballad, whereas most of their music is characterised by jazz inflections and witty, humorous lyrics.
After the band's not-so amicable breakup in October 2000 over Ben's over shadowing of Sledge and Jessee, Folds began a solo career. Robert Sledge's subsequent band International Orange has broken up, while Darren Jessee is the frontman for the band Hotel Lights.
Folds once described their music as "punk rock for pussies" - a reaction to the angst prevalent in 90s rock. When asked about his band's name he jokingly responded "you mean a trio isn't five?". In other interviews the band said that the name was simply because Ben Folds Five sounded better than Ben Folds Three.
Ben Folds has continued with producing music on his own, striking a subtler tone than Ben Folds Five's earlier recordings. His personal relationship with William Shatner has opened the doors for a great professional one. Ben Folds produced William Shatner's album Has Been and they have since worked together on The 'Over The Hedge' soundtrack.
On September 18, 2008 at the UNC Memorial Hall in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, the band reunited for the first time in nearly 10 years for one special gig playing their critically acclaimed final album: The Unauthorized Biography of Reinhold Messner in its entirety.
The House Songfacts reports that the trio got together in 2011 to record three new Ben Folds Five songs for the compilation,The Best Imitation of Myself: A Retrospective.
Their 4th studio album "The Sound Of The Life Of The Mind" released September 18th, 2012. A live album titled "Ben Folds Live" released soon after on June 3rd, 2013.
Another live album "The Complete Sessions at West 54th" originally recorded in June of 1997, released on July 10, 2018.
Smoke
Ben Folds Five Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Throw this book away
All the sadness all the rage
Throw this book away
Rip out the binding, tear the glue
All of the grief we never ever knew
We had it all along
Now it's smoke
The things we've written in it
Never really happened
All of the people come and gone
Never really lived
All of the people have come have gone
No one to forgive smoke
We will never write a new one
There will not be a new one
Another one, another one
Here's an evening dark with shame
Throw it on the fire
Here's the time I took the blame
Throw it on the fire
Here's the time we didn't speak
It seemed for years and years
Here's a secret
No one will ever know the
Reasons for the tears
They are smoke
Where do all the secrets live
They travel in the air
You can smell them when they burn
They travel
Those who say the past is not dead
Stop and smell the smoke
You keep on saying the past is not dead
Come on and smell the smoke
You keep saying the past is not even past
You keep saying
We are, smoke
The lyrics to "Smoke" by Ben Folds Five talk about getting rid of the past and forgetting about the negative events that have happened. The song suggests throwing away the book that we've written in, tearing it apart, and forgetting about the sadness and rage we've experienced. The lyrics continue to say that everything we've written in the book never really happened, and all of the people that have come and gone never really lived. The past is described as smoke, invisible and something that we can't hold onto.
The song reminds us that all of our secrets travel in the air, and we can smell them when they burn. The past may not be dead, but we can "come on and smell the smoke" and move on from it. The song ends with the line "We are, smoke," implying that we too are just as fleeting and impermanent as the past.
Overall, the song encourages letting go of the past and not allowing it to dictate our present or future. It urges us to burn the negative events and memories of our lives and move forward, embracing the present moment.
Line by Line Meaning
Leaf by Leaf, page by page
Gradually discarding every chapter of our lives
Throw this book away
Forget the past and move on
All the sadness all the rage
All the emotions and anger we've held onto
Rip out the binding, tear the glue
Removing all the connections and attachments we've had
All of the grief we never ever knew
All the repressed and hidden pain
We had it all along
We were aware of it without acknowledging it
Now it's smoke
It's all gone
The things we've written in it
The events we've experienced and recorded
Never really happened
They didn't have as much significance as we thought
All of the people come and gone
All the individuals who've been in our lives
Never really lived
They didn't make a lasting impact
No one to forgive smoke
Letting go of resentment as everything fades
We will never write a new one
We won't dwell on the past to make more of it
There will not be a new one
There won't be another version of the past
Another one, another one
We'll learn from our mistakes and create a better future
Here's an evening dark with shame
A memory associated with negative feelings
Throw it on the fire
Discard the distressing memory
Here's the time I took the blame
A moment of guilt or responsibility
Here's the time we didn't speak
A period of strained communication
It seemed for years and years
It felt like an extended timeframe
Here's a secret
A confidential piece of information
No one will ever know the
It remains unknown and hidden
Reasons for the tears
The source of the sadness and sorrow
They are smoke
It's all just a distant memory now
Where do all the secrets live
Not knowing the location of repressed thoughts and emotions
They travel in the air
They linger and affect our psyche
You can smell them when they burn
They become apparent when faced and dealt with
Those who say the past is not dead
People who don't believe in letting go of the past
Stop and smell the smoke
Acknowledge that the past is gone
You keep on saying the past is not dead
The inability to let go of past experiences
Come on and smell the smoke
Realize that it's over and move on
You keep saying the past is not even past
Holding onto the past even when it's over
We are, smoke
We too will fade and be gone like the past
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: BEN FOLDS, ANNA GOODMAN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@jasonwilkerson9497
Having listened to these guys back in the 90s going to college and working at a hardware store, and now still processing grief from a painful divorce, reading anything on grief, this song popped up on my feed. Love how God has me listening to a bunch of songs to distract me until I get to this one. The line about both of us not grieving our own past and how that affected the relationship is IT!! Such a gem in the rough.
@crlyhdedfnck
I would like to thank my Dad for showing me the talent of these three individuals.
He's not dead, I just wanna thank him.
@TheBarkley26
same lol
@dpgns0103
Same ...
@requiemforpsyche
id like to thank my mum for showing me the talent of these three lol
@lunatuna5203
@@requiemforpsyche True they are a parent, but I think you may be overgeneralizing on the comment :P
@guitarjag1
One of the most talented bands overall...everyone pulls their weight and then some. These sessions sounds almost exactly like the album versions; I didn't think it could be done so well live
@ckurtis
That whole 54th street series was golden. So much top content
@jonesnbones
Beautiful musicianship all around.
Watched this on PBS and this lovely dvd is still in rotation.
@dontpissoffraccoons
The ammount of musicianship shown in this video is insane