Ben Folds Five (1995)

From the omniscient Wikipedia: "Ben Folds Five was formed in 1993 in Chapel Hill by Ben Folds. They were, in fact, a trio in spite of their name, and the primary motivation behind the name, apart from the band's well-known use of humor, was simple preference, according to Ben: 'I think it sounds better than Ben Folds Three.' Folds once described their music as 'punk rock for sissies,' a reaction to the angst prevalent in '90s rock."

Hyperbole warning: Folds' pounding of the keyboards has expanded the sonic possibilities of pop piano. I also like how the heavy feedback of the bass sounds like a guitar when it wants to. As far as songwriting goes, you can tell Folds grew up on a steady diet of Todd Rundgren, Billy Joel and Elton John, but his lyrics read almost like letters. I'm a fan; Folds should have been more popular than he was. He certainly deserved better than to end up on a music game show panel with Nick Lachey, a Boyz II Men leftover, and a Pussycat Doll.

Peak on the US Billboard Top 200 chart: Did not chart

Tracks: I like Jackson Cannery, Julianne, Where's Summer B.?, and Underground (which totally mocks the music scene of the time). The second track, Philosophy, starts off with a light Joel-like riff that turns into piano banging at the end with snippets of Gershwin thrown in for fun. I'm not sure if I'm just tired of listening by the end of the CD or if the CD simply falls apart at the end (I haven't written that in a while!). In any case, I'm usually done after about 9 tracks.

Personal Memory Associated with this CD: I remember listening to this in my little maroon Honda Civic on my way to teach 8th grade English. Man, that was a long year in the classroom.