The name Ben Folds Five was not, in fact, a goofy misnomer, despite the fact that the band numbered only three. Nah, besides Folds, drummer Darren Jessee, and bassist Robert Sledge, there were two invisible members equally integral to the BFF sound: Folds' considerable ego, and his almost equally considerable songwriting talent. Argue if you must, but anyone who goes the eponymous route with his band, and then plays every single instrument on his solitary efforts, has got to be sporting heavy self-love.
The famed ego is obviously at play here on the cheekily named Ben Folds Live, the take-home version of his truly solo man-vs-piano US jaunt from earlier this year. The question for prospective buyers, then, would be whether this ego trip obscures or potentiates the songcraft. It's a battle for Folds' rubber soul that sets the old seesaw of Good Idea/Bad Idea a-tippin' for the live album.
Good Idea: Narcissism or no, the stripped-down nightclub setup of Ben/piano/audience makes for a live album that's more than just greatest hits + cheering. It's interesting to hear what tracks from the BFF catalog hold up sans rhythm section: "Best Imitation of Myself" defends its place near the top of the Folds fakebook, while "The Last Polka" manages to preserve all the marital meltdown urgency of the full-band workup.
Bad Idea: Let us not forget the talents of Mssrs. Jessee and Sledge, however, who, despite not getting their name in the top billing, were pretty upstanding musicians and harmonists. Versions of "One Angry Dwarf and 200 Hundred Solemn Faces" or formerly string-soaked tracks "Jane" and "Narcolepsy" feel amputated without the originators.
Good Idea: To fill the holes, Folds turns to some good old-fashioned audience participation, conducting his audience in recreating the spine-tingling fanfare bridge of "Army". The song wouldn't work without it. Sounds good, it's fun, Dr. Peppers all around.
Bad Idea: Not so for the audience singalong "aaaahhhhs" on "Not the Same", a lobotomized chorus that brings to mind the brainwashed devotees on that creepy Dashboard Confessional Unplugged session.
Good Idea: Peppering the setlist with obscurities, like the too-rare-for-the-rarity-comp oldie "Silver Street", the recent b-side "One Down", or the severely underrated "Emaline".
Bad Idea: Leaving the rest heavy with songs from the ho-hum Rockin' the Suburbs. Sure, Benjamin's showing off his independence from his days with the Five, but songs like hyperglycemic United In-Flight Channel favorite "The Luckiest" don't hold up in the lineup next to the early material (enjoyable Jon Cougar Pianocamp snapshot "Zak and Sara" excepted). Also deduct points for the inclusion of "Brick", complete with pointless rehash banter about the song's inspiration. Anyone ever think about how Folds' high school girlfriend feels about being called a "brick" on Top 40 radio for post-abortion gloom?
Good Idea: The cover of "Tiny Dancer" might seem unbelievably trite in these post-Almost Famous times, never mind Folds' perennial saddle as the new Elton Joel or Billy John. But I'll be damned if his straight-as-an-arrow reading of the greatest ode to Tony Danza ever written doesn't get me all gooey inside.
Bad Idea: But does Folds get all his cover ideas from movies? The segue of "Philosophy" into Dick Dale's "Miserlou" is a bit pat, and as I over heard a necktie warrior at Bertucci's say last weekend, "Quentin Tarantino is soooo five years ago, dude."
An even battle, but the scales are tipped towards the positive by the intact Folds sense of humor that gave BFF's live shows a, er, sixth member? Superfluous swearing, one of his half-impromptu, tongue-in-cheek concert ditties ("Rock This Bitch"), and a surprisingly on-pitch guest appearance by Cake singer John McCrea all provide entertaining moments. But clowning aside, it's the intimate setting, and the attention the stripped-down sound draws to the strength of Folds' melodies, that makes Ben Folds Live a document for more than just the fanclub. Better song selection might've pushed the rating higher, but a little bit of personality and restraint alongside the infamous ego makes the affair a bit easier to swallow.
