THE MAGICAL ARMCHAIR
The Ben Folds Five Digest
Issue #243 - April 21, 1997
Magical Armchair Digest Monday, April 21 1997 Volume 01 : Number 243
THE MAGICAL ARMCHAIR
The Ben Folds Five Mailing List
Topics for today:
Brick and stuff...
bff in minneapolis....yay :)
Drano
Piano music
milw/support act?
Brick lyrics.....a final note
Brick
The Austin show, etc.
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Date: Sun, 20 Apr 1997 02:55:41 -0400
From: Dean Drouillard <droulard@MNSi.Net>
Subject: Brick and stuff...
I had always thought that 'Brick' was about the first time you went to the
dentist when he gave you freezing and gas the same time. So you were high
and drooling all over yourself but you really didn't care because you got to
listen to Barry Manilow and it seemed like it was in slow motion but you
didn't care so you tried to sing along but the drill was in your mouth and
your tongue accidentally touched it and it hurt but you kind of laughed
anyway because you were stoned on nitrous oxide but the dentist told you to
watch your tongue but you thought that was funny because you thought he was
talking about swearing and so you thought about telling him to go f*ck his
nurse but you didn't but you couldn't... Makes sense if you think about it.
(BTW... no harm meant here, just being stupid)
Hey, don't you think Frank Maynard or someone else could have made a
lot of money making Magical Armchair t-shirts. Perfect identification at
shows. Maybe someone should try it. ...or no...maybe I should.
Dean Drouillard
RACECAR (Windsor, Ontario, CANADA)
http://www.mnsi.net/~racecar
droulard@mnsi.net
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 20 Apr 1997 04:54:27 -0400 (EDT)
From: PrinceSMM1@aol.com
Subject: bff in minneapolis....yay :)
hi. i am just looking for people from around rochester, mn who are going to
see bff at first ave on the 4th of june. if you are going and would maybe
want to meet up before the show, e mail me. june should be the perfect month.
i graduate, turn 18, and hopefully get to go to this show. :) well, buh bye
all.
PrinceS--------------------if you don't get the name, Prince~S is a song by
sebadoh
just a little extra bit of info. for ya'
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 20 Apr 1997 10:44:43 -0400 (EDT)
From: Michele <mmenuck@umich.edu>
Subject: Drano
I don't know how anyone else feels about this...
Yeah, it's really cool that the list has gotten so big and all (the more
the merrier), but I miss Maynard.
The newsletter used to be much more, shall I say, personalized.
Now that it's automated, It's becoming annoying. One opens his inbox to
find 4 installments (every 4 hours) of Armchair- 2 of which
have no substance, or yet another analysis of "Brick".
I guess there's really nothing we can do about it.
Just wanted to see if anyone felt the same way.
Laters,
Michele
Less than a week 'till the Detroit show! Anyone going?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Michele R. Menuck
University of Michigan
mmenuck@umich.edu
http://www-personal.umich.edu/~mmenuck
"Life is hard, but it's even harder when you're stupid." -?
"Welcome to the world. Thank you, drive through." -Beavis
"If my mind's somewhere else, you'll be unable to tell. I do the best
imitation of myself." -BF5
"We are the music makers, and we are the dreamers of the dreams." -WW
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 20 Apr 1997 16:03:29 +0100
From: "Aidan Taub" <ATaub@netcomuk.co.uk>
Subject: Piano music
Hi guys,
I'm new to the "Armchair" and wondering if anybody has taken the time to
work out the piano music for either of the albums. I've found the
transcribed guitar tabs
but they really don't help! If anyone can help me with this or if there are
any British fans
reading this please don't hesitate to E-mail me.
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 20 Apr 1997 11:37:22 CST
From: muel9628@uwwvax.uww.edu
Subject: milw/support act?
i just found out a few days ago that ben folds five are coming to milwaukee
on june 3 and i'm wondering who else is supporting them on tour . i'm going
to the chicago show this thursday so i'll see some fellow armchairers there.
tickets are on sale for the milwaukee show and it's at a fine venue called
the rave..most concerts there of lesser known bands attract about 400 people
at the most..that's how it was for luscious jackson and ani difranco so there
will be plenty of tickets left. please anyone post when they find out who is
opening for the milwaukee date. well see some of you thursday..
mark "automatic taxi stop electric cigarette love baby hotel rock 'n'
roll the discoteque electric super sex" -morPhinE
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 20 Apr 1997 12:55:57 -0400 (EDT)
From: BEEFTODD@aol.com
Subject: Brick lyrics.....a final note
Hello All,
Just to clear a few things up. Firstly Kro, you recently wrote of my theory:
"3. The underground theory. Someone suggested that this was along the same
lines of underground and One Angry Dwarf... The fact that he "paced around
the parking lot" as if waiting to be picked in gym class. But, I think
that's the only line that makes any sense of that theory."
I was just making stuff up to see if anybody was daft enough to think I was
being serious, call it British sarcasm if you like.
But now onto the real meaning of Brick, joking aside, it's about car crime,
theft from vehicles etc. May I present the evidence:
i) The couple go when their parents are away thus avoiding suspicion
ii) Pacing around the parking lot simply means he's waiting for an
opportunity to brick a car window whilst his girlfriend causes a viable alibi
iii) How many places are open at 7:30am Boxing Day for abortions as per other
theories?
iv) As weeks went by......you know the line.....just explains his psyche
affected by the crime(s) committed
v) AND who "Sells some gifts that I got?" This line means he's stolen car
radios etc and he's just trading them in
vi) Brick and drowning slowly means that the brick is the instrument of
illegality and drowning slowly means getting into it deeper, like an
addiction.
So there you go.................sorted.
Bye
Mr Beef Todd
PS- Any news of more British dates? E-Mail us guv
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 20 Apr 1997 14:06:24 -0500 (CDT)
From: mpkogli@rs6000.cmp.ilstu.edu (Matt P. Koglin)
Subject: Brick
The song brick is obviously about someone taking their girlfriend to get an
abortion.
Matt
- --
All people have their own living road to heaven. Until they walk on this
road, they are like drunkards who cannot tell which way is which.
Zen saying
------------------------------
Date: Sun, 20 Apr 1997 15:21:44 -0400 (EDT)
From: NakedVegan@aol.com
Subject: The Austin show, etc.
Re: Greg Gaspard's comments about musicians achieving success vs. working
menial jobs
I hear ya. I arranged my life a couple of years ago so that I could
work part-time, so I could play music the rest of the time. The need to
work is a big impediment to being able to pursue music. On Friday I
played with Chepo from Sincola (who used to be on Caroline Records, got
some national airplay, played with BF5 in England, etc.), and every time
I mentioned his success, he shot back, "Yeah, and I wark in a f*****g
coffee shop!" Then again, maybe I'm not much of an authority since I've
ALREADY sold out before even getting popular (two of my three bands are
cover bands).
Re: Stephen Edge complaining about Mindy LaBernz's review
Mindy is the biggest fan journalist you're ever likely to read. Sorry
you didn't get it.
Re: The question "What would be the coolest cover BFF could do?"
"Breed" by Nirvana, "Mission:Impossible", or "Give it Away" by the Chili
Peppers.
I still can't believe the number of people suggesting piano songs
(especially LAME piano songs like "Cheers") as potential covers. Haven't
you noticed that BF5 can play ANYTHING? Didn't it mean anything to you
that they covered a JIMI HENDRIX tune? You might as well suggest that
BF5 play the f*****g Music Box Dancer! :-)
Let's make this interesting. Let's have the 1000+ people on this list
choose our favorite potential cover via a vote, then we'll send the
result to BF5, and maybe they'll honor us by playing the cover that so
many of their fans want to hear? Go ahead and send me your ONE
suggestion for a BF5 cover (title & artist), and in about two weeks I'll
post the candidates along with voting instructions.
In other news, the show in Austin on Friday rocked, quite predictably. I
thought nobody could top their live show that I saw last year, but they
did what no other band could do: top Ben Folds Five! The set was tight
(even the ad-libbed stuff), the playing masterful, and the harmonies were
just insane. I was especially looking forward to see how they would pull
off the crescendo opening harmony on "Fair", and they didn't disappoint.
I'll let someone else post a more complete review because I'm just
stunned and I have other news to share.
Seeing Ben Folds play is always confusing for me. On the one hand, it
motivates me to want to improve my skill and to pursue my music career.
On the other hand, it makes me think, "I can't play my way out of a wet
paper bag. I'll never be Ben Folds. I suck." and I feel like just
giving up music completely.
Anyway, after the show, while I was waiting for the boys to come out to
talk to the fans and sign autographs, the guard noticed the piano keys I
have shaved into the side of my head (I guess I'm Officer Friendly's
little boy, with a mohawk), and based on that she let me go backstage.
So I walk backstage, and Ben says, "Oh, hi Michael." Jesus! He
remembered my name! (from shows here over a year ago when I got him to
autograph my keyboard with an engraver and when I gave him a ceramic
piano)
I asked him who drew the stick piano logo from the first album, and he
said that Summer drew it. I asked if she drew it backwards
intentionally, or if it just got reproduced backwards, or what, and he
said that she didn't realize she had drawn it backwards, but Ben liked it
anyway so they used it. I showed Ben the stick piano tattoo on my arm,
and he didn't believe it was real at first. He said, "What is this,
crayon?" I asked him who did the transcription for the sheet music book,
and he said that a company in Japan did it, by listening to the CD and
transcribing from that. His comment about it was confusing -- he said
that the company's goal was to try to make it easy to play, but he also
said they got stuff wrong where they had made things more complicated
when in reality he plays them simpler. I didn't get the contradiction,
but he had so many people waiting to talk to him I didn't want to press
it. I think he said he got to do one or two edits on the book but that
his schedule precluded him from sitting down and making sure they got
everything right.
In any event, for those who haven't seen the book, it's certainly not Big
Note Piano. The problem with the book is not that it's EASY (it's not),
it's that it's incomplete and not always accurate. For example, although
they printed it with three staves, they have the right-hand piano line
playing the melody during the lyrical sections, when in fact Ben sings
the melody but PLAYS something completely different when he's singing.
And in The Last Polka, that little run he does after he sings the first
line is not even there at all. Same with the solo at the end of Uncle
Walter, but then again is that kind of solo even transcribable by mortal
humans? There's other stuff, but I haven't gone through the whole book
yet. You get the idea.
- -------------------------------------------------------------------------
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| | please use this address. |
|---------------------------|-------------------------------------------|
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End of Magical Armchair Digest V1 #243
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