THE MAGICAL ARMCHAIR

The Ben Folds Five Digest

Issue #265 - April 27, 1997



Magical Armchair Digest     Sunday, April 27 1997     Volume 01 : Number 265



                           THE MAGICAL ARMCHAIR
                     The Ben Folds Five Mailing List

Topics in this issue:

	my take on the "mainstream" issue..... 
	Columbus
	Weeeeeeeeeeed
	Cleveland BFF Show.
	[none]
	Too Many 
	just saw this in one of my digests...
	Re: MTV edits
	BFF & the Horde
	Cynthia speaks the truth. 
	please forgive me Armchairians. 
	GET ME OFF THIS LIST
	Re: Elvis Costello cover, Flaming Lips cover 
	When will BFF come to Europe?

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Date: Fri, 25 Apr 1997 20:20:46 -0400
From: hapfield@mix-net.net (Andrea Merrifield)
Subject: my take on the "mainstream" issue..... 

my thoughts on the mainstreaming of ben folds five is this: I'm not so much
worried about losing the "specialness" of being one of the few BFF fans out
there , as much as i'm worried about "fairweather fans" you know , the ones
that show up at shows just cuz the band is the "next big thing" and aren't
even really fans. they go out and buy the cd and maybe dig some of the
tunes , but aren't really fans , yet they still try and sound like they're
real die-hard fans like i know some of the people (including me) on this
list are. i hope this makes sense , i'm really tired......
                                                thanx for your time,
                                                        -jon-


"this is
funded by a major
but shabbily packaged
to pretend that it's cool"
                -BIS

------------------------------

Date: Fri, 25 Apr 1997 19:26:58 -0500
From: Christopher <cmvox1@airmail.net>
Subject: Columbus

I keep seeing people talking about the Cleveland show, does anyone know
if they are playing in Columbus?  I'd like to let my brother know about
it if they are.  He's up there and I'd like to try and make him a fan.  

"This" letter "was made with the utmost care and professionalism." 
Words "were chosen and placed ..."

See ya'll,

chris

------------------------------

Date: Fri, 25 Apr 1997 19:36:41 -0500
From: Christopher <cmvox1@airmail.net>
Subject: Weeeeeeeeeeed

>Is "weed" a bad word in America in 1997?

Unfortunately, thanks to or Puritan history in America we can't say
"weed" on MTV.  We also can't have nudity in TV commercials or on
billboards like in France and Germany.  But we have Epcott Center. 
WooHoo!!

chris

------------------------------

Date: Fri, 25 Apr 97 21:47:34 PDT
From: evlbison <evlbison@neo.lrun.com>
Subject: Cleveland BFF Show.

Yo, I am going to the show, and I hoped to set up a tape, but 
all of my equipment moved to Florida with my friend two days 
ago. That REALLY pisses me off. Anyways, get in touch with me 
TONIGHT (fri.) if you can (only if you have a solution to my 
problem though). Catch ya at the show.

Steve




"Speak softly, drive a Sherman tank"
~They Might Be Giants - Everything thats right is wrong 
again~

"On the run from Johnny Law... Ain't no trip to Cleveland"
~Dignan - Bottle Rocket~

"He was thrown head over heels into the traffic coming on, 
but then all is fair in love"
~Ben Folds Five~

"Good... Bad... I'm the guy with the gun.
~Ash - Army of Darkenss~

------------------------------

Date: Fri, 25 Apr 1997 18:58:22 -0800 (PST)
From: Brian <b_fukushima@cariboo.bc.ca>
Subject: [none]

unsubscribe armchair b_fukushima@cariboo.bc.ca

------------------------------

Date: Fri, 25 Apr 1997 22:13:04 -0400 (EDT)
From: Jessica237@aol.com
Subject: Too Many 

WHY THE HELL DO WE GET SOOOO MANY LETTERS FROM THIS NOW? I used to treasure
each issue when Frank would get them out to us and send his little messages
at the end of the letters. . .now it's crazy to read so many people's one
word comments and stuff every single second. I get one of these things so
often. I love to keep up w/all the other fans, but it's getting a little too
much. It just kind of depresses me--my fave band hitting the big time, I
guess, but I'm still scared and a bit upset. . .
Whatever--BFF IN NYC ON MON!! I'm way excited!!!
Jess

------------------------------

Date: Fri, 25 Apr 1997 23:08:04 -0400 (EDT)
From: excandescent <el266071@hvcc.edu>
Subject: just saw this in one of my digests...

time after that a little bigger one, and then who knows?..........I dont't
know about sexy, but Ben was so cute when he got up to play that keyboard
horn thingy.  He's got the greatest expressions!........I bet you didn't
know that the original title to "Fair" was "Ahh, Liz Phair".  He let us in
on that little secret last night!........Did anyone else think of Greatful
Dead...
	
	posted by angryngfan@aol.com...umm..i noticed that..i would listen
to fair and think that what he was singing sounded an awful lot like "ahh,
liz phair in love" then i would just start thinking about liz phair and i
would be goign nuts :>  thing is, i didnt think anything of it until
now..that's pretty cool..i may have ESPN or something :)

	absenter's stupid freakin web page:
	http://bbs.cowland.com/absenter
"feed me enough poison, i'll learn to enjoy it." - jawbox

------------------------------

Date: Fri, 25 Apr 1997 22:09:03 -0500
From: "Louie Nash" <louie@tamu.edu>
Subject: Re: MTV edits

Oh boy... looks like it's my turn to apologize before i get flamed into
oblivion. I'm not really the idiot this stupid Microsoft product makes me
out to be. The stupid mailserver crashed and got stuck in a loop. Here's a
tip for everyone. DON'T USE MICROSOFT JUNK! Grrr! 

Anyway, beyond that, I'd like to second that vote for ELO covers, and add
that anything that Jeff Lynne has had a hand in would be really cool. What
about Traveling Wilburys stuff? Handle Me With Care could be done very
nicely. 

Bo Nash
louie@tamu.edu

"The one serious conviction that a man should have is that 
nothing is to be taken too seriously."
Samuel Butler:  1612-1680, British poet

------------------------------

Date: Fri, 25 Apr 1997 21:31:10 -0600
From: Shawn Huckaby <BShawn@ix.netcom.com>
Subject: BFF & the Horde

Well, as official as any of this pre-summer posting can be....

Here in Denver our summer concert lineup was announced last week.  In it
there was an add for the H.O.R.D.E. festival which featured, you guessed
it, BFF.  Just off of the top of my head, some of the other acts were:

Big Head Todd
Primus
Neil Young

and some others but I forget which.  It also said other 'special guests'
would be included, and featured a small print disclaimer that the lineup
was subject to change.

FWIW,

Shawn Huckaby

------------------------------

Date: Fri, 25 Apr 1997 23:37:47 -0400 (EDT)
From: Shu2Stef@aol.com
Subject: Cynthia speaks the truth. 

Hi all,

Much bitchin' and moanin' lately.  Hope you've all gotten it out of your
systems.  In issue #263 Cynthia Wang hit it on the head!  Don't know why I
didn't see it, but the Finn Bros. and BF5 together would be absolute
heaven!!!!!

As for a cover, how about "White Punks On Dope" by The Tubes?  It works for
me!

See you in Atlanta.  I'll be wearing the fanny pack!

Stefanie Schumacher

------------------------------

Date: Sat, 26 Apr 1997 02:12:46 -0400 (EDT)
From: Landohappy@aol.com
Subject: please forgive me Armchairians. 

It's now necessary for me to apologize to whoever wrote the chainletter and
to anyone that I ticked off by sending my last letter. I've received a notice
from Judi in which I was" not meant to be picked on," but picked on none the
less. I think I can assume with the utmost safety that I deserved it. It was
in a moment of rage that I sent my drivel to Majordumbo, and there was no
retreiving it. Please forgive my spreading of hostility. It was hardly my
cause.

Composed,
natalie.

------------------------------

Date: Sat, 26 Apr 1997 10:16:09 -0400
From: Neil Campbell <"clover@cfw.com"@cfw.com>
Subject: GET ME OFF THIS LIST

GET ME OFF THIS LIST PLEASE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Xneil campbellX
GET ME OFF THIS LIST NOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

------------------------------

Date: Sat, 26 Apr 1997 10:23:14 -0400 (EDT)
From: AngrYngFan@aol.com
Subject: Re: Elvis Costello cover, Flaming Lips cover 

Steve Clay said -

> A person mentioned that they did the Elvis Costello outtake "Wave
>  A White Flag".  I think that only appears on his reissue of "My Aim is
>  True", so it's kinda neat to think that Ben might be listening one of my
>  favorite albums.  Moreso neat that I'll possibly have a chance to hear
>  that nifty little toon when the come to FL.  Because, of course, they ARE
>  coming to FL.  That is an order.


I think it it's way cool that they did that cover, but I doubt that they'll
be playing it anywhere else (I know they didn't play it in Chicago, boo hoo).
 I have a feeling that they played it in response to the brick through the
bus window thing.  It seems to suit the occaision even though I believe it's
written from a more domestic point of view.  It even ends with "hope you
don't murder me".  

I've been trying to think of other Elvis songs that they could cover, but my
minds a blank.  Any ideas?  

By the way I think it's silly that everyone is in such an uproar over whether
lyrical interpretations should be discussed.  That's the most fun part of the
Elvis list.  Sure, you might be offended by someone else's interpretation and
wish you hadn't heard it, but just as often someone will open up a song for
you.  A while back people were discussing the song "Sleep of the Just" from
"King of America", particularly the begining -

The soldier asked my name and did I come here very often
Well I thought that he was asking me to dance
In my holy coat and hat and him in his red bonnet
We'd have made a lovely couple but we never had the chance

Being a woman, I always thought he temporarily took a woman's perspective.
 Some gay men on the list thought it was from a gay man's perspective.
 However, neither of these interpretations quite fit the rest of the song.
 The best interpretation, which I have since adapted,  isn't sexual at all -
 The narrator walks up to a guard, he asks him his name, etc and when the
narrator tries to pass the guard stops him by moving in his way, first in one
direction then the other, like a dance!  "We'd have made a lovely couple..."
is just a joke!  I was really glad that someone offered that interpretation
because now I don't have to picture Elvis as a woman anymore (not a pretty
image).

Margaret

------------------------------

Date: Sat, 26 Apr 1997 16:38:12 +0200 (MET DST)
From: christer.keulemans@mailbox.swipnet.se (Christina Keulemans)
Subject: When will BFF come to Europe?

Hello all BFF fans!

I'm quite new to this mailing list...Does anybody know if Ben Folds Five are 
coming to Sweden or Europe this summer? Please mail me if you have any info.

Christina

e-mail: christer.keulemans@mailbox.swipnet.se

------------------------------

End of Magical Armchair Digest V1 #265
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