THE MAGICAL ARMCHAIR
The Ben Folds Five Digest
Issue #272 - April 30, 1997
Magical Armchair Digest Wednesday, April 30 1997 Volume 01 : Number 272
THE MAGICAL ARMCHAIR
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Topics in this issue:
Toronto tix
stickers
Re: Magical Armchair Digest V1 #270
New single
Re: Magical Armchair Digest V1 #270
cool story/Irving Plaza, NYC
New York Show
Toronto update
Toronto update - CORRECTION
Calling all Aussie BFF Fans!!!!!!!
Ben Folds Five, 4.28.97, NYC
radio
NEED HELP!!
Radio 104 (I know, not my favorite)
taping Ben in Philly - help!
Re: Magical Armchair Digest V1 #269
Battle on Dave Letterman!
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Date: Tue, 29 Apr 1997 09:10:11 -0400
From: Jon Lax <jon_lax@grey.net>
Subject: Toronto tix
Does anyone know when the Toronto tix go on sale? I can't seem to find
that info anywhere.
Everyone going to the show is welcome over to my house before. I live
three blocks from Lee's Palace.
Jon
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 29 Apr 1997 10:00:41 -0400 (EDT)
From: Brad654@aol.com
Subject: stickers
In a message dated 97-04-29 06:35:22 EDT, you write:
<< Went home with a few stickers
(ok...more than a FEW) >>
I WANT SOME STICKERS! I've been looking around, and I even called
1-888-BENFOLDS5 and I got nothing. Can anyone help?
Brad
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 29 Apr 1997 10:23:39 -0400 (EDT)
From: "D . Hokanson" <hokansod@goldey.gbc.edu>
Subject: Re: Magical Armchair Digest V1 #270
Closegirl@aol.com
I tried to email you about a copy of the WNEW tape. Please email me at
hokansod@goldey.gbc.edu
I could not get thru to you.
Thanks
Donna
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 29 Apr 1997 11:02:33 EDT
From: john_oc@juno.com
Subject: New single
Update from the ROCK
Just added "Kate" as the second single from WAEA. Battle did well and we
charted it in CMJ as high as #7, and I charted it #1 on my Triple A show
for 4 weeks in a row. So for those of you crying how the media is
looking for the wrong singles, BFF is in good hands in Columbus. The
ROCK debuted the album in the state of Ohio too(on my show b/c I got the
Jap. Import Album a month early) and the station has quite a following
that loves BFF. On my show I play Brick the most, then Steven's then
Selfless and One Angry Dwarf(edited, Bullshit) tied. We get requests
for One Angry Dwarf all the time. Well there you have it, and keep
rocking to BFF...
Yours in Stick Pianos,
John Boyer
WOBN-FM 101.5 the ROCK
Asst. Music Director, Triple A Director and Research Director
Westerville, Ohio(Just north of Columbus)
Email: John_OC@juno.com Phone: (614) 823-2969
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 29 Apr 1997 12:59:37 AST4ADT
From: "Kev" <EKH3854@UMoncton.ca>
Subject: Re: Magical Armchair Digest V1 #270
unsubsribe ekh3854@umoncton.ca
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 29 Apr 1997 16:04:47 GMT
From: j_vitae@mail.cybernex.net (bramble)
Subject: cool story/Irving Plaza, NYC
temporary delurk to tell (what i find to be) a cool story, and my
impressions of the Irving Plaza show in NYC.
i'm one of those folks who found bff thru counting crows. i had heard the
reference to them in "monkey" and saw mention of them on the crows
newsgroups, and one day when i was at the record store decided to give the
first album a shot. this was about 4 months ago. by the time i got to
'philosophy' i was hooked, and played the cd for 3 days straight, driving
my fiance nuts. :) well, bff reminded me of a friend of mine, who i hadn't
seen in seven years, and who i had lost track of 2 and a half years ago.
so i decided to try to find him. i did, thanks to the internet :) and sent
him a mixtape with 'philosophy' and 'best imitation of myself' on it. and
got him hooked. so, we bought tickets to the irving plaza show, and last
night we saw each other for the first time in seven years. i can not tell
you how awesome that was for me! (but i tried.)
but, anyway, that little nifty story is also my excuse for not having
written down a setlist. kindly forgive me that, and hopefully 10 other
armchairians had better presence of mind than i did.
what i can remember right now (should be everything, but out of order):
Missing the War, Philosophy, Emmaline, Kate, BoWCCL, Jackson Cannery,
Alice Childress, Best Imitation of Myself, Last Polka, Underground,
1AD2HSF, Fair, Brick, Song for the Dumped, Selfless Cold and Composed,
Steven's Last Night in Town, {Smoke, Julianne --what an amazing combo for
an encore. good choice they've made}, Satan Is My Master/Freebird,
Ultimate Sacrifice (hysterically funny :)), what i assume to be Theme from
Dr. Peyser, She Don't Use Jelly (or whatever the proper name of that song
is), and somewhere in there they threw in an amusing rap tidbit, "bow wow
wow," etc. that may actually have been in Ultimate Sacrifice? i'm sure most
of you already know this and are jokingly scoffing at me. :)
so i was thrilled. all the songs i really really really wanted to hear,
(philosophy, brick, alice childress, best imitation of myself, 1AD2HSF, and
kate). we were on the floor about 100 feet away from the stage, and i
couldn't always see the band, but i was able to look up at a monitor on the
second floor during those times and just be amazed by the speed with which
ben folds plays the piano. i was also impressed to be able to see, live,
darren and robert and just how great they are too. so much fun to watch
this band. i'm sorry i'm not more specific, but last night is just SO
full of cool stuff for me that i haven't properly processed it yet. final
not on the bff (btw, i like the "fivers" handle someone suggested) portion
of the night, i, too, was amazed at just how much abuse his piano takes,
and i'm considering the idea of getting the piano a convalescing present
for the next time i go to see the band. :)
and finally, my 2 cents on the opener, Komeda (if i spelled that right). i
didn't think they were awful, i thought they were fun. if mindless music
(in a good way). i found them amusing, and was even amused by the lack of
any great amount of lyrical content. (lots of ba-ba-ba's.)
well, it was fun delurking for this occasion, and i just want to say, as a
person who subs to 5 other majordomo lists, IMHO the kinks will work
themselves out as people get used to it and just remember to keep on
posting responsibly. i started subbing here about a month before majordomo,
and i definitely still think this is a great list. it's just a bit of a
hiccup that we've gone thru. :)
bright blessings,
bramble, with apologies for length.
- --
********** http://www2.cybernex.net/~j_vitae **********
ReallyCool(tm) Faerie -- fiver -- toriphile -- stipean
silly egg girl--lizard woman--wiccan--scorpio--infx
**********plant impossible gardens - SARK**************
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 29 Apr 1997 12:23:16 -0400 (EDT)
From: Phishrman1@aol.com
Subject: New York Show
They Taped the Ney York Ben Show for HBO and said that it will air in about
in a month on a show called reverb. The show rocked!!!!! After the show one
of the crew gave me two backstage passes, so I met Ben!!!! He is so cool!
- -Jared
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 29 Apr 1997 11:34:26 -0500
From: stuart@optics.rochester.edu (Howie Stuart)
Subject: Toronto update
The alleged Toronto date (June 1) is apparently at Lee' Palace.
I called them on Monday and I was told they are still working on
a confirmation of the gig. This means that tickets are not yet
on sale. The guy said to try back in a week.
My apologies if this info has already been posted - my email address
did not make it to the listserver so I've missed about ten days
of posts.
Howie
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 29 Apr 1997 11:53:33 -0500
From: stuart@optics.rochester.edu (Howie Stuart)
Subject: Toronto update - CORRECTION
The Toronto date has apparently been moved to Friday June 6. I
called TicketMaster Canada and they told me that tickets go
on sale this Thursday (May 1).
------------------------------
Date: Wed, 30 Apr 1997 03:41:13 +1000
From: "Cairns Family" <cairns@c031.aone.net.au>
Subject: Calling all Aussie BFF Fans!!!!!!!
Hey all!,
THANKYOU FRANK, for the exciting news the BFF are talking about coming to
Australia in September. I am getting insanely jealous reading about all
these shows that the guys are doing in the States, knowing that unless I
win the lotteries I have no chance of seeing them.
So now I am calling all Aussie BFF fans to push for this even harder. I
think we should send the guys a petetion, letting they know just how much
we want them to come. Even if it gets us nowhere at the moment, at least
the will definitely know how much we love them. Anyone one who wants to be
involved, has any ideas on how it get started or how we can get it some
publicity (maybe we can get it mentioned on "Triple J") PLEASE E-MAIL ME!
I am also thinking of starting some sort of BFF fan club in Australia. I'm
in Melbourne and I know of an other very keen fan in Sydney (Hi Claire!
Thanks for the message. AAAAAAAHHHHHHHH! back at ya!), so maybe between all
of us we can get some sort of network up and happening. It would be
excellent if we could have it up and running by the time the guys get here.
Hpoe ya all well. It's good to see that everyone is over their periods and
are getting back to being friendly. Keep in mind the thing that brought us
together in the first place - the most amazing band to emerge for a long,
LONG time!
Cheers
Janelle
P.S Claire....Don't you think that Custard would be an excellent support
act!
P.P.S Hey Pat! How are ya?
____________________________________________________________________________
___
I juggle one-handed, do some magic tricks and the best imitation of
myself
I don't pretend to know what you want, but I offer love - Crowded
House
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 29 Apr 97 10:53:31 EDT
From: <tkartzman@kwasha.com> (Ted M. Kartzman)
Subject: Ben Folds Five, 4.28.97, NYC
BEN FOLDS FIVE - 4.28.97 - Irving Plaza - New York City
Some bands have it. Some bands don't. As far as pop music goes, Ben
Folds Five definitely has it.
IT is difficult to describe, but easy to feel while you are watching. It can be
felt in the form of the positive energy what connects the band and the crowd.
Ben Folds Five had the elements of it. They had the overly attentive
audience who knew all the words and hung on Ben's every last word and
gesture, they had musicianship which surpassed what I had been
anticipating by leaps and bounds, great interplay between them, and they
had the simple and beautiful pop songs to back it all up. They also had
shreiking seventeen (probably more like fourteen) year old girls, but I knew
that going in, and I tried to embrace it. After all it is pop music, accessible to
anyone who can turn on a radio.
And pure pop music it was. The kind where you just get transformed by the
band. You are happy about women and life during "Kate", can't stop smiling
an independent smile about "Philosophy", lamenting about love in "Fair",
hating past loves in "Song for the Dumped", and laughing at the
mainstream during "Underground". This band elicits emotion from you,
some feelings which you might have stashed away since high school.
What struck me as surprising (but probably shouldn't have) was the interplay
between the three of them. For a trio, it approached Jazz Mandolin Project
standards, but (obviously) without the extended jamming. Where they lack
jamming, they try to make up a bit with their vocal harmonies, which
completely blow away most bands. Although there was little improv, the
songs are written to switch up styles and tempos regularly. Many had cool
and different intros ("Julianne","Song for the Dumped"), and Ben kept the
crowd on its toes with his feet-playing, stool-smashing antics.
It definitely was a very young crowd. Besides myself and the rest of my
office cubicle, there were few other groups of four over the drinking age.
Perhaps it was just our area ;-) This morning, there are few other cubicles
as deaf as ours. It was really loud. If you're going to see them, I
recommend bringing earplugs. Since they don't have too much material, I'll
tell you what they didn't play that we had hoped for: "Where's Summer B?",
"Video", "Uncle Walter", and "Sports & Wine". Highlights were what we had
hoped them to be: "Philosophy", "The Last Polka", "Selfless, Cold and
Composed", "Kate", "Alice Childress", "Brick" (with the stand-up bass),
"Jackson Cannery", "Fair", "Underground", "Song for the Dumped", and my
fave of the night, "Best Imitation of Myself". They played the Freebird
Improv that we had been hearing so much about, "The Ultimate Sacrifice"
(which we knew from the WNEW performance the night before), "Emaline"
(which I had heard of but never heard), and another non-album song with a
chorus of Tangerine or Magazine or both.
When you pay money to see live music, you want to walk away with a
feeling that you were reached somehow and a smile on your face, at the very
least. They left the crowd more than satisfied. It's wonderful to see the
geeks win one and be so embraced in the process. Well worth the price of
admission, and as a result, I'll be there again tomorrow night.
tk
- ---------------------
tkartzman@kwasha.com
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 29 Apr 1997 14:39:41 -0400
From: Marisa_Sandora@mime.time-inc.com
Subject: radio
i just heard bbf live in the studio on 92.3 here in new york.
unfortunately, it was pretty short. the guys played bowccl and brick, which
sounded great, especially the piano. it seemed like at the show last night
in new york the piano was drowned out by the bass. the guys gave their ages
which were ben, 30, robert, 29 and darren 26. i hope i haven't mixed up
robert and darren. anyway, the dj said something about how bbf is a very
parent friendly band and ben said yes they're "uncomfortably parent
approved" and that it's bad for "the rock and roll self esteem." and that
was about it really.
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 29 Apr 1997 14:20:06 CST
From: muel9628@uwwvax.uww.edu
Subject: NEED HELP!!
I'M SORRY THIS DOESN'T EXACTLY have to do with ben folds five but i'm in
the act of desperation..i need help with getting ONE ticket to the
Q101 JAMBOREE ON SUNDAY MAY 25 IN CHICAGO..Due to a lack of communication
i did not get enough tickets and my brother DESPERATELY WANTS TO GO BECUZ
erasure is playing and he probably has the biggest erasure collection in
north america..he's seeing them twice around that time in chicago and in
michigan...please can sOMEONE E MAIL ME WITH ANY ASSISTANCE YOU COULD GIVE ME..
THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT..THANK YOU SO MUCH TO THE FELLOW ARMCHAIRERS...
mark muel9628@uwwvax.uww.edu
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 29 Apr 1997 15:27:51 -0400 (EDT)
From: Qualitease@aol.com
Subject: Radio 104 (I know, not my favorite)
I have heard that BF5 are playing the Radio 104 fest in Agawam, MA. It is at
Riverside Park. If anyone is planning on going to this, e-mail me, and we
could meet somewhere and do something, who knows! Also, does anyone know if
the HORDE tour will be coming to the Meadows Music Theater in Hartford? I
have only seen the boys once, back in Jan. 96, and I am dying to see them
again (especialy with a string section!!!) Lastly, I am always looking for
BF5 bootlegs or rare stuff, if anyone is interested in a trade, feel free to
e-mail me and we could set something up. Thanks for your time (I know that
it is scarce).
~Alan (Qualitease@aol.com)
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 29 Apr 1997 16:01:25 -0400 (EDT)
From: RnRinDC@aol.com
Subject: taping Ben in Philly - help!
Hey all - I'm going to the show tomorrow night in Philly and I'm planning on
taping the show. I live in DC and have never been to the TLA - can someone
who has been there please get in touch with me - I really need to know what
the room setup is like. Is anyone else taping there? It would be much
easier for me if I could just patch into someone else b/c all I have are
stealth mics. Anyway - if anyone can help out, please get in touch.
Thanks,
Rich
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 29 Apr 1997 15:12:14 -0500
From: GMStauff@ix.netcom.com
Subject: Re: Magical Armchair Digest V1 #269
please take me off your list. Thanks
------------------------------
Date: Tue, 29 Apr 1997 16:58:17 -0500
From: Lee Nelson <lee.nelson@thursby.com>
Subject: Battle on Dave Letterman!
Hello!
Well I was watching TV on Monday night and I was amazed at what I
heard. Dave Letterman's band you know, Paul Schaeffer and the CBS
Orchestra, they played an instrumental of Battle of who Could Care Less
as a segway to a commercial break. I was shocked. Ben Folds Five has
finally made it out of CONAN WORLD. Anyways, I heard my favorite song on
the background music at my local Best Buy - Selfless, Cold, and
Composed. This is the same Best Buy where my friends and I discovered
BFF last year. Now they are my undisputed favorite band. What's even
more shocking is that I live in DALLAS, TEXAS!!!!! A world of grunge
sucking lunatics, who don't drop the teeny-bopper, trendy mentality till
they die. Ben had a right to be mad at Edgefest. I lift my finger to
all of those who laughed at starplex as well. I did see Ben at the show,
girlfriend at his side. He walked around like anyone else, and no one
knew who he was. I knew it was him when I walked right by him. He wasn't
paying attention when I said "hey Ben". I told my friends (Matt
Hardaway and Chris Haagen) I saw him and I pointed him out to them. They
didn't believe me until he came on stage. It was disgusting, everyone
just sat there wondering who are these guys? A piano? Where's the
Guitar? DIE TRENDY SCUM!
Lee M Nelson
------------------------------
End of Magical Armchair Digest V1 #272
**************************************
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