Whatever And Ever Amen
by Ben Folds Five

From paladisiac TOP 100 COMMENTER 12/12/2011 19:42 | #32771 | TOP COMMENT Vote up your preferred comments and the comments with the most votes will be flagged.

Packed with fun piano-based tunes with nary a clunker in sight, "one angry dwarf" starts the disc off like a raucous party which "Fair" ("all is fair in love") continues (where Ben concludes "Not only am I right / I'm lonely and I'm right") with a nice bass fadeout, but most people know it as the album with the hit, "brick". (You know: "she's a brick and i'm drowning slowly...") Like "lightning crashes" (by Live), it's another catchy tune about abortion, reflecting his feelings over one he & his HS gf had. "smoke" ("all the sadness, all this rage / throw this book away") and "evaporated" have just as beautiful, if not better, arrangements. No need for guitars, because "song for the dumped" RAWX blasting an ex (like "so you wanted to take a break / slow it down some and have some space? / F*CK YOU TOO! / Give me my money back, you b*tch!"..."and don't forget / to give me back my black t-shirt". HAHA. i love the rolling piano in "selfless, cold and composed" and the playful piano in "kate" and the delicate piano accompanying ben's vocal haze in "cigarette". But Ben shines in the playful numbers as well, like "steven's last night in town" (with fun harmonies) and "battle of who could care less".

From Tamthebam TOP 100 COMMENTER 02/01/2015 13:24 | #133576 | TOP COMMENT Vote up your preferred comments and the comments with the most votes will be flagged.

Great fun a joy to listen to. Picks me up every time I listen to it. He makes the piano rock. Song For The Dumped made me laugh out loud "Give Me Money Back You Bitch !" brilliant.

From rogue 04/24/2020 13:35 | #250473 | TOP COMMENT Vote up your preferred comments and the comments with the most votes will be flagged.

That feeling when you're in quarantine and want something that you know will light you up and make you smile.

This album is never not fun. At a very boring desk job I had I listened to this a ton. I would imagine my desk a piano and couldn't not move to it, and somehow it made me more productive? Every song is a winner - Brick kinda body slams me emotionally and feels disruptive given the nature of most of the other tunes, but that's fine. Really such a good time.

Song for the Dumped? One Angry Dwarf? Selfless, Cold and Composed? Stone cold classics here. Recommended for anyone who likes fun and wants to have a good time in their ears.

How can anyone not at the very least enjoy this album?

I love this album. It lacks polish, and the subject matter is mostly juvenile, but its high energy and has a great straight-ahead rock sound mixed with a jazz-influenced harmonic vocabulary.