Ben Folds Five is the debut studio album by American alternative rock band Ben Folds Five, released on July 25, 1995. A non-traditional rock album, it featured a sound that excluded lead guitars completely. Several live versions of songs originally released on Ben Folds Five reappeared later as b-sides or on compilations.
Reception
Ben Folds Five received positive reviews from NME, Rolling Stone, Pitchfork, and Entertainment Weekly. Michael Gallucci praised the album as "a potent, and extremely fun collection of postmodern rock ditties that comes off as a pleasantly workable combination of Tin Pan Alley showmanship, Todd Rundgren-style power pop, and myriad alt-rock sensibilities." The Record concluded that the "performances are often mannered, the arrangements busy and tiring, and Folds's Joe Jackson Redux isn't anything close to the Bold New Sound it has been trumpeted as."
Track listing
Personnel
- Ben Folds – piano, vocals
- Darren Jessee – drums, vocals, percussion
- Robert Sledge – bass, vocals
- Ted Ehrhard – violin, viola on "Boxing"
- Chris Eubank – cello on "Boxing"
Production
- Producer: Caleb Southern
- Mixing: Marc Becker
- Photography: Alexandria Searls
Charts
Weekly charts
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center;"
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!Chart
!Position
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|align="left"|Australian ARIA Albums Chart
|37
|-
|align="left"|Japanese Oricon Albums Chart
|72
|-
|}
Certifications
}