While studying for my Intro to Rock exam (for the very few hours that I did) I came across this cool video of Ben Folds explaining the meaning of his hit song “Brick.” On the Ben Folds Live album he explains that it’s about him and his girlfriend having an abortion, but I was never really sure that it was the truth. Apparently it is.
He also gives some great insight into how his music was changing from early Ben Folds Five to Whatever and Ever Amen and eventually Unauthorized Biography of Reinhold Messner. “Brick” was definitely a different direction for the piano-pop-rock trio, but it’s an undeniably beautiful and touching song. And I just love that Darren Jessee was the one that wrote the chorus. Folds seems to be a bit arrogant and the fact that the chorus to their most popular song is not written by him is just great.
There is also a section where he talks about how touring with Neil Young influenced him to make a “stadium feel like a living room.” He’s done that both times that I have seen him live, making a large venue like UNC-Chapel Hill’s Memorial Hall feel like a few friends hanging around a piano.
OK, enough blabbing from me. Check out the video for yourself.
