Ben Folds

Ben Folds plays the ivory keys like an eleven-fingered man suckled on Elton John records. The former frontman and namesake of the Ben Folds Five has a clamant, albeit sometimes goofy, presence and an overwhelming talent that at times makes it hard to distinguish his solo work from his group efforts. But since BF5's breakup in 2000, Folds has been on his own, and Supersunnyspeedgraphic: The LP is the piano man's latest quirky document. The LP is actually an EP of reworked B-sides and rarities from his previously hard-to-find tracks, including (natch) the immensely popular Folds-tweaked version of Dr. Dre's "Bitches Ain't Shit," plus a few other oddball covers, such as the Cure's "In Between Days" and the Darkness's "Get Your Hands Off of My Woman." There are a few original tunes here, too, but this is all recycled material shined up to look like new. The LP has the usual Folds comfort to it, but fans would be better off waiting until his full-length comes out.