Rockin' the Suburbs (song)

Infobox Single
Name = Rockin' the Suburbs


Artist = Ben Folds
from Album = Rockin' the Suburbs
Released = 2001
Format = CD Single
Recorded =
Genre = Pop, Alternative, Rock
Length = 4.58
Label = SBME
Writer = Ben Folds
Producer =
Chart position = #28 Modern Rock Tracks
Reviews =
Last single = Ben Folds Five
"Don't Change Your Plans"
(1999)
This single = "Rockin' the Suburbs"
(2001)
Next single = "Still Fighting It"
(2002)
Misc = Extra tracklisting
Album = Rockin' the Suburbs
Type = studio
prev_track = "Not the Same"
prev_no = 9
this_track = "Rockin' the Suburbs"
track_no = 10
next_track = "Fired"
next_no = 11"Rockin' the Suburbs" is a song by Ben Folds on the album of the same name. It is Ben Folds' biggest solo hit so far, gaining radio and MTV airplay (though "Landed" and "Bitches Ain't Shit" achieved higher chart positions on the Billboard Hot 100 in the U.S., this was mostly due to their popularity on the iTunes Music Store rather than radio airplay). It was written by Ben Folds as an attack on Nu metal and the aggressive, complanatory nature of this style of music. In concerts Folds has stated that if Stevie Wonder could write happy songs in the 60s as a blind, black man, then Nu-metal bands have no right to complain about their white, suburban existence in their music. The song alludes to Michael Jackson, Quiet Riot and Bon Jovi. There is also a brief commentary about slavery.

The song's simplistic guitar part (played by Folds) separates the song from much of his work with Ben Folds Five, who famously shunned guitars in their music (using them only on a single studio recording, "Emaline").

The lyrics for a portion of this song are often changed during live performances. In the refrain of the song, "I'm rockin' the suburbs, just like ______ did", Ben inserts the name of a musical artist. In the album version, the order for the names is: Michael Jackson, Quiet Riot, and Jon Bon Jovi. For live performances Ben has inserted other names, such as Bryan Adams. On the "Songs for Goldfish" version, he mentions William Shatner (for whom he produced an album, "Has Been") and Henry Rollins (whom he worked with on Shatner's song "I Can't Get Behind That").

The short section on slavery mentions Preparation H, a hemorrhoid ointment recommended to heal newly tattooed skin; around this time, each emerging nu-metal act appeared to be more tattooed than the last, and the comment seems aimed at this fact.

When performing the song live, especially on television, Folds has been known to change some of the lyrics around for comic effect. Most famously, while on the David Letterman Show inserting "Girl we couldn't get much higher," a reference to The Doors song "Light My Fire," where a profanity was supposed to be uttered. The reference parodied The Doors' 1967 appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show, which took place on the same Ed Sullivan Theater stage as Letterman's show.

On SportsCenter, John Buccigross often references this song when a player makes a big play by saying "he's rockin' the suburbs just like Quiet Riot did".

ingle track listing

#"Rockin' the Suburbs" [Radio Edit]
#"Girl"
#"Make Me Mommy"
#"Rockin' the Suburbs" [Video] Japanese EP:
#"Rockin' the Suburbs" [Radio Edit]
#"One Down"
#"Girl"
#"Make Me Mommy"
#"The Secret Life of Morgan Davis"

Music video

The music video for "Rockin' the Suburbs" was directed by friend "Weird Al" Yankovic, who also plays the role of a producer who fixes Folds' "shitty track," directly riffing on one of the song's lyrics.

The video, which closely reflects the joke-heavy style of Yankovic's own videos, parodies the Nu-Metal scene, with Folds playing multiple members of an angry white rock band in a suburban den and in front of a white background.

After the song's bridge, Folds is shown outside in a suburban neighborhood wearing a black T-shirt and a knockoff red baseball cap, a riff on the personal style of Fred Durst of the band Limp Bizkit. During this part of the video, Folds does suburban things such as jumping in pools and flipping burgers.

At the 4-minute mark of the music video "Rockin' the Suburbs," the phrase "KORN SUCKS" flashes onto the screen. According to Folds' stage introduction, the song was conceived in part due to a 1998 interview with Jonathan Davis, vocalist of Korn, in Spin Magazine that disdainfully compared the music of Ben Folds Five with the score from the TV Series "Cheers".

Near the end of the video, Folds can be seen playing a keytar. On occasion, he also plays the keytar for live performances. The make and model he uses is a red Roland AX-1.

At the end of the video, the "band" (all Ben again) plays in front of a black background with holes punched in it, a style that matches the live-action parts of the Korn video for "Freak on a Leash."

"Over The Hedge" remake

In 2006, Folds rewrote this song for the animated movie "Over the Hedge", with film co-star William Shatner providing vocals during part of the song. Shatner does the voice for Ozzie the Opossum, who encourages his daughter (voice by Avril Lavigne) to play dead in threatening situations.

While the new version features none of the swearing and Nu-Metal parodies of the original, Folds makes some very pointed barbs at the concept of suburbia in the song, including jabs at homeowner associations and driving long distances to work.

As mentioned previously, Shatner had collaborated with Folds a few years before on Shatner's "Has Been" album and a few years before that on Fold's "Fear of Pop, Vol. I".

External links

* [http://musicbox.sonybmg.com/video/ben_folds/rockin_the_suburbs "Rockin' the Suburbs video on official sonyBMG site]