Mexico won the Olympic gold in football this morning. It might be their only gold, but it's the only gold that matters, and obviously such an occasion necessitated full Mexican breakfast, complete with breakfast beers, in a cheerful local cantina, followed by a day of celebrating in the city.
You could have been forgiven for thinking that Mexico had just won the entire Olympics and / or taken over the world, so alacritous were their celebrations. It was a great day in an excited, happy city, and I loved it.
A short siesta later and I'm preparing for Round II of celebrations, and as I threw together a (delicious, if I say so myself) quesadilla to enjoy with a pre-celebration beer, I needed a quiet little soundtrack, without being too sleepy. I know my ears will be assaulted by remixed Top 40 for the rest of the night, so I wanted something quality. My iPod was already open on 'B' (Beirut), so all I needed was to skip up a few artists to Ben Folds, Live.
One of the things I love about this album, and one of the reasons I am desperate to see Ben Folds live, is the pure singalong value. This is an artist who knows how to have a good time, and who knows how to get his crowd to have a good time too - tell me, what's not to love about "Fred Jones Part 2", on this album done with the exceptional John McCrea from Cake. This Live album comprises some of my favourite tracks, and I love it cos it's just a guy and his instrument, doing his thing and entertaining people. Check out the piano in "Narcolepsy" and "Philosophy", and what he does with the crowd in "Army". I. Love. It.
He might be trying to prove himself solo, but I don't care cos I think he's a genius and more than proves himself. This album never fails to make me smile, and was a perfect choice for tonight. As one commenter on youtube notes, "every time I listen to Ben Folds, I want to quit my job and learn piano."
I guess I have taken the first step....
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