Ben Folds will hit Pittsburgh for concert, event for new book
Fans of Ben Folds will have two opportunities to see the singer-songwriter in the Pittsburgh area.
On Aug. 5, the multi-platinum-selling musician will display another kind of writing talent, appearing at an event in support of his new memoir, “A Dream About Lightning Bugs,” from 7-9 p.m. at the First Unitarian Church of Pittsburgh, 605 Morewood Ave., Shadyside.
Folds will participate in a question-and-answer session, followed by a book-signing. The event is sponsored by White Whale Bookstore in Bloomfield.
Folds will linger in Pittsburgh for another day, hitting Stage AE on the North Shore on Aug. 6 for an outdoor show featuring Violent Femmes and Savannah Conley. The book also will be featured at the concert.
In the book, “Folds looks back at his life so far in a charming and wise chronicle of his artistic coming-of-age, infused with the wry observations of a natural storyteller, according to information from Big Hassle Media. “(H)e opens up about finding his voice as a musician, becoming a rock anti-hero, and hauling a baby grand piano on and off stage for every performance.”
He looks back at supportive music teachers, leaving college to start a band, a botched “Saturday Night Live” appearance and other life-defining events in a book that Big Hassle Media says “is as humorous as it is poignant, as observant/revelatory as it is compulsively readable.”
Kirkus Reviews says, “Ultimately, Folds delivers an amiable and low-key memoir without the tawdry pyrotechnics of most rock biographies.”
The book goes on sale July 30 from Ballantine Books Hardcover and eBook. The White Whale book-signing event is sponsored by the First Unitarian Church of Pittsburgh in Shadyside.
Ben Folds Launches Cross-Country Concert, Book Tour for New Memoir - Pollstar: https://t.co/YuoFUrDbXx
— Find Tickets Today (@findtickets2day) July 16, 2019
Known for his spontaneous creativity in concert, Folds gained fame in the late 1990s with his alternative rock band Ben Folds Five and songs like “Brick” from 1997, with lyrics from a young man’s point of view as his girlfriend has an abortion. The song was in heavy alt-rock radio rotation.
Tickets to the book event are $15-$30; bundled tickets include a hardcover book and priority seating. Information is available at whitewhalebookstore.com.
For concert tickets, call 800-745-3000 or visit ticketmaster.com.
Shirley McMarlin is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Shirley by email at smcmarlin@triblive.com or via Twitter .
Remove the ads from your TribLIVE reading experience but still support the journalists who create the content with TribLIVE Ad-Free.