Supersunnyspeedgraphic The Lp [Best of, Explicit Lyrics]

Once you figure out where the title comes from, it makes perfect sense. Supersunnyspeedgraphic is a convenient collection assembled primarily from limited edition EPs Super D, Sunny 16, and Speed Graphic. The 12-track release, which follows Songs for Silverman and the Over the Hedge soundtrack, also culls from The Bens EP with Bens Kweller and Lee (a word to the expectant mothers out there: if you want your son to become an alternative pop star, just name him Benjamin). Longtime listeners know what to expect from Folds--Joe Jackson-esque vocals, clever wordplay, and tuneful melodies that rely more on keyboards than strings. For the uninitiated, it all probably sounds pretty commercial, but there's some risqué material here. As with Harry Nilsson and Randy Newman, who excelled at enveloping edgy lyrics in radio-ready trappings, there are a few numbers on this rerecorded, remixed, and remastered disc that won't be rocking the airwaves anytime soon, like the piano man's stately version of Dr. Dre's "Bitches Ain't S**t." Depending on your point of view, the online sensation is either admirably ironic or unalterably offensive. Folds's more straightforward covers of the Cure's "In Between Days" and the Darkness's "Get Your Hands Off My Woman" are unlikely to ruffle as many feathers, but they're a better fit for his jaunty power pop-meets-new wave style. --Kathleen C. Fennessy

Supersunnyspeedgraphic, the LP (CD) is a compilation of 12 tracks from Ben Folds' internet EPs, b-sides, and a bonus track from the "Over The Hedge" soundtrack. All of the tracks are different from the original versions: they've been partially re-recorded or remixed, and all have been remastered.