Landed :: Ben Folds

Landed was the first single from the Ben Folds album, Songs for Silverman, released in April 2005. The album is named after Ben Goldman, Folds’ former A&R representative at Sony BMG. Folds explained, “I was always sending songs to him for the album, so I wanted to name it after him. But somebody (from Sony) found out and flipped out, so I changed it a bit and turned it in.” Goldman’s name also spawned the title of Folds’ compilation album Songs for Goldfish.

Landed reached # 77 on the Billboard Hot 100 and # 40 on the Adult Top 40. The planned UK issue was cancelled, though the single was treated to a digital-only release.

Folds told MTV news that this song was inspired by a close friend who got divorced. Said Folds: “He went through a really, really rough time with his horrible witch of a wife and then he got out of it. ‘Landing’ just refers to his flight back to his hometown and so him coming back to being himself.”

Editor’s Note: Once upon what feels like a lifetime ago (time can play tricks that way) I fell for someone who belonged to someone else. Whether or not the feelings were completely shared was never quite realized because it always felt like a never-ending game of here and not here with words and emotions, and intentions. There is something in the sentiment of this song that reminds me of that time in my life, that particular person, and how destructive it all was. I remember I kept blaming myself for all of it, the mistakes and the missteps, and for caring at all. But, we were both there, we both made mistakes, and we both broke the rules. I left it all, fled the scene, flew away, and eventually “landed” on my feet, so to speak, eventually. I had to realize that I tried, that I failed, and that I was going to be okay.