Song · Ben Folds Five
“Underground” by Ben Folds Five
From the album Ben Folds Five (1995)
“Underground” by Ben Folds Five appears on 14 radio countdowns from 8 stations between 1996 and 2023. It was first released in 1995 on the album Ben Folds Five. Its best result is #3 on the Triple J Hottest 100 of 1996. In the combined RockLists rankings it is the #123 alternative song of 1996 and #2,113 alternative song of all time.
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"Underground" comes off Ben Folds Five's self-titled 1995 debut, and it's a send-up of the punk scene played by a piano trio, which is half the joke. Ben Folds wrote it about the kids he kept spotting in his audiences: outsiders hunting for an identity who grab onto punk, ska and hardcore with the zeal of converts. Folds had been the odd kid out himself, forever changing towns as his family moved, and he both salutes them and needles them, poking fun at how the underground looks to anyone peering in. Caleb Southern produced, and the three of them pound it out with swagger, Folds hammering the keys, Robert Sledge's bass thumping and Darren Jessee's drums bashing along.
It reached 37 on the UK singles chart, and in Australia, Triple J listeners voted it 3 in their Hottest 100 of 1996.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
RockLists rankings
Alternative & Modern Rock
Indie & Adult Alternative
All Rock Formats
Year-end countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | 3 | Triple J Australia (national) | Triple J Hottest 100 of 1996 | 100 |
All-time and decade countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1996 | 495 | WOXY 97X | WOXY Modern Rock 500 (1996) | 498 |
| 1998 | 52 | Triple J | Triple J Hottest 100 of All-Time (1998) | 100 |
| 1999 | 864 | Q101 | Q101 Top 1,011 Songs of All-Time (December 1999) | 1017 |
| 1999 | 178 | WOXY 97X | WOXY Modern Rock 500 (1999) | 500 |
| 2000 | 135 | WOXY 97X | WOXY Modern Rock 500 (2000) | 500 |
| 2001 | 137 | WOXY 97X | WOXY Modern Rock 500 (2001) | 498 |
| 2001 | 169 | WBRU | WBRU Modern Rock Top 500 (2001) | 500 |
| 2002 | 298 | WOXY 97X | WOXY Modern Rock 500 (2002) | 500 |
| 2003 | 356 | WOXY 97X | WOXY Modern Rock 500 (2003) | 500 |
| 2005 | 924 | 99X | 99X Freedom of Choice 1000 (2005) | 1000 |
| 2021 | 267 | 90.9 The Bridge | 90.9 The Bridge Top 909 Songs of the '90s | 908 |
| 2022 | 665 | The Colorado Sound | The Colorado Sound Top 900 Songs of the '90s | 900 |
| 2023 | 150 | The Current | The Current's 893 Essential Songs of the '90s | 893 |
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