As Ben Folds finished his eighth song of the night, he reached over and grabbed a Band-Aid.

‘I have fucked up my fingernails,’ he said. ‘I’m taping them back on. People have suggested eating more Jell-O, but that doesn’t work.’

In the midst of his third college show in three nights, a trip which brought him more than 600 miles in 48 hours, Folds’ nails were the only indication of wear and tear.

Folds, bass guitarist Jared Reynolds and drummer Lindsay Jamieson played a vibrant 19-song set complete with his normal encore routine in front of a sold-out Goldstein Auditorium Saturday night. University Union Concerts paid Folds $35,000 for a one-night show, an amount which exhausted UU’s budget for the year.

‘He was so energetic,’ said Jill Greenwald, a senior political science major from the University of New Hampshire. ‘He’s very alive and enthusiastic and he involves you in the show.’

Greenwald’s five-hour commute to the show was indicative of the feverish fandom Folds creates in his audience. She saw him play in New Haven, Conn. last year and has been hooked ever since.

‘When I found out he was coming to Syracuse, I nearly fell off the bed,’ she said. ‘He just has good, original, self-written music.’

Folds opened with ‘In Between Days’ off his five-song EP ‘Speed Graphic’ released in 2003. He played a diverse mix of music including songs from his Ben Folds Five days, his solo career and also from his new album ‘Songs for Silverman,’ which is due out April 26.

He also threw in a couple of improvisational crowd pleasers and a lighter version of Dr. Dre’s ‘Bitches Ain’t Shit.’

‘That was one of my favorites,’ said Stephanie Isabel, a senior computing resource major. ‘I really appreciate his music.’

Rachael Hessner, a junior sociology and psychology major at the State University of New York Binghamton, also made the trek to see Folds after pleading with Syracuse students for tickets on thefacebook.com. In the end, she said it was worth it.

‘The other times I saw him it was just him and the piano,’ Hessner said. ‘The band was different.

‘I got pretty close and I saw these Band-Aids. One flew off at one point when he was playing.’

It is no wonder Folds’ fingernails fell off the way he shook the piano and slammed his feet on stage. His piano solos displayed breathtaking musical talent. At times it seemed he hit 10 keys each second.

But while the Band-Aids kept his fingers together, he had Ronald McDonald to thank for keeping his voice fresh.

Folds and Ben Lee, who opened for Folds, made a pre-concert trip to the golden arches.

‘He taught me about french fries,’ Lee said. ‘We went to McDonald’s earlier – your voice needs oil.’

Lee, who will release a new 14-song album Feb. 22, played for about an hour. In 2004, he combined with Folds and Ben Kweller to release a four-song EP. Lee has been touring with Folds and played in all three of Folds’ college stops last week.

‘On the road, you don’t eat such good food,’ he said. ‘I eat a lot of peanuts.

‘The thing about going on tour is the first week is the hardest. You’re not used to the hard work. You need to go for more than a week and then you get into it.’

The group had been traveling by car around the east coast for its tour. Lee said Folds is very low-maintenance on the road and only brings a bass guitar.

After Syracuse, Folds and Lee will go their separate ways to promote their respective albums. Folds was not available to the media after the show.

‘I feel like I have some big things to say,’ Lee said. ‘I’m always talking about opening your imagination and thinking big and exploring. In some ways you have to go to the heart of where pop culture is if you want to have a shot at the title.’

Meanwhile, Folds’ showmanship and heartfelt piano playing bred a new generation of idols. The obsession his shows create is easy to explain in Hessner’s mind.

‘He’s just not fake,’ she said. ‘He’ll get up there between songs and tell you a little story. He doesn’t care what people think. I think he’s probably the same off stage.’

Published on January 30, 2005 at 12:00 pm