Brick by Ben Folds Five guitar tab (text):

"Brick"
by Ben Folds Five
off the album WHATEVER AND EVER AMEN
transcribed for guitar by Kelly Chandra
in standerd tuning (EBGDAE)

Fig. A:

this is the piano riff that is played for the verses. the picking pattern changes
throughout the song, but hopefully you'll be able to figure out the pattern by
listening to the album.  Here is the basic notation:

E-----------------------------------------------------------
B-----------------------------------------------------------
G--7---------7----5-------5--------5----------------------
D---------7-------------5--------5-----5-------------------
A-----7-----------------------5-----------------------------
E------------------------------------------------------------

Then comes the chorus. Underneath the vocals is played basically this chord,
which is also played in the interlude. :

E----------------------
B----------------------
G---5-----------------
D---7-----------------
A---7-----------------
E---5-----------------

Next comes Fig B:

E----------------------------------------------------
B--12------------14------------12-----------------
G-------12------------12-----------------11-------
D------------12------------12-------12------------
A----------------------------------------------------
E-----------------------------------------------------

After the chorus is played a second time, little fill part is played again. However,
this time it is Fig C(a lengthened version of Fig B):

E-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
B--12------------14------------12------------14--11--12-------------------
G-------12------------12------------12----------------------12-------11----
D------------12------------12------------12----------------------12---------
A-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
E--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
After this, Fig C is played again, only an octave higher. Now, this is possible to 
do on the guitar, but it doesn't sound all the great since it goes up to the highest
note possible on the neck. If you want to figure it out, go ahead, but i'm not
going to add it in here 

Now for how this fits into the song...........

(Fig A)
6 a.m, day after Christmas, I throw some clothes on in the dark
Smell of coal, carseat is freezing, the world is sleeping--i am not
up the stairs to her apartment, she is balled up on the couch
mom and dad went down to charlotte they're not home to find us out
(fig A continues, bass comes in playing what i think is an F#)
and we ride, now that i have found someone
I'm feeling more alone than i ever have before
(Chorus Chord played repetedly)
She's a brick and i'm drowning slowly, off the coast and i'm headed nowhere
She's a brick and i'm drowning slowly
(Fig B)

(Fig A)
they call her name at 7:30, i pace around the parking lot
walk downtown to buy her flowers and sell some gifts that i got
can't you see its not me youre dying for? 
and she's feeling more alone than she ever has before
(Chord part again)
She's a brick and i'm drowning slowly, off the coast and i'm headed nowhere
She's a brick and i'm drowning slowly
(Fig C)
(Chord part again underneath interlude)
As weeks went by, they showed that she was not fine
They told me "son, its time to tell the truth" and
she broke down and i broke down cos i was tired of lying

(Fig A)
driving back to her apartment for a moment we're alone
and i'm alone and she's alone and now i know it
(Chord part again)
She's a brick and i'm drowning slowly, off the coast and i'm headed nowhere
She's a brick and i'm drowning slowly
(Fig C)