Stephen Lynch (musician)

Infobox Comedian
name = Stephen Lynch


imagesize = 200px
caption = Stephen Lynch (2008)
pseudonym =
birth_date = birth date and age|1971|7|28
birth_place = Abington, Pennsylvania, U.S.
death_date =
death_place =
medium = Musician, Stand up comedy, television, Broadway
nationality = American
active = 1996 ndash Present
genre = Musical Stand-up Comedy
subject =
influences = Paul Simon, Joni Mitchell, Mr. Show, Bill Hicks, Harry Chapin, Gordon Lightfoot
influenced = Drew Lynch, Mark Teich, Rod Cone
spouse = Erin Dwight (September 2003-present)
notable_work =


website = http://www.stephenlynch.com/
footnotes =
academyawards =
emmyawards =
goldenglobeawards =
tonyawards = Best Performance by a Leading Actor in a Musical
2006 "The Wedding Singer" (nominee)
baftaawards =
cesarawards =
goyaawards =
afiawards =
filmfareawards =
olivierawards =
britishcomedyawards =

Stephen Andrew Lynch (born July 28 1971 in Abington, Pennsylvania), is an American stand-up comedian, musician and Tony Award-nominated actor who is known for his songs mocking daily life and popular culture. Lynch has released one studio album and two live albums along with a live DVD. He has appeared in two "Comedy Central Presents" specials and starred in the Broadway adaptation of "The Wedding Singer".

Biography

Early life

Lynch was born in Abington, Pennsylvania. [ [http://www.lynch-mob.net/ Lynch-Mob.net] ] His family later moved to Saginaw, Michigan. Lynch would perform in community theatre and musical theatre while attending Arthur Hill High School and Saginaw Arts and Sciences Academy. He stayed in Michigan until he graduated from Western Michigan University with a B.A. in drama in 1993. At Western Michigan University, he began writing comedic songs.

Considering himself a musician first and a comedian second, [http://www.recoilmag.com/interviews/stephen_lynch_1005.html Recoil: Interview with Stephen Lynch] ] [http://www.ugo.com/channels/music/features/stephenlynch/default.asp UGO.com Music - Stephen Lynch Interview] ] Lynch cites singer/songwriters Paul Simon and Joni Mitchell as his childhood inspirations, rather than comics. The mockumentary "This is Spinal Tap" was his greatest inspiration, and led him to decide his career path. [http://www.stephenlynch.com/press/index.html Stephen Lynch: Press] ] The first song that he wrote was a country song titled "Beefy Burrito". [ [http://www.myspace.com/stephenlynch http://www.myspace.com/stephenlynch] ]

Early career

After spending his first year out of college with friends in California, [http://arts.monstersandcritics.com/features/article_1166663.php/Stephen_Lynch_From_comic_songster_to_Wedding_Singer Monsters and Critics: Stephen Lynch: From comic songster to 'Wedding Singer'] ] Lynch moved to New York City in 1996 with the intention of becoming an actor. [ [http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/story/415137p-350834c.html New York Daily News - Entertainment: 'Wedding' Zinger] ] Upon his arrival, a friend at the West Bank Cafe on 42nd Street suggested Lynch play some of the comic songs he had written while attending university for an audience. He soon found great success in comedy clubs and other venues around the city (notably Catch a Rising Star and Caroline's [http://www.stephenlynch.com/tour/history.html Stephen Lynch: Tour History] ] ), and became a regular on radio shows such as "Opie and Anthony". [http://www.whatarerecords.com What Are Records? 100% Wind Powered! ] ] Lynch spent his early years in New York City doing what he called "totally mindless work" as a temp worker. He quit such temporary jobs permanently, signing with What Are Records? in the year 2000 and Vision International in 2002. The latter still books all his concert dates today. Over the next few years, he toured colleges, universities and nightclubs around the country, avoiding as much as possible the comedy club crowd, which he has stated is not to his taste. He periodically satisfied his love of the stage by returning to Michigan and doing summer stock. [ [http://video.broadwayworld.com/showvideos/weddingseattle.html Broadway World.com: Video: Wedding Seattle] ]

2000 to present

As a result of the duality of his act, Lynch turned heads in the music industry as well as on the comedy circuit. He attracted extra attention usually not available to comics by playing venues more often suited to music than to comedy (eventually graduating to locations such as the House of Blues, The Town Hall and the esteemed Kennedy Center). He gained great national exposure with his "Comedy Central Presents" special in 2000, one of the highest rated in the network's history. He has made appearances on "Comedy Central"'s "Premium Blend", "The World Comedy Tour" and "The World Stands Up". He has also made four appearances on "Last Call with Carson Daly", and has performed at the prestigious "Just for Laughs" Comedy Festival in Montreal, Canada.

Lynch has opened for comedians Jay Mohr, Jeff Foxworthy, Steven Wright, Bobcat Goldthwait and Lewis Black. In the summer of 2004, he went on a tour co-headlining with Mitch Hedberg. The tour was such a success that they added an extra leg and ran into 2005. This was Hedberg's last tour before his death.

He has also appeared in five short films, including "The Love Seat" in 1999 and "The Confetti Brothers" in 2001. [http://www.wma.com/stephen_lynch/summary/ William Morris Agency: Stephen Lynch] ] [ [http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1392557/ IMDb: Stephen Lynch (II)] ] Both films were written and directed by Kirker Butler. "The Confetti Brothers", a satire, screened to packed houses at the 2001 Cannes Film Festival. It continues to play the film festival circuit. [http://www.courier-journal.com/scene/movies/features/2002/20020702butler.html courier-journal.com: Louisville Scene: Hollywood's Kentucky connection adds a link] ]

In April 2006, Lynch starred as Robbie Hart in the Broadway musical "The Wedding Singer", which ran on Broadway from April 27, 2006 through December 31, 2006 at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre. This musical production was based on the 1998 New Line Cinema film "The Wedding Singer" starring Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore. The musical, Lynch's Broadway debut, [http://www.broadway.com/gen/Buzz_Star_File.aspx?ci=519869 Stephen Lynch, Star File: Broadway.com Buzz] ] co-starred two-time Tony Award nominee Laura Benanti in the role of Julia Sullivan, originated by Barrymore in the film. The April 2006 opening followed a successful preview run in Seattle at The 5th Avenue Theatre which ran from January 31 through February 19. His performance has earned him nominations for Drama League and Drama Desk awards, as well as a nomination for the coveted Tony Award. [ [http://www.tonyawards.com/en_US/nominees/index.html The American Theatre Wing's Tony Awards: NOMINEES & AWARDS: 2006 Nominations] ]

In 2007, Lynch returned to the road again, touring with comedians such as Bob Saget, Frank Caliendo, Louis C.K., Carlos Mencia and others on the Opie and Anthony Traveling Virus Comedy Tour 2007.

During the tour, Lynch played some new material, including:
*A mostly ad-libbed song titled "Little Gay Robot"
*"Peanuts", which is based on the Charles M. Schulz comic strip Peanuts
*"Dear Diary" Several fictional diary entries detailing the impending misfortune of famous people throughout history
*"I Am Not A Jukebox", telling people how he's "not a fucking jukebox" and what you should do if you want him to be one
*"Waiting", a song about waiting for the results of an AIDS test
*"Medieval Bush"
*"Prettier Than You"
*"Three Balloons"
*"Dirty Sanchez" (with David Josefsberg)
*"Sidekicks" (also with David Josefsberg)
*"Purple Rain"It is rumored that Lynch will produce another album consisting of some new songs that he hopes to release the "Fourth Quarter of 2008". Lynch starred in his second "Comedy Central Presents" special in January 2008.

Lynch performed on his first full-blown European tours in 2008, headlining concerts in Sweden,Norway, Holland, Finland, Ireland, Scotland, England and Germany. All but two of the 17 shows sold out, despite never playing a majority of the markets. Lynch attributes this unprecedented success to YouTube.

Stephen's newfound European popularity resulted in appearances at six festivals in August 2008. He announced he will be coming back to the UK in August to play the Reading and Leeds Festivals. Stephen will be headlining the Alternative stage on August 22 at Reading and doing the same at Leeds the following day. He will also be appearing at the Lowlands Festival in Holland on August 17th, Edinburgh Edge Festival (during Fringe) on August 24, The Pimm's Summerfest in Holland Park, London on August 28, and Bulmer's Comedy Festival in Dublin at the Olympia Theater on September 1 and 2.

In an email sent out on his mailing list it stated that Lynch would return to Europe next summer after he had 'Finished recording another album'.

Personal life

Family and friends prove to be an important influence on Lynch's work and career. He married Erin Dwight on a private beach on Lake Michigan in September 2003, and she is generally the first person to hear his original ideas for songs. He trusts so deeply in her taste that if she does not laugh at the initial concept, he will scrap the idea completely. Dwight recorded a short film while her husband was away touring, called "Lynch and Teich in Brooklyn", to show that she missed him. This was included in the extras on his 2004 concert DVD, "Live at the El Rey". She also co-created the cover concept for his latest album, "The Craig Machine", with her mother, Kalamazoo photographer Fran Dwight.

Lynch has a younger brother, Drew, who is dating Tiffany Porter (who also writes comedic songs), and they occasionally tour together. Their parents are a former priest and a former nun. [cite news| first=Andrew| last=Guyton| authorlink=User:Disavian| url=http://www.nique.net/issues/2005-11-18/entertainment/2| title=Stephen Lynch satisfies with Craig Machine| work=The Technique| date=2005-11-18| accessdate=2007-04-04] Both parents became teachers. Lynch has stated that religion was not forced upon him growing up, and, although he was raised Roman Catholic, he no longer attends church. His upbringing included liberalism as well as religion, which is reflected through his father's past as part of a singing duo that attended many peace rallies and antiwar protests during the Vietnam War. Like his sons, Lynch's father is a stage actor as well as a singer, and musical talent and interest runs in their family. Lynch's earliest work in the theater was performing with his father in local community theater productions in Saginaw as a child. The first live musical he saw was "Man of La Mancha", a community theater production in which his father played the role of the Padre. [http://zpincusroth.typepad.com/blog/2006/02/one_to_watch_st.html ZacharyPincus-Roth.com: One to Watch: Stephen Lynch] ] [http://www.playbill.com/celebritybuzz/article/99485.html Playbill Celebrity Buzz: THE LEADING MEN: The Ring and I] ]

As Lynch's repertoire of material includes some duets and also a few songs for three voices, close university pals and fellow comedians Mark Teich (of The Second City) and Rod Cone (of The Rod Cone Situation) are also very frequent guests on his tours, and he rarely tours alone. He has also done shows with former "Wedding Singer" castmate David Josefsberg. [ [http://www.lynch-mob.net Lynch-mob.net] ]

As of July 2008, Stephen Lynch resides in Manhattan, New York with his wife.

Discography

Demo

Broadway

References

External links

* [http://www.stephenlynch.com/ Official site]
*MySpace|stephenlynch|Stephen Lynch
* [http://www.flickr.com/photos/whatarerecords/sets/72057594053021296/ Official Flickr Photo Page]
* [http://www.jesterjournal.com/LynchReview.htm Review of live performance in Atlantic City]
*imdb name|id=1392557|name=Stephen Lynch
*ibdb name|id=403255|name=Stephen Lynch