With a guitar and a twisted sense of humor, Stephen Lynch has taken the stand-up world by storm since gaining national exposure in 2000 with his first Comedy Central special.
With his rash, raunchy and nasty (yet also very funny) brand of comedy, Lynch has garnered a loyal fan base that stretches from Los Angeles and New York to Scandinavia and Germany.
Now with a DVD, two live albums and two studio albums, his latest being “Three Balloons,” which debuted earlier this year, it is the stage where Lynch truly shines. His sold out stage shows are the best way to experience him and his music.
Currently on his “Three Balloons” tour, this week, Lynch is playing three shows in the Massachusetts/New Hampshire area. Thursday, November 12 at the Calvin Theater in Northampton Mass, Friday November 13 at the Music Hall in Portsmouth, NH and Saturday, November 14 at the Hanover Theater in Worcester, Mass. All shows are at 8 p.m.
I spoke with Lynch in an email interview last week about his career, Comedy Central censorship, crowd participation and Broadway.
Ryan McAskill: How did you get started writing hilariously funny songs of a suggestive and questionable nature?
Stephen Lynch: Trying to make my high-on friends laugh in college.
RM: What was the moment you realized you could truly make a living doing this?
SL: When people who weren't my high-on friends laughed at the songs as well. This was at a place called the West Bank Cafe in New York City in about 1997.
RM: You have done songs about abortion, Nazis, racism, AIDS, religion, menstruation and drug smuggling…what is your writing style like?
SL: Anything I find funny, I'll write about. My goal is not to offend people, because I don't think just being offensive or shocking for it's own sake is funny, but if I ruffle some feathers along the way, that's fun too.
RM: In the intro to “Pierre,” you mention you wrote the song on a bet with a friend and I’m wondering if that’s true and if any other songs are were conceived in a similar manner?
SL: That introduction is a total lie. There was no bet. In fact, there is no friend. I have no friends.
RM: What’s the story behind the “Bowling Song,” and your hatred of it? I’ve only heard it on Opie and Anthony and people yelling out at shows.
SL: That song is just something people shout to get a "rise" out of me during shows. I actually like the song, but believe me, no one wants to hear the whole thing at a show. I've tried.
RM: How do you decide what songs you perform on a given night or a given tour?
SL: Mostly I try to do a blend of new songs and old songs that don't make me want to blow my head off because I've sung them so many times.
RM: I’ve heard comedians talk about having the audience yelling out punch lines and how it can throw them off, but what is it like to have the whole audience singing and requesting songs?
SL: I don't mind it so much. Some of these songs sound really good with hundreds of people singing along to them. I try to just close my eyes and soak it all in when that happens. On the other hand, people who shout out punchlines to bits or request the same song over and over, loudly, make me very angry. When that happens I start throwing people out. Which is very satisfying.
RM: I’ve heard you rant about how Comedy Central censured your first special with notes before the show, did anything like that happen with the second special or were you given more leeway?
SL: I said this is what I'm going to sing and if you need to bleep something out, go for it. I don't care. I'm not going to change lyrics anymore just to get a song on TV. They were fine with this approach, even though they had to bleep the word "fuck" out of “Craig” about a thousand times. Also, they bleeped out the word "shower" in "Little Tiny Moustache," which I thought was a bit strange.
RM: What’s your opinion of YouTube and how it effects comedians? I ask because lots of your live shows are on YouTube, including renditions of “Waiting,” “Three Balloons,” “Crazy Peanuts” and “You (Prettier Than)” before the “Three Balloons” album was released.
SL: I love it. I love YouTube. Thank you, Mr. YouTube. You have given me an audience way beyond what I could have expected. People record shows on their phones, put the videos online, then millions of people watch them. Sure, I may not sell as many records, but more people come to my shows. I'm selling out in Scandinavia and Germany and the UK because of this phenomenon. I say more of it.
RM: To get away from the stand-up for a minute, you played Robbie Hart in the Broadway rendition of the “Wedding Singer.” How did you get the part and what was the experience like?
SL: The producers were looking for somebody who could sing and be funny and I guess I fit the bill. Well, not according to one reviewer, who compared my stage presence to that of a turnip. Asshole.
RM: Do you have any plans to return to Broadway?
SL: Not in the next two or three hundred years.
RM: Did you ever hear from Adam Sandler on what he thought about you playing the character he made famous in the movie?
SL: He came to our opening night in Seattle, before we moved the show to Broadway. He told me he liked it, but I don't believe him.
RM: Now back to your stops in and around Boston next week. What kind of blend between the new and old material can we expect?
SL: The perfect blend.
RM: Which, if any, of your duet partners are you bringing with you to the shows in Massachusetts and New Hampshire? I’m hoping for Mark Teich.
SL: Nope, no Teichy. He's making his fortune out in L.A., so he hasn't toured with me for about four years. Now it's Rod Cone and David Josefsberg. You will love them as well.
RM: Any upcoming projects you want to promote?
SL: My Lionel Richie covers album should be out soon. Please look for it in stores.
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