Expect ‘Special Ed' and a whole lot more

Stephen Lynch is a different style of comic.

In addition to a microphone, Lynch picks up an acoustic guitar and sings such songs as “3 Balloons,” “Crazy Peanuts” and “Special Ed.”

Topics of the tunes, such as those of the above songs, cover drug smuggling, a look at the Peanuts cartoon strip and a tribute to Lynch's mentally handicapped friend.

During the show, Lynch sings his recorded songs and improvises new material, which keeps audiences roaring with laughter.

The comedian performs tonight at the Civic Auditorium Music Hall. Before he arrived, he answered some of our questions.

Q. Where do you come up with ideas for songs? While they're hilarious, some of them are pretty wild.

A. I write what makes me laugh. Inspiration can come from anywhere, really: books, TV, newspapers, overheard conversations, things my friends say. The true test is whether these ideas will sustain themselves for three or four minutes. Each song has to be almost a little story to work. Otherwise you get the same joke over and over again. Also I steal from Weird Al Yankovic.

Q. You've been playing some of the songs from the new album live already. Do you like to perform songs live to test them out?

A. I work the opposite of a touring rock band. They write songs, record them, then play them live. I write them, play them live, when they get no laughs I rewrite them, play them live, people put them on YouTube, memorize them, sing along to them, then finally I record them two years after everyone knows them. I should really rethink this process.

Q. Do you have any other new stuff you'll be playing? What are they called?

A. I won't give anything away, but there will be plenty in the show that people won't know. Well, unless they've spent a lot of time watching videos of past shows online. In which case, I'm not sure why they would bother coming in the first place. I will play some video diaries of my tour so far, attempt some piano, do some duets with friends, try some karaoke. It's not just songs from the albums, thank God.

Q. Did your stint on Broadway have any influence on how you write songs?

A. Other than I end every song with jazz hands, no.

Q. You usually bring some friends along to open your shows and help you perform. Who will be with you this time?

A. Rod Cone and David Josefsberg. Rod has been with me for probably seven or eight years now and David, a guy I met doing “The Wedding Singer,” for two. We have a good time on stage.

Q. Some songs have been part of your repertoire for years. Do you ever get tired of them? Or do you feel obligated to play “Special Ed,” for example, because it's a fan-favorite?

A. I'm always looking for ways to take old songs out of my show. Yes, I get terribly bored doing some of them, but people want to hear the “hits.” Which is why my final encore is always “Eat It,” by Weird Al. Not really. Well, maybe.

Contact the writer:

444-1557, kevin.coffey@owh.com