Ray Lynch

Raymond Lynch<ref name=Raymond/> (born July 3, 1943) is an American guitarist, lutenist, keyboardist, and composer known for his new-age releases in the 1980s.

In the late 1960s, Lynch performed on the lute in New York's Renaissance Quartette, but he withdrew to California and began incorporating electronic music elements, as heard in 1983's The Sky of Mind. He vaulted to fame in 1986 with the single "Celestial Soda Pop" and the 1984 album Deep Breakfast, becoming the first independent new-age artist certified Gold for sales of 500,000.<ref name=Birth/> His album No Blue Thing topped the Billboard New Age album chart in 1989. Lynch sued his label Music West and joined Windham Hill in 1992 before retiring in 2000.

Early life

Lynch was born on July 3, 1943, in Salt Lake City, Utah.<ref name=Birth>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name=Cymbiosis>Template:Cite journal</ref> As the second of four children, Lynch was raised in West Texas.<ref name="Primary1">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name=Canada>Template:Cite news</ref> Lynch's father was a lawyer;<ref name=Siblings>Template:Cite journal</ref> Lynch's mother was a noted watercolorist and an amateur pianist who influenced him to create music as a child. Other early influences included hymns and soundtracks.<ref name=CDReview1>Template:Cite journal</ref> Lynch began studying the piano at the age of six. At age twelve, he was inspired by Andrés Segovia's classical recordings and decided to pursue a career in music.<ref name="Primary1"/><ref name=CDReview2/> After attending High School in both St. Stephen's Episcopal School and Austin High School,Template:Efn Lynch went to the Austin campus of the University of Texas. After studying there for a year, he moved to Barcelona with his then wife Ginny and his child.<ref name=Cymbiosis/> Over there, he was apprenticed to Eduardo Sainz de la Maza, a classical guitar teacher. Three years later Lynch returned to the university to study composition with various instruments including guitar, lute, and vihuela.<ref name=Raymond>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name=CDReview2>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name=Keyboard1>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name="Teacher">Template:Cite journal</ref> While Lynch went on to become a musician, his siblings ended up becoming lawyers.<ref name=Siblings/>

Life and career

In 1967, while still in college, Lynch was invited to New York City to join the Renaissance Quartet, performing the lute alongside Robert White (tenor), Barbara Mueser (viol), and Morris Newman (recorder),<ref name=CDReview3/><ref name=Arizona1>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> replacing Joseph Iadone.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Lynch also performed with other groups, such as "Festival Winds",<ref>Template:Cite book</ref> as well as collaborative<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and solo performances.<ref name="Encyclopedia"/> Lynch also taught the guitar, lute, and vihuela in the Mexican city of Taxco in the late 1960s.<ref name="Teacher"/> During his career, Lynch purchased a 125-acre farm in Maine.<ref name="Encyclopedia">Template:Cite book</ref> By 1974, Lynch experienced a "spiritual crisis" that led to his decision to move from Maine to California and give up his musical career. Although he became a carpenter and a purchasing agent in California, Lynch also continued to practice his compositional skills.<ref name=CDReview3>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name=Arizona2>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name=Arizona3>Template:Cite journal</ref> In an interview with The Arizona Republic, Lynch said that his return to music was prompted by a suggestion from his spiritual teacher, Adi Da, in California.<ref name=Arizona4>Template:Cite journal</ref>

To prepare for his return to music, Lynch bought an ARP Odyssey with "borrowed money" in 1980; the synthesizer helped him create music in the developing electronic genre.<ref name=CDReview4>Template:Cite journal</ref> Two years later, Lynch released his first album, Truth Is the Only Profound, which recites the teachings of Adi Da "set to the background of devotional music and songs".<ref name="Primary2"/><ref name=Book>Template:Cite book</ref> Lynch later followed up with an instrumental album, The Sky of Mind.<ref name=Canada/> When Lynch released his third album, Deep Breakfast, in 1984 independently, he sold over 72,000 albums out of his small apartment.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Lynch was featured on Musical Starstreams in June 1985.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Immediately after joining Music West in Winter 1985,<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> he released Deep Breakfast to a wider audience.<ref name=WestStart>Template:Cite magazine</ref> The track "Celestial Soda Pop" was used in 1986 as theme music for the NPR program Fresh Air. In January 1989, the album hit number 2 on the Billboard New Age chart, then in April it was certified Gold by the RIAA. In August 1989, No Blue Thing was released, and it became Lynch's first album to hit number 1 on Billboard's "Top New Age Albums" chart, doing so in September.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> No Blue Thing was also his only album to appear on Billboard's "Top 200 Albums", peaking at number 197.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> It won Billboard's "Top New Age Album" in 1990,<ref name="NoBlueThing"/> and Lynch also won Billboard's "Top New Age Artist" in both 1989<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> and 1990.<ref name="NoBlueThing">Template:Cite magazine</ref> After years of steady sales, Deep Breakfast was certified Platinum in May 1993.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

During his time with Music West, Lynch was featured on Good Morning America<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name=CEO>Template:Cite magazine</ref> as well as the Spanish La 1 program "Música N.A.".<ref name=CEO/><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In 1991, Lynch sued Music West for allegedly not paying him for his work.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref name=Wife>Template:Cite news</ref> He left Music West, taking the rights to his music with him, and signed up with Windham Hill Records.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Under the new label, Lynch's albums The Sky of Mind and No Blue Thing (but not Deep Breakfast) were re-released in September 1992 with new album covers.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Under the new record company, Lynch followed up with his final album, the classical Nothing Above My Shoulders but the Evening, in 1993. The album featured members of the San Francisco Symphony.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Like the preceding album, it hit number 1 on the "Top New Age Albums" chart.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> In 1998, Lynch released his first and only compilation album, Ray Lynch: Best Of, Volume One, which included two original tracks and a remix of "Celestial Soda Pop".<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Lynch left Windham Hill in 2000 and re-released his own catalog of music under his own record company.<ref name="Primary2">Template:Cite news</ref>

In September 2015, Lynch's house was destroyed by the Valley Fire, along with his studio, awards, and the master tapes of his music. As a result, his friend Grant Valdes Huling set up a GoFundMe page, which ultimately raised over $20,000.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Influences

Throughout his career, Lynch did not want his music to be classified as "New Age".<ref name=NotNA>Template:Cite news</ref> In an interview with CD Review in August 1989, Lynch said he didn't really mind being labeled as a "new age" artist, but says that he doesn't like "being grouped with music that I felt is, in general, pretty mediocre and boring". Lynch also said that "'classical' would be the best category for me."<ref name=CDReview5>Template:Cite journal</ref>

Lynch had been both a student and follower of Adi Da since 1974.<ref name="Primary1"/> In regards to the spiritual nature of his music, Lynch believed that it "has to be judged subjectively by the listener, not the composer."<ref name=LifeMag>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Lynch named several of his songs and albums after the themes found in Da's novel, The Mummery Book.<ref name=1987-1>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref name=Arizona5/> However, in a 1989 Arizona Republic interview, Lynch clarified that he wasn't trying to promote Da's work through his music.<ref name=Arizona5>Template:Cite journal</ref> After the death of Adi Da, Lynch performed various songs for Da's tribute album, "May You Ever Dwell In Our Heart", in 2009.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Discography

Album	Year	Label	Chart Performance				Reference
			US New Age		US Billboard 200
			Weeks	Peak	Weeks	Peak
Truth Is the Only Profound	1982	Ray Lynch Productions	–	–	–	–	<ref name=Book/>
The Sky of Mind	1983	Ray Lynch Productions Music West Windham Hill Records	–	–	–	–	<ref name=Canada/>
Deep Breakfast	1984	Ray Lynch Productions Music West Windham Hill Records	156	2	–	–	<ref name="BillboardNA">Template:Cite magazine</ref>
No Blue Thing	1989	Music West Windham Hill Records	99	1	2	197	<ref name="BillboardNA"/><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>
Nothing Above My Shoulders but the Evening	1993	Windham Hill Records	41	1	–	–	<ref name="BillboardNA"/>
Ray Lynch: Best Of, Volume One	1998	Windham Hill Records	8	19	–	–	<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

See also

• List of ambient music artists

External links

• Template:Official website