Editing Dave Pirner

{{short description|American songwriter, singer, and producer}}
{{Infobox musical artist
| name            = Dave Pirner
| image           = Dave_Pirner_2.jpg
| caption         = Dave Pirner in 2010
| birth_name      = David Anthony Pirner
| alias           =
| birth_date      = {{birth date and age|1964|4|16}}
| birth_place     = [[Minneapolis]],<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.tiktok.com/@labestia.666/video/7478797940404784389?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc&web_id=7375369785834767877|title=Dave Pirner interview in Mexico City|website=[[TikTok]]}}</ref> [[Minnesota]], [[United States of America]]
| death_date      =
| genre           = [[Alternative rock]], [[grunge]]
| occupation      = Musician, songwriter, record producer
| instrument      = Vocals, guitar, trumpet, drums, percussion, keyboard, harmonica, saxophone
| years_active    = 1981–present
| label           = [[A&M records|A&M]], [[Columbia records|Columbia]]
| associated_acts = [[Soul Asylum]], [[Within Temptation]], [[Golden Smog]]
| website         = 
}}

'''David Anthony Pirner''' (born April 16, 1964) is an American songwriter, singer, and producer best known as the lead vocalist and [[frontman]] for the [[alternative rock]] band [[Soul Asylum]].<ref name=Allmusicbio>{{cite web|url={{Allmusic|class=artist|id=p114697/biography|pure_url=yes}}|title=Dave Pirner > Biography|access-date=January 31, 2010}}</ref>

==Early life and work==
Pirner was born in [[Minneapolis]], [[Minnesota]] and graduated from [[West_High_School_(Minneapolis,_Minnesota)|Minneapolis West High School]] in 1982.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://digitalcollections.hclib.org/digital/collection/Yearbooks/id/226863/rec/2|title=1982 Minneapolis West High School Hesperian yearbook pg 87}} Retrieved 2022-09-03.</ref> He taught himself how to play the drums. By age 20, Pirner started his career drumming with a [[Punk rock|punk band]] called Loud Fast Rules as part of the Minneapolis scene, together with [[Karl Mueller (rock musician)|Karl Mueller]] (bass) and [[Dan Murphy (musician)|Dan Murphy]] (guitar). When Pirner switched to singing and playing rhythm guitar, [[Pat Morley (drummer)|Pat Morley]] joined on drums. Morley was later replaced by [[Grant Young (musician)|Grant Young]], and the band changed their name to Soul Asylum. After touring the United States for a number of years they gathered a cult following of fans, but did not quite reach commercial visibility. Pirner at the time was the band's songwriter and he produced the album, ''Coup De Grace,'' by the Minneapolis [[heavy metal music|metal]] band the Coup de Grace in 1990.

==Commercial success==
The band achieved commercial success and visibility on [[MTV]] and [[VH1]] with the 1993 single "[[Runaway Train (Soul Asylum song)|Runaway Train]]", followed by another hit song, "[[Black Gold (song)|Black Gold]]"; both from their album ''[[Grave Dancers Union]]''. As Soul Asylum grew in popularity, Pirner was seen guesting on albums of differing [[genre]]s, including artists like [[Paul Westerberg]], [[Jason Karaban]], [[Mike Watt]], [[The Autumn Defense]]<ref name=Allmusicbio/> and [[Victoria Williams]]. His disheveled appearance and blonde matted dreadlocks made an unmistakable impression on fans and critics alike, making Pirner easily recognized and associating the band with the grunge scene.

[[File:2016DavePirner.jpg|thumb|left|upright|Dave Pirner playing with Soul Asylum in 2016]]
By 1999, Soul Asylum went into hiatus after making their eighth album ''[[Candy from a Stranger]]'' (1998). After four years, the band reunited and started writing songs in the studio.<ref name=Allmusicbio/> Bassist Karl Mueller died on June 17, 2005, at the age of 42 from [[esophageal cancer]]. About a year after his death, Soul Asylum released ''[[The Silver Lining (Soul Asylum album)|The Silver Lining]]'' on [[Legacy Recordings]], which was dedicated to Mueller. Soul Asylum toured with their new line-up, which consisted of Pirner on guitar and vocals, [[Dan Murphy (musician)|Dan Murphy]] on lead guitar, [[Michael Bland]] on drums and [[Tommy Stinson]] on bass (as well as John Fields standing in on bass and piano for Mueller). A few years later, on July 17, 2012, Soul Asylum released an album titled [[Delayed Reaction]]. In 2016, the band released [[Change of Fortune|Change Of Fortune]] and in 2020 released [[Hurry Up and Wait (Soul Asylum album)|Hurry Up And Wait]].

Pirner had a small role in the film ''[[Reality Bites]]'' in 1994.  He was also part of the all-star band assembled for the soundtrack of the 1994 film ''[[Backbeat (film)|Backbeat]]''. Pirner also contributed to the soundtrack of [[Kevin Smith]]'s 1997 film ''[[Chasing Amy]]'' with an instrumental song called "Tube Of Wonderful". There are two songs by the band Soul Asylum featured in the film: "Lucky One" and "We 3". Pirner also composed the incidental music for the film. The song "Can't Even Tell" is featured in Smith's ''[[Clerks (1994 film)|Clerks]]'', and Smith used "Misery" in the sequel, ''[[Clerks II]]''.

In 2002 Pirner released his first solo album entitled ''[[Faces & Names]]'' on Ultimatum Music.<ref name=Allmusicbio/> He also contributed guest vocals on the song "Chillout Tent" in [[The Hold Steady]]'s 2006 release, ''[[Boys and Girls in America]]''. In 2020 he released the book Loud Fast Words: Soul Asylum Collected Lyrics and when the pandemic stopped the tour Soul Asylum was making for their new album, Pirner and the band's guitar player Ryan Smith played 100 original songs on weekly Facebook streams that were called The Quarantine Sessions.

== Personal life ==
Pirner started dating actress [[Winona Ryder]] after the pair were introduced at Soul Asylum's performance on ''[[MTV Unplugged]]'' in 1993.<ref>{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.rollingstone.com/movies/features/winona-ryder-19940310|title=Interview: Winona Ryder|magazine=Rolling Stone|access-date=2018-03-29}}</ref> They broke up three years later.

Pirner lived in [[Carrollton, New Orleans|Carrollton]], [[New Orleans]], Louisiana for a time and still maintains a residence and recording studio in New Orleans. He also maintains a residence in Minneapolis. He has a son, Eli, with his ex-wife.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.citypages.com/music/dave-pirner-talks-divorce-longevity-and-soul-asylums-shit-show-heyday/466666623|title=Dave Pirner talks divorce, longevity, and Soul Asylum's 'shit show' heyday {{!}} City Pages|last=Rivera|first=Erica|website=City Pages|access-date=2018-03-29}}</ref>

==Discography==
===Solo===
*2002: ''[[Faces & Names]]'' (Ultimatum Music)

===Guest appearances===
*2006: [[The Hold Steady]] – "Chillout Tent" (''[[Boys and Girls in America]]'')
*2014: [[Within Temptation]] – "[[Whole World Is Watching]]" (''[[Hydra (Within Temptation album)|Hydra]]'')

==References==
{{Reflist}}

== Bibliography ==
* {{cite book
 | last = Pirner
 | first = Dave
 | title = Loud Fast Words: Soul Asylum Collected Lyrics
 | publisher = [[Minnesota Historical Society Press]]
 | location = St. Paul, MN
 | date = 2020
 | page = 344
 | isbn =  978-1-68134-172-9 }}

==External links==
*{{MusicBrainz artist|id=8849e71c-181b-444b-8cfb-09445e6231d4|name=Dave Pirner}}
*[https://archive.today/20130113091742/http://minnewiki.publicradio.org/index.php/Dave_Pirner Dave Pirner at MinneWiki]
* The Soul Asylum [http://www.mnhs.org/library/findaids/00567.xml  Band Files] are available for research use at the [http://www.mnhs.org Minnesota Historical Society.]
*{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20160624182912/https://podsodcast.com/2016/02/24/em23/ Career Retrospective Interview from February 2016 with Pods & Sods]}}

{{Soul Asylum}}
{{Grammy Award for Best Rock Song}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pirner, Dave}}
[[Category:1964 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:American male singers]]
[[Category:American rock drummers]]
[[Category:Band frontmen]]
[[Category:Grammy Award winners]]
[[Category:Drummers from Minneapolis]]
[[Category:Columbia Records artists]]
[[Category:Singers from Minnesota]]
[[Category:20th-century American drummers]]
[[Category:American male drummers]]
[[Category:Soul Asylum members]]
[[Category:20th-century American male musicians]]
[[Category:American baritones]]