Playing
concert stages at festivals, folk clubs and house concerts, singer/songwriter
Stephen Taylor has been charming audiences world wide
for more than three decades. He has released three solo recordings and
has performed thousands of shows from Miami to Boulder, Honolulu to Austin.
Born in Kalamazoo, MI and raised in the 1960s suburbia outside Philadelphia, Stephen discovered his passion for music at a young age. “My Mom is a classical singer and she gave me constant encouragement. I sang in church choirs and choruses from about the age of six.” After receiving his first guitar at age 10, by 14 Stephen was performing in his first band. He progressed quickly from playing high school dances and shopping centers to clubs and coffeehouses around Philly.
While the Beatles and early rock n’ roll were a primary influence, folk music and acoustically oriented singer/songwriters of the late ‘60s had a deep effect on Stephen’s musical direction. “It felt a little schizophrenic… during high school I would be playing rock one night and the next I was playing some coffee house in a folk band or duo.” A small club in nearby Bryn Mar, PA called The Main Point exposed the teenager to such greats as James Taylor, Joni Mitchell, Tom Rush and Jackson Browne in early solo performances.
In the early 1970s Stephen hit the road for the first time. With a backpack and a guitar he set off to see the country, traveling coast to coast and eventually arriving in Hawaii. It was on those islands Stephen joined a community of young musicians. “I consider my early years in Hawaii my musical apprenticeship. I played constantly. I was in several bands and duos, playing five sets a night in bars for tourists and locals. But even when we weren’t working, we played on the beach, at parties, everywhere.”
Returning
to the US mainland, Stephen spent the 80s honing his performance skills, playing
in various musical configurations, but increasingly as a solo performer. Writing
and playing his original material became a larger part of his show. It was
at this time Stephen wrote such popular and enduring songs as “Romantics
Ain’t Hopeless” and “Something Free.” Gigs and other
musical opportunities took him across the country, from the ski slopes of
the Rockies to California, New York and eventually western North Carolina.
In 1996, after years of recording his songs on home recording equipment, Stephen released his first solo album, “Detour,” recorded in two afternoons during a trip to Hawaii. “A friend owned this very nice studio in Honolulu and invited me to lay down some tracks. It was just solo performance, kind of raw, but I liked it better than the heavily produced demos I had recorded before then.” Album in hand, Stephen returned to North Carolina, presenting his songs to audiences across the southeast and eventually beyond. Soon he was playing venues such as Eddie’s Attic and the Blue Bird Café, and sharing billing with Eric Taylor, Bill Staines and others.
In 1999 Stephen moved to Austin, Texas and began work on his second solo recording. Enlisting the talents of some of Austin’s finest studio musicians, “Been Here Before” was released in 2000. In June of 2004 "Stephen Taylor: LIVE!" was released.
Stephen still lives in Austin and continues to perform 100+
shows a year at concert halls, festivals, clubs and house concerts across
the country. He is currently working on a new album of original songs.
