Ryan Star plays with Goo Goo Dolls

Ryan Star wasn't looking for a tour.

The Dix Hills native was working on the follow-up to his "11:59" album and the hits "Breathe" and "Start a Fire" for Atlantic Records when he ran into the Goo Goo Dolls' Johnny Rzeznik in an area studio and they talked about possible openers for the band's upcoming tour.

"I was really enjoying being home and getting back to myself for a second," Star says, calling from the road somewhere in Pennsylvania. "I didn't even think of me. . . . It wasn't a planned thing."

But the idea for Star, who now hopes to finish his sophomore major-label solo album early next year, to join the tour quickly made sense to both sides, and soon he was packing his bags to hit the road.

For Star, the most exciting stops will be at the Paramount in Huntington -- because he's eager to see the new venue and play there after heroes like The Pixies ("I may have to lick the stage," he jokes) and because it's near the site of the Roxy, where he got his start as a teenager. ("There's a video of me there in jean shorts, singing Soundgarden songs, holding index cards because I couldn't remember the lyrics," he says.)

"Every once in a while in this crazy business, as jaded as you get, as callous as you get, you have those 'pinch me' moments," says Star, who plans to continue writing while on the road. "This should be one of them because I get to connect with my home."

Ryan Star opens for Goo Goo Dolls at the Paramount, 370 New York Ave., Huntington, Nov. 12 and 15. Tickets are $30-$99.50 through Ticketmaster.

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