Philip Parris Lynott (/ˈlaɪnɒt/, LIE-not; 20 August 1949 – 4 January 1986) was an Irish musician who was the co-founder, lead vocalist, bassist, and primary songwriter for the hard rock band Thin Lizzy. He was known for his distinctive pick-based style on the bass and for his imaginative lyrical contributions, including working-class tales and numerous characters drawn from personal influences and Celtic culture.

Lynott was born in the West Midlands of England and grew up in Dublin with his grandparents. He remained close to his mother, Philomena, throughout his life. He fronted several bands as a lead vocalist, including Skid Row alongside Gary Moore, before learning the bass guitar and forming Thin Lizzy in 1969. After initial success with "Whiskey in the Jar", the band had several hits in the mid-1970s, such as "The Boys Are Back in Town", "Jailbreak" and "Waiting for an Alibi", and became a popular live attraction combining Lynott's vocal and songwriting skills with dual lead guitars. Towards the end of the 1970s, Lynott embarked upon a solo career and published two books of poetry. After Thin Lizzy disbanded, he assembled and fronted the band Grand Slam.

In the 1980s, Lynott increasingly suffered drug-related problems, particularly an addiction to heroin. In 1985, he had a final chart success with Moore, "Out in the Fields", before his death in 1986. He remains a popular figure in the rock world, and in 2005, a statue in his memory was erected in Dublin.

Phil Lynott was born in Hallam Hospital in West Bromwich. His mother, Philomena Lynott, was born in Dublin and his father, Cecil Parris, was from Georgetown, British Guiana. Philomena met Parris, who had moved to the United Kingdom to seek work, in Birmingham in 1948 and they were in a relationship for a few months, until Parris was transferred to London. Shortly afterwards, Philomena found she was pregnant and, after Lynott was born, she moved with her baby to a home for unmarried mothers in Selly Park, where he was baptised on 4 September. Philomena subsequently moved to Manchester but stayed in touch with Parris who helped pay towards his son's support. She subsequently had two more children who were placed for adoption. Lynott believed he was different from his peers at school, but did not suffer any major racist attacks.

Lynott first attended school in Moss Side, Manchester. In 1957, his mother sent him to live with his grandparents, Frank and Sarah Lynott, in Crumlin, Dublin. The presence of Frank gave him a father figure for the first time in his life. His mother stayed in Manchester and remained close to her son. She later took over the management of the Clifton Grange Hotel in Whalley Range with her partner, Dennis Keeley. The hotel, nicknamed "The Biz", became popular with showbusiness entertainers, and was later referred to in a song on Thin Lizzy's debut album. Lynott had a happy childhood growing up in Dublin and was a popular character at school.

Lynott was introduced to music through his uncle Timothy's record collection, and became influenced by Motown and The Mamas & the Papas. He joined his first band, the Black Eagles, in 1965 as a lead singer, playing popular covers in local clubs around Dublin. He attended the Scoil Colm Christian Brothers' School on Armagh Road in Crumlin, where he became friends with Brian Downey, who was later persuaded to join the band from the Liffey Beats. The group fell apart due to the lack of interest of manager Joe Smith, particularly after the departure of his two sons, guitarists Danny and Frankie.

Lynott then left the family home and moved into a flat in Clontarf, where he briefly joined the group Kama Sutra. It was in this band that he learned his frontman skills, and worked out how to interact with an audience. In early 1968, he teamed up with bassist Brendan 'Brush' Shiels to form Skid Row. Downey was not interested in Shiels' request to be the drummer, so the job went to Noel Bridgeman. The band signed a deal with Ted Carroll, who would later go on to manage Thin Lizzy, and played a variety of covers including "Eight Miles High", "Hey Jude" and several numbers by Jimi Hendrix. Because Lynott did not play an instrument at this point in his career, he instead manipulated his voice through an echo box during instrumental sections. He took to smearing boot polish under his eyes on stage to draw attention to himself, which he would continue to do throughout Lizzy's career later on, and regularly performed a mock fight with Shiels onstage to attract the crowd. In mid-1968, guitarist Bernard Cheevers quit to work full-time at the Guinness brewery in Dublin and was replaced by Belfast-born guitarist Gary Moore.

Despite increased success, and the release of a single, "New Faces, Old Places", Shiels became concerned about Lynott's tendency to sing off-key. He then discovered that the problem was with Lynott's tonsils; he subsequently took a leave of absence from the band. By the time he had recovered, Shiels had decided to take over singing lead and reduce the band to a three-piece. Feeling guilty of having effectively sacked one of his best friends, he taught Lynott how to play bass, figuring it would be easier to learn than a six-string guitar, and sold him a Fender Jazz Bass he had bought from Robert Ballagh for £36, and started giving him lessons.