Randy started playing the bass guitar at the young age of 12.  His early experience with four years of garage bands and playing in the school band and orchestra landed him a job in popular Charleston band “The Bailey Singers” when he was just 16 years old.  The Bailey Singers was a great learning experience for Randy and it is where he learned to play a broad variety of music.  The Bailey’s, during Randy’s tenure with them, were know mostly for being the house band at popular Charleston night club The Kings Inn for over three years from 1977 to 1981.

After honing his skills with the Baileys for six years Randy decided to try his hand at forming his own band and left the Baileys in 1982.  In that same year, under Randy’s direction, the band “Sleeper” was born.  Randy not only played bass with Sleeper but also played the keyboards, electronic percussion, and some electric guitar. Randy’s years with “Sleeper” saw him continue to grow in his musical talents and in 1987 Randy left the bass behind and became the group’s main electric guitarist.  In 1990 after playing 18 years straight Randy took a brief break from the music scene and left “Sleeper” to deal with family issues and to just “be a dad” for a while.

 

Music was in Randy’s blood and his break from music did not last long.  After returning to the music scene and just getting started with the group “Straight Up” the group began to dissolve.  Part of the group decided to stay together and eventually became “Joe Dirty and the Salesmen”, which ended up being another on of Randy’s creations.  The Joe Dirty group was most noted for being the house band at popular Charleston night spot Spanky’s for a year circa 1991 where they played a blend of classic and new rock, dance, rap, and country music.  The Joe Dirty days were fun but were short lived and after just a little over a year the band was no more.

 

The end of “Joe Dirty and the Salesmen” did not stop Randy as he was soon called upon to join area group ”Spyce”.  Randy played with ”Spyce” for a year and half and got to celebrate the band’s tenth anniversary with them.  ”Spyce” was also a fun group but something was missing for Randy.  He wanted to once again tackle the challenge of running his own group.

 

In 1994 Randy left ”Spyce” with intensions of starting up his own group again.  It looked like this time it was going to be a regroup of “Joe Dirty and the Salesmen” but the problems that plagued the Joe Dirty Band the first time around did not take long to resurface so a reunion was not meant to be.  After persevering and continuing to search out musicians three quarters of the Joe Dirty band, along with a couple of additions, became “Panama Rose”.

 

“Panama Rose” started out as a contemporary country group that was noted for playing current popular music with strong vocals.  Over time and through personnel changes “Panama Rose” evolved into a dance/variety band that became one of the mainstays in Charleston for several years.  After adding a female vocalist the band became a regular at the popular Atlantis Night Club in Charleston.  After seven years “Panama Rose”  had pretty much ran its course and the band called it quits.  Once again Randy was without a band.

 

It did not take long for Randy to get a call and this time it was Liz Nichols and Split Second that requested Randy’s services.  Randy’s role with Liz was primarily rhythm and acoustic guitars and back-up vocals.  Once again the band was fun but standing in the back playing rhythm turned out to not really be Randy’s cup of tea.  After a short stint with Liz Randy opted out of the group for an opportunity to play with the “Pat Clark Project”, formerly “The Heat”, a group hailing from the eastern end of Kanawha County.

 

“The Pat Clark Project” still remains one of the bands that Randy enjoyed the most.  The mix of classic and new rock and country took Randy back to his roots and it gave him a chance to shine on the guitar like he never had before.  As fun as it was the grind was beginning to be too much.  That along with other issues made it necessary for Randy to step down as the PCP guitarist after only a few months.  Could it be a permanent retirement this time?

 

Randy had every intension of, if not retiring altogether, taking a much needed break after leaving PCP and becoming the Musician’s Union Vice President.  After only being retired literally a couple of weeks Randy’s phone once again rang.  This time it was Charleston group “Santa Cruz”.  Randy decided to take the gig and the thoughts of retiring were once again put behind him.  In “Santa Cruz”, however, Randy was once again back into a situation where the guitar he was playing was more often than not an afterthought and was not what was really in Randy’s heart.  However Randy did play with Santa Cruz for three and a half years but it finally came to an end in 2006.

 

After leaving “Santa Cruz” Randy began what would become the longest break of his over thirty year career.  After knocking around with several bands and trying to get something together several different times Randy got the call from the “Esquires”.  After being away from the bass since 1987 Randy is once again a bass player.  He does still get to play his guitar in the Esquires and he also plays percussion on some tunes.  After playing disco and rap for almost four years the “Esquires” music is a refreshing change for Randy.  Randy also adds another vocal to the “Esquires” already strong vocal section. 

 

The “Esquires” have also shown Randy that you never have to quit playing rock and roll.  The have been at it since the 60’s and are probably Charleston’s longest running active band and they show no signs of stopping any time soon.  Randy looks forward to rocking with the “Esquires” for a long time to come. 

 

Randy also still plays his guitar in local Rock Group “Split 6”.  Made up of Randy, former Joe Dirty and Panama Rose member Marty Fouty, Amy Halstead, Mollie Camargo, Stan Lynch, and Mike Lynch the band plays a unique blend of classic and new rock.

 

Over the years Randy has accumulated an impressive list of accomplishments.  He has played the Charleston Sternwheel Regatta nine times, the St. Albans Riverfest three times and has played just about every venue in the area.  He has opened shows for many well know performers including Michael McDonald, Three Dog Night, Barbara Mandrel, Tammy Winette, Delbert McClinton, Tiny Tim, Sara Evans, Willie Nelson, Iron Butterfly, Mac Wiseman, and Otis Day and the Knights to name a few.