Randy Goodrum
| Randy Goodrum | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Charles Randolph Goodrum |
| Born |
July 7, 1947 Hot Springs, Arkansas |
| Genres | Pop, country, rock, roots, jazz |
| Occupation(s) | Songwriter, pianist, producer |
| Instruments | Piano |
| Years active | 1976-present |
| Associated acts | Steve Perry, Anne Murray, Dottie West, Chet Atkins, Toto |
| Website | randygoodrum |
Charles Randolph "Randy" Goodrum is an American songwriter, pianist, and producer. A Grammy award-nominated writer and Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame inductee, Goodrum has written #1 songs in each of the four decades since his first #1 hit, 1978's "You Needed Me."
Goodrum's songs have appeared on the country, pop, jazz, rock, R&B and adult contemporary charts. An accomplished pianist, his music has been used extensively in film and television.
Goodrum was born in Hot Springs, Arkansas to Winnie Goodrum and Bud Goodrum, a physician. He began to play the piano by ear as a small child, imitating his older brother. Goodrum started to take piano lessons at 8, initially studying classical music and later learning to play jazz.
He attended Hot Springs High School, where he performed in a jazz trio, the Three Kings. Also known as the Three Blind Mice for the dark glasses they wore, the trio included Goodrum's friend Bill Clinton on sax. He also performed in the area with touring artists. Because he could sight read—and because Arkansas was at a "geographical crossroads" which drew a wide variety of performing musicians—Goodrum played with blues, country, jazz, R&B and rock & roll artists. In a 2000 interview, he said: "Part of the reason I am so diverse is because of where I grew up. You had to be able to play it all, and do it authentically."
Goodrum attended Hendrix College in Conway, Arkansas. Although he had never written songs, a friend asked him to compose the songs for an original musical. Goodrum agreed, and discovered a talent for songwriting. Inspired by Joni Mitchell, Randy Newman, Jimmy Webb, and James Taylor, he began to focus on writing songs. He graduated with a Bachelor of Music in piano.
Goodrum joined the US Army following his college graduation, where he played in the army band. During his off hours he wrote songs and decided to pursue a career as a songwriter. Following his 1972 discharge from the army, Goodrum went to Los Angeles to meet with music publishers. Although he was unable to place any of the dozen songs he presented, he was encouraged to continue writing. He returned to Little Rock, and planned to move to Los Angeles. Instead, at the suggestion of a friend, Bob Millsap, he moved to Nashville, where he could finance his songwriting endeavors as a pianist-for-hire for session work and live performances. Millsap signed Goodrum to his publishing company, Ironside, and would go on to pitch Goodrum's first major hit, "You Needed Me," with the persistence it required. "The word would come back that song didn't have a chorus, was too pop, didn't fit the Nashville mold, wasn't sing-a-long, that kind of thing," Millsap's co-writer Jerry Flowers said in 2003.
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