Randall Marsh was raised in Bushnell, a small rural town in central Florida. Marsh remembers sitting in his second grade classroom while the high school marching band practiced on the street in front of the local elementary school. The sound of those snare drums stirred something in him. He began banging on pots and pans and at 13 his mom ordered his first drum kit from a Sears catalog. The thrill he gets from the sound and feel of hitting drums continues to this day.
Not long after, he joined his first band, The Grasshoppers. Soon, they were playing high school dances, teen parties – things were really rollin’. A couple of years later came The New Frontiers. Marsh wasn’t old enough to drive and an older band mate had to come forty miles to pick him up for practice.
Then came a year of woodshedding (practicing) on his own and the occasional jam – a frustrating time if you’re living in a small town with few like-minded musicians. But a music renaissance was on the horizon! Hendrix, Cream and others were starting to explode on the scene. Marsh was praying for graduation from high school and moving on to where the music and action was.
On a suggestion from a friend he headed to Gainesville, and – bingo! Gainesville, Florida in 1969 was a liberal college town oasis in a conservative state. Marsh went to the local music store and put up an ad. Mike Campbell answered – not bad for a first try! With Campbell on guitar, bass player Hal Maull and Marsh, Dead or Alive was born. They would start a song, sing a verse or two, then jam for a half hour. They didn’t have much in the way of original material but did have major fun. When the bass player left, Marsh and Campbell, who were now rooming together in what would later become known as The Farm, were left hangin’. They decided to each look for gigs on their own.
Another ad was put up in Lippham’s Music store and Marsh’s wining streak continued when Mudcrutch answered. He headed to the audition with his drums in the back of a 1964 Ford Falcon station wagon. A scruffy looking bunch, with long hair and western shirts, Mudcrutch was Tom Petty, Tom Leadon and Jim Lenahan. They ran through a few songs. Marsh noted a country influence that put him off a bit at first but these guys could rock and he liked the way Petty played bass. Things were sounding good and he was asked to come to a rehearsal. Randall suggested they try playing at The Farm. A few days later they showed up, set up and got into it. Someone mentioned a second guitar was needed so Marsh went to Mike’s bedroom and asked if he’d like to jam. They were impressed with Campbell. Three weeks of rehearsal later the band played their first gig at Dub’s Steer Room, a local bar.
Five years later the band moved to Los Angeles and secured a record deal with Shelter Records. An album was recorded, a single released and, after waiting impatiently for signs of success, the band, after being together all those years, broke up.
Life went on. Marsh played every gig imaginable, sometimes in pick-up bands with his old band mate Benmont Tench who had joined Mudcrutch a few years earlier. Marsh was determined to stay in L. A. and find another original band. That was tough after being used to the talents of Campbell, Petty, and Tench.
A couple of years and many bands later, Marsh auditioned with Dean Chamberlain and Michael Ostendorf of Code Blue, an unknown Hollywood band that had tried out scores or drummers. Marsh was used to auditions often being a waste of time and when they started playing was only half paying attention. But again lightning struck – these guys were good, damn good, and had cool original songs. Four months of rehearsal followed, working hard to get it perfect. It all paid off – after playing clubs around Hollywood for 6 months, they had the interest of several major labels. Code Blue settled on a deal with Warner Bros. The band did an album and a tour opening for Thin Lizzy, but after spending another year playing the local club scene and numerous lineup changes, the band broke up. Code Blue was a strong band that should have gone the distance. The album was re-released in 2003 on Rhino Records, along with bonus tracks.
After a couple of years looking without luck for a project that would be fun and satisfying, Marsh became burned out on the Hollywood/L. A. scene. Longing for a simpler life, Marsh began looking for a new home in a small town not too far from L. A. and found it in Ojai, a coastal town an hour and a half drive north.
Marsh enjoyed the small town atmosphere and spent much of the nineties driving back and forth from Ojai to the San Fernando Valley to record at Mike Campbell’s home studio where Campbell, a prolific songwriter, enjoys working on and demo-ing his own songs.
In 1999 The Blue Stingrays’ (Mike Campbell, Ron Blair, and Randall) CD was released. In the same year Marsh recorded for several weeks during pre-production with Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers on the Echo CD. Marsh also played gigs with Jackie Lomax around the Ojai area. While in Ojai, He also recorded the basic tracks for the songs on the Crazy World EP.
Marsh returned to his hometown in Florida in 2006 to work on his family’s one hundred year old home. A short time later, Marsh got a call from Petty about recording a CD with the Petty, Campbell, Tench, Leadon, Marsh lineup – a new Mudcrutch album! A date for the sessions was set and in 2007, 30 years after the first Mudcrutch/Petty studio venture, the CD was recorded. Some months later a limited tour of California was completed. In 2008 a Mudcrutch documentary, directed by Peter Bogdonovich, was shown on VH1. Mudcrutch Extended Play Live!, a CD of songs recorded live on tour, was also released. Mudcrutch intends much future fun and many adventures yet to come. Stay posted!
Now Randall is introducing his new website & Crazy World EP release – three new original tunes and you can check out a video. He put a lot of sweat, passion and effort into the new tunes. And had a ball doing it. He handles the vocals, drums and all guitar tracks and produced the EP too. Recorded, mixed and mastered in Ojai California. Check it out!
Also check out lots of unreleased archival photos and his bio. Watch for more original tunes and videos in the near future.
