Born September 17, 1958, to parents Herbert and Christine Swift in the small, rural town of Sparta, TN, Randy was raised on the family farm located dead in the heart of American music culture. His father’s lifetime friendship with fellow Sparta native (now bluegrass icon) Lester Flatt insured that Randy would be exposed to plenty of grass roots music at an early age.

By the age of two, it was already becoming evident that music would be a major part of Randy’s life. His mother recalled that when it was time for “Flatt & Scruggs’s” weekly television show, the family would gather to watch Lester and Earl, but Randy would inevitably end up standing in front of the TV playing his mother’s hairbrush like a guitar and trying to sing along with Lester. After several months of this, his father told his mother, “Maybe we ought’ a get that boy a guitar.” Some years later with Lester’s help, that is exactly what happened. Randy’s father also purchased an old fiddle for him. Those two instruments, along with a photo album (circa 1930’s) containing early pictures of his father and Lester, are some of Randy’s most prized possessions. Years later, Randy asked his father what he remembered most about Lester’s TV show. His father quickly answered, “Don’t know! The kid in the diaper playing the hairbrush wouldn’t get out of the way!”

Randy soon started playing his fiddle as a regular on Monday Night Jamboree, a local radio show in Sparta during the mid-1960s. He sang his first solo in church at the age of seven for his pastor and still good friend, Gene Burgess. At ten years old, he began to play and sing locally with gospel groups who traveled to different churches. It was during this time that he stumbled upon a group who would impact his life greatly. It was The Looper Trio, a regional group from middle Tennessee that sang some of the best harmonies Randy had ever heard. Their presentation of the Gospel in song touched him in a way that he had never experienced before. On that day, Randy realized that it was about much more than just the music and for the first time in his life, knew the direction he was destined to take. With the exception of “Horses & Men,” all of Randy’s projects to date include at least one Looper Trio song.

Randy made a firm commitment to serve the Lord at the age of twelve. He remained in Sparta traveling with various Gospel groups and learning other instruments (i.e. Mandolin, Banjo, Bass, and Piano) until he graduated from White County High School as part of the bi-centennial class of 1976. Shortly after graduation, he left the family farm in “Old Blue,” a 66’ Chevy Impala he had practically been raised in and headed for big-city livin’ in Nashville, TN.

Not long after arriving in Nashville, an eighteen-year-old Randy Swift landed a job playing bass for The Jake Hess Sound which consisted of Jake Hess and his two children, Chris and Becky. Shortly thereafter, it was decided that the remaining members of the great Statesmen Quartet would regroup for a reunion sing at the National Quartet Convention to be held at the Municipal Auditorium in Nashville. The Statesmen had not sung together since disbanding some years earlier after the death of their bass singer, “Big Chief”. Jake was the only one who currently had a working band, so they were the obvious choice to play for the Statesmen. When the night and time arrived for them to take the stage, the lights were turned out for a few moments. When the lights came back up, on the platform stood Jake Hess, Doy Ott, and Rosie Rosell with Hovie Lister seated at the piano, while Randy and the other members of Jake’s band stood behind them. It was an unbelievable moment for everyone in the building. Randy distinctly remembers Hovie turning to him in the middle of the second song and asking, “What key are we in?” Randy joked with Hovie about the incident after the fact at which time Hovie told him, “That’s O.K. son. One day you’ll get old too.” Randy has already confirmed that Hovie’s prophetic insight was correct.

By early 1978, Randy was working on staff with a church band in Nashville who also did a daily television broadcast called “The Solid Rock.” One February Saturday night during a revival, Rhonda Boucher showed up and asked Randy about the words to a song she had heard him sing on TV. Randy invited her back for Sunday service the next day and told her that afterward, they could go have lunch if she wanted too. She did come the next morning for Sunday school and the subsequent lunch date. After they finished lunch, having known each other for less than twenty-four hours, Randy turned to Rhonda in the car on the way home and said the unexpected, “I think we are supposed to be married.” Rhonda immediately replied the even more unexpected, “I think you’re right.” She later told Randy that she had seen him on TV and already believed that he was the one for her. She also confessed that the “words to the song” ploy was just a means used in order to meet him. The fact that Randy immediately asked her to marry him was Rhonda’s absolute confirmation that it was the right thing, and that God had ordained it. On August 30 that same year, they made it official.

The year 1984 would bring the first real devastation into Randy’s life. His beloved father, Herbert A. Swift, passed away on Sunday, November 18 at 4:30PM at the age of seventy-six. Randy was twenty-six years old at the time of his father’s death. It left a hole that has never been filled. Randy still speaks of his father often, some twenty-two years after his passing.

After eight years of marriage, the year 1986 brought new life to Randy and Rhonda. On September 25, Joshua Landon Swift, named after his great grandpa, Ruben Landon Swift, arrived and changed things forever. It was immediately evident that Joshua had inherited the music gene. At two years old, he began playing on stage with his Father and continued to do so until he left for college. His talents can be heard on the “Influences” project as well as Randy’s upcoming release “The Seed Finally Grew.” Joshua has grown into a much respected young man and is, according to Dad, one of the most accomplished musicians of all time. Joshua graduated from Donelson Christian Academy in Nashville as a Distinguished Scholar and left to start college in 2005. He made the Dean’s list his first semester of college. Since Randy did not attend college, he called to see exactly what kind of list this was. He was relieved to find out that it was a good thing! Randy’s greatest regret is that his father did not live to see and spend time with Joshua. However, Randy was quick to say that often times he will see hints of his father in Joshua’s mannerisms, character, and even in the way he wears his cap. Sometimes it’s a little scary.

The old adage “What does not kill you will only make you stronger” is a proven theory in Randy’s life. His song-writing ability had not been uncovered until great adversity practically dug it out of him. Just a few years after Joshua was born, the church that Randy and Rhonda had been a part of for so many years found itself in a struggle for survival because of sin in the headship. The pastor of the church for well over a decade immediately resigned and left. It was incredibly devastating for both Randy and Rhonda to watch as so many friends and loved ones (many dating back to the 1978 church) were scattered, at war with each other, or just quit going to church all together. Randy struggled to try to make the situation better, but the damage had been done and was causing problems at every turn. Much turmoil and strife occurred over the next couple of years. Several would-be ministers showed up in the name of God to try to take advantage of an already wounded people. After enduring several painful ordeals, new pastors Bobby and Regina Watts were finally in place and Randy could breathe a little. Not long after the new pastors began to minister and teach, Randy found himself greatly moved by their unique delivery of God’s Word. The messages seemed so vividly clear and more alive than ever before-- so much so that Randy, for whatever reason, just picked up a pencil and paper and started turning those messages into songs. The result was songs like “The Seed’s Alive,” “Don’t Let Cain Kill Abel,” “Thomas,” and “Just One”--all of which can be found on Randy’s first project.

Randy’s first single, “The Seed’s Alive,” was recorded at the end of someone else’s recording session on a whim and was subsequently released to radio in 1994 with the mindset of, “Let’s just send it out and see what happens.” Not long after the release, long-time friend and Zion Music Group C.E.O., Kevin McMannus, called Randy and asked if he had more songs. When the answer “yes” came, Kevin responded with, “Get in here. We’ve got to make a record!” He then informed Randy that “The Seed’s Alive” had charted. During the process of finishing the project, Kevin extended an invitation to Randy to join the Zion Label. Randy accepted Kevin’s kind offer, and still, he remains part of the record label today.

While things were better at the church, its members just could not seem to overcome the dark cloud that sin had left hanging over them. The enemy was working full swell at “divide and conquer,” resulting in much internal conflict. However, the messages kept coming and Randy kept on writing, producing songs like “He Don’t Live Here Anymore,” “Solomon’s Temple,” “Cover Up Scam,” and “Go Ahead & Throw”—all of which are found on the “I Just Wanted You To Know” project released in 1996.

The next project was conceived during a weekend trip that Randy and Rhonda took with the pastor and his wife to Rock City in Chattanooga, TN. The pastor’s wife, Regina, (always the teacher) began to tell Randy and Rhonda about the hidden Biblical meanings concealed inside all the nursery rhymes which were so colorfully illustrated at Rock City. When Randy got home, he could not write fast enough, and the project “Horses & Men” was born. It was subsequently released in 1998. Some of Randy’s most requested songs are on this project. After the release of “Horses & Men,” the amount of requests for singing dates per year had increased to the point that it became necessary for Randy to relinquish his weekly duties at the church and concentrate on the singing ministry.

In 2001, Randy recorded and released “Influences” which included the old Looper Trio songs “Life Beyond Death” and “I Don’t Want To Get Adjusted,” along with songs from other artists who had an impact on Randy as he grew up musically. Boy, the phone would not stop ringing! The popularity of the old- school sound found on “Influences” prompted Randy to return to his roots and to do a totally acoustic project entitled “The Seed Finally Grew,” which should be available sometime in mid-2006. It is reported to contain some of Randy’s best writing to date. Music tracks were created using musicians Mark Fain, Cody Kilby, and Andy Leftwich. These three members of Ricky Skaggs’s amazing band, Kentucky Thunder, along with Joshua Swift and Josh Miller, resulted in a great recording effort. If you liked “Influences” or are a fan of mountain music at all, you are going to love “The Seed Finally Grew.” Randy says that it’s his favorite.

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