Owepar Entertainment, in cooperation with Sony/Legacy, announces the release of The RCA Years by Randy Parton, the late brother of Dolly Parton. Randy, who passed away in 2021, was featured on the 2024 Dolly Parton & Family release, Smoky Mountain DNA through a previously unreleased archival recording. The RCA Years, released in conjunction with Randy birthday, Dec.15, is the first authorized and fully remastered collection of the singer’s classics RCA singles from 1970s and 80s.
Between 1975 and 1983, RCA released nine singles by Parton. The RCA Years features 39 tracks, including all of Parton’s released singles, several never before released recordings, alternative versions, and previously unreleased alternative mono and stereo mixes, all remastered in hi-res from the original masters.
Born in 1953, the eighth of 12 Parton children, Randy embraced his love for music at early age. By 1970, his older sister Dolly was well into her musical career, and Randy began his professional career as a bass player for a local, East Tennessee rhythm & blues band. Three years later, he moved to Nashville and secured a job as bass player in Opry star Jean Shepard’s band while sharpening his talents as singer and entertainer in Nashville’s nightclub scene.
In 1974, he made his first professional recordings as a solo artist at Fireside Studio, the studio owned by his sister Dolly, his Uncle Louis Owens, and country star Porter Wagoner. Those early recordings eventually led to a contract with RCA Records, and in 1975, the label released his first single, “Tennessee Born.”
Although his early singles failed to chart, they were much beloved by his fans, and Randy’s talent impressed Los Angeles-based producer and composer Mike Post. After producing Dolly’s 9 to 5 and Odd Jobs album in 1981, Post began working with the younger Parton. Their collaboration led to Randy’s first chart hit, “Hold Me Like You Never Had Me.” Over the next year, Parton and Post scored three more hit singles – “Shot Full of Love, ”Don’t Cry Baby,” and “Oh, No.”
With the opening of Dollywood in 1986, Randy Parton returned to East Tennessee to headline shows in the park. Over the next three decades he became of beloved performer in Smoky Mountain area music scene until his death in 2021 at the age of 67.
The legacy of Parton’s RCA recordings is evident in the many fans who have sought out his original singles over the years, and also through the song “Oh Tennessee” by his son, Sabyn, which samples the original single of “Tennessee Born.” Originally released in 1991, “Oh Tennessee” is now available on the compilation release, Storybook – The Journey So Far on Owepar Records.
Randy Parton – The RCA Years is not only a collection of classic singles, it’s also a peak into the development of his unique talent and a fitting tribute to an overlooked artist who may have been “Tennessee Born,” but shared his talent with the world.
Listen to Randy Parton – The RCA Years HERE