Few faces in the music industry are as recognizable as Randy Yeuell Owen’s. And few voices are equally as recognizable in country rock as his, too. Owen, the beloved frontman and lead singer of the country rock outfit Alabama, was born on this very day in 1949.
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Randy Yeuell Owen is best known for his work with the famed country rock outfit throughout the 1980s and 1990s. Though, he is still a core member of the band today. Owen is also known for his successful solo career, starting in the 2000s. He’s a Musicians Hall of Famer and a legend in both country and rock music, and he boasts one of the most instantly recognizable voices in either genre.
The Legacy of Randy Yeuell Owen, Alabama’s Beloved Frontman
Born on December 13, 1949, on a farm in Fort Payne, Alabama, Randy Yeuell Owen started his career by playing music with his cousin, Teddy Gentry, as a child. Along with another cousin named Jeff Cook, the trio formed the band Wildcountry. The young outfit performed at a high school talent show in the 1960s, which they (obviously) won. However, Owen’s work in this early-years band would take a backseat for a few years. Owen put his music career on hold for quite a while as a young adult. He opted to pursue an English degree from Jacksonville State University and put music on the back burner.
After graduating, though, Owen moved into an apartment in Alabama with his two cousins. And by 1973, he was pursuing his once-paused music career full-time. From there, the band known as Wildcountry soon became the now-legendary country rock outfit known as Alabama.
For the next two decades, Alabama became one of the most influential bands in the history of country music, attracting a wide audience of younger listeners. The band enjoyed plenty of success on country radio, but they were hard to pin down exclusively as a country band. Alabama enjoyed plenty of crossover hits on the rock and pop charts.
Today, Alabama has 21 Gold and Platinum Certified albums and a whopping 42 singles that have topped the charts. The band has sold over 75 million records. They have also been honored by multiple Hall of Fame inductions, numerous ACM awards, and the honor of being named the RIAA Country Group of the Century back in 1999.
Randy Yeuell Owen’s influence on country and rock music didn’t end with Alabama, either. Owen went on the launch a lucrative solo career in the late 2000s with his solo debut, One One One. Today, Owen and his cousin, Gentry, remain the sole living members of Alabama.
Photo by CBS via Getty Images
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