Randy Barrett is a triple-threat standout; top shelf songwriter, award-winning vocalist, and purveyor of stellar instrumental prowess on guitar and banjo. Randy's rich and soulful baritone has collected several Washington Area Music Awards for Best Male Vocalist in Bluegrass and Traditional Folk as well as the 2002 Bluegrass Album of the Year for his latest Lights of Home. His songwriting has also won numerous awards, in particular for "Hold Me Forever" from his 1995 debut CD Each & Every Day.

Some call him traditional, others aren't so sure. Randy doesn't mind not being pigeon-holed. His musical roots are in folk, bluegrass and country but style is secondary to the song; whatever the genre, it should be singable and worthy of harmonies. That strategy appears to be working, as Randy's songs have been recorded by Chesapeake, Grace Griffith, bluegrass group Auldridge, Bennett and Gaudreau, and Peg Loughran among others.

Randy is also well known around the Falling Mountain family, having contributed his stellar banjo and harmony vocals on each of Andrew McKnight's first two CDs as well as John Rickard's The Simple Life.

Randy has performed at such distinguished venues as The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, The Birchmere, The Library of Congress, the Rocky Mountain and Washington Folk Festivals, the Gettysburg Bluegrass Festival, Common Ground on the Hill, and the Bluebird Cafe. He plays regularly at festivals and concerts around the Mid-Atlantic region. Randy is also the head of the DC Bluegrass Union, an organization dedicated to supporting and promoting Bluegrass music in Washington DC and the Mid-Atlantic region.

" ...if Barrett never wrote another lyric he easily could get by on his singing alone, thanks to his handsome, rough-hewn baritone. It's a storyteller's voice, personable and persuasive, and it swiftly brings to life the characters who populate his ballads and love songs"
- Mike Joyce, The Washington Post

"Artfully crafted lyrics supported by Randy's powerful, warm and deep vocals"
- Craig Ferguson, Telluride Bluegrass Festival

"one of the best songwriters to ever come out of Washington"
- Eric Brace, The Washington Post

Lights of Home was produced by Tom McLaughlin and Randy Barrett, and was recorded, engineered and mixed by Heidi Gerber at Bias Recording in Springfield VA. This collection of 11 originals and an update of the murder ballad "Cole Younger" was voted the Best Bluegrass Album of 2002 by the Washington Area Music Association, adding to the high praise Randy's accrued for his rich baritone and timeless songwriting that is firmly rooted equally in the country, bluegrass and folk traditions. Highlights include the lovely country-inflected ballads "That was Then" and "Whole Lot of Lonely", the wide-open train song "Old Number 9", and the banjo-driven disaster ballad "Halifax Hills". Randy also stretches his stylistic reach on the Latin-tinged "Then I Met You" and "She Rocks", a raucous tribute to motherhood. Mike Auldridge's dobro is the picture of taste, and the bluegrass harmonies from Dede Wyland and folksinger Grace Griffith are particularly fine. Pianist Jon Carroll and drummer Robbie Magruder add the perfect musical foundation for this wonderful collection of slice-of-life stories and love songs.

Randy originally released his debut CD on his own Jolly Mountain Music label. Each & Every Day was produced by Tom McLaughlin and Randy Barrett, mixed by Bill McElroy, Randy Barrett and Tom McLaughlin, and was recorded at Bias Recording in Springfield VA. The CD features eight originals including Randy's award-winning classic ballad "Hold Me Forever", two updated classics ("High on a Mountain" and "I Am a Pilgrim") and a stellar lineup of supporting musicians including Mike Auldridge, Jon Carroll, Pete Kennedy, and Grace Griffith.