Folk Revival Icon Hailed as One of the Scene’s Best Singer-Songwriters Dies at 78

Randy Burns has died. The folk singer died peacefully in Melbourne, Florida, on Aug. 8, according to his obituary. He was 78.

No other information about his death was immediately available.

The Connecticut-born Burns was exposed to music and performing from a young age, thanks to his parents’ involvement in the Mark Twain Masquers and other entertainment endeavors.

Burns got his first guitar at 14, and music quickly became “an all-consuming passion.” Shortly thereafter, Burns was performing wherever he could find an audience, including Exit Coffeehouse in New Haven, Connecticut.

At just 17, Burns made the decision to drop out of high school and move to New York City to pursue music. He soon became the permanent opening act at the Gaslight in Greenwich Village.

Burns joined his first band, The Morning, around 1968, with whom he performed at locations including the Troubadour and the Hollywood Bowl. A few years later, he performed with another group, The Skydog Band.

After that period, Burns worked as a security manager, but continued to perform the odd gig. His two bands wound up reuniting in the 2010s.

Throughout his musical career, Burns several albums, cassettes, and CDs.

Later in life, Burns moved to New Jersey to live with his sister and her husband.

Randy Burns Remembered as a “True Original”

Burns is survived by his daughter, grandsons, sister, and many other friends and family members. He will be memorialized privately by his family.

“Knowing how much his spirit and music will live on is a comfort to all who love and miss him,” his obituary read. “… Randy lived life in his own way, following his love of music wherever it took him. From a 14- year-old boy writing songs on hundreds of scraps of paper in his bedroom, to The Exit, Greenwich Village, the Gaslight, The Morning, the Skydog Band, the Troubadour, the Hollywood Bowl, Block Island, and the many places he performed throughout the years, music remained the constant thread running through his life.”

“He leaves behind songs, recordings, stories, friendships, memories, and a musical legacy that will continue to be discovered and remembered,” the obit continued. “Randy was one of a kind, a true original, and his music lives on.”

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