Randel "Randy" Guss (born March 7, 1967) is an American musician and

drummer A drummer is a percussionist who creates music using drums. Most contemporary western bands that play rock, pop, jazz, or R&B music include a drummer for purposes including timekeeping and embellishing the musical timbre. The drummer' ...

. He was best known as the drummer for the band

Toad the Wet Sprocket Toad the Wet Sprocket is an American alternative rock band formed in Santa Barbara, California, in 1986. The band at the time consisted of vocalist/guitarist Glen Phillips, guitarist Todd Nichols, bassist Dean Dinning, and drummer Randy Gus ...

from its formation in 1986 until he stopped touring in 2017 and left the band in 2020.

Career

Guss formed Toad the Wet Sprocket with Glen Phillips, Todd Nichols, and Dean Dinning in 1986. As of January 2020, Guss left the band and no longer records or performs with them. The primary reason for his departure is that he was unable to tour due to the progression of his

osteogenesis imperfecta Osteogenesis imperfecta (; OI), colloquially known as brittle bone disease, is a group of genetic disorders that all result in bones that break easily. The range of symptoms—on the skeleton as well as on the body's other organs—may b ...

. Josh Daubin filled in for Randy for a time and has since become the full-time drummer for the band. Since his retirement, Randy has found joy and fulfillment in teaching and continues to do so both remotely and in-person from his studio in San Diego, CA.

Personal life

Guss was born in

Detroit, Michigan Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at ...

, and moved to

Goleta, California Goleta (; ; Spanish for "Schooner") is a city in southern Santa Barbara County, California, United States. It was incorporated as a city in 2002, after a long period as the largest unincorporated populated area in the county. As of the 2000 ce ...

at roughly four months old when his father, an English professor, took a job at UC Santa Barbara. He graduated from San Marcos High School in 1985 with Toad bandmates Todd Nichols and Dean Dinning. Randy currently resides in

San Diego, California San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the List of United States cities by population, eigh ...

. He has osteogenesis imperfecta. Guss has a brother named Sean and two sisters named Amy and Lena. He has one son, Caleb Guss (born September 16, 1996).

Discography

With Toad the Wet Sprocket

* ''

Bread & Circus ''Bread & Circus'' is the debut album by American alternative rock band Toad the Wet Sprocket, originally self-released on cassette in 1988, and re-released in 1989 by Columbia Records. In May 2009, the band announced plans to re-release ''Bread ...

'' (1989) * ''Pale'' (1990) * ''Fear'' (1991) * ''Dulcinea'' (1994) * ''

In Light Syrup ''In Light Syrup'' is an album of B-sides and rare tracks by American alternative rock band Toad the Wet Sprocket Toad the Wet Sprocket is an American alternative rock band formed in Santa Barbara, California, in 1986. The band at the time ...

'' (1995) * ''Coil'' (1997) * ''

New Constellation ''New Constellation'' is the sixth studio album by American alternative rock band Toad the Wet Sprocket, released October 15, 2013, through Abe's Records. It is available on CD, vinyl and as a digital download. web Financed with more than $25 ...

'' (2013) * '' Architect of the Ruin'' (EP) (2015)

With Lapdog

*
Mayfly
' (2003)

With Duplex

*
Two Guitars, Bass and Drums
' (2011)

References

External links

Randy's official website

Toad the Wet Sprocket official website

Walk on the Ocean
{{DEFAULTSORT:Guss, Randy 1967 births American rock drummers Toad the Wet Sprocket members Living people Musicians from San Diego Musicians from Michigan 20th-century American drummers American male drummers 20th-century American male musicians People with osteogenesis imperfecta