William “Rusty” Golden, a musician, songwriter and son of The Oak Ridge Boys member William Lee Golden, died July 1, 2024 at his home in Hendersonville, Tennessee. He was 65. See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news Golden was born Jan.
3, 1959 in Brewton, Alabama and was the eldest son of William and Frogene Golden. By age 13, he was playing drums for the band The Rambos, featuring songwriter Dottie Rambo. He wrote his first song by setting one of his grandmother’s poems to music.
After being inspired by an Elton John concert in 1972, Golden began learning to play piano and by 17, he was touring with Larry Gatlin as a keyboard player, before playing on studio recordings including Gatlin’s 1977 album Love Is Just a Game , Marty Stuart’s 1999 concept project Pilgrim and more. A few years later, he moved further into the spotlight, forming The Boys Band, with the group recording their debut album which included the 1982 song “Runner” (the song’s video was the first produced in Nashville for MTV) and “Don’t Stop Me Baby (I’m on Fire),” which entered the Billboard Hot 100 chart. The group disbanded in 1984.
That same year, Golden earned an RIAA Gold record as a songwriter for The Oak Ridge Boys’ Bobbie Sue album, which encouraged Golden to start writing songs with Marc Speer. In 1985, Golden and Speer launched Golden Speer, which included Golden’s brother Chris Golden on lead vocals. By the following year, the label had shi.