Longtime Bakersfield crooner-pianist Buddy Landrum dies at 94

BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET) — Buddy Landrum and his piano romanced patrons five nights a week from the plush cocktail lounge of the iconic East Bakersfield restaurant and nightclub known as Freddie’s Top of the Hill through much of the 1960s.

His playful improvisations animated a five octave range — from guttural growl to piercing siren — and audiences loved it.

Somehow, in the midst of the heyday of Bakersfield Sound heroes like Buck Owens and Merle Haggard, Landrum remained his own man — hair perfect, teeth as white and straight as his piano keys, repertoire broader than any jukebox.

Clyde Eugene “Buddy” Landrum, an entertainer for 75 years, died in Bakersfield on April 29 at the age of 94.

Born in Tennessee in 1929, and raised in Arkansas, Landrum began performing in 1962 and was a fixture at places like the Moose Lodge and the Rasmussen Center until his retirement in 2010.

His daughter Marsha Williams said Landrum leaves behind a multitude of kin, including four granddaughters, 10 great grandchildren, and 12 great-great grandchildren.

A celebration of life will take place at 2 p.m. Saturday, May 18, at the Rasmussen Center on East Roberts Lane in Oildale.

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