There are lots of ways to select a random record or row from a database table. Here are some example SQL statements that don't require additional application logic, but each database server requires different SQL syntax.
Select a random row with MySQL:
SELECT column FROM tableORDER BY RAND()LIMIT 1
Select a random row with PostgreSQL:
SELECT column FROM tableORDER BY RANDOM()LIMIT 1
Select a random row with Microsoft SQL Server:
SELECT TOP 1 column FROM tableORDER BY NEWID()
Select a random row with IBM DB2
SELECT column, RAND() as IDX FROM table ORDER BY IDX FETCH FIRST 1 ROWS ONLY
Thanks Tim
Select a random record with Oracle:
SELECT column FROM( SELECT column FROM tableORDER BY dbms_random.value )WHERE rownum = 1
Thanks Mark Murphy
Feel free to post other example, variations, and SQL statements for other database servers in the comments.