The Beau Brummels, taking their name from George Bryan “Beau” Brummell who was a model dandy in British society in the 1800s, originally formed in San Francisco in 1964. The band’s original line up included Sal Valentino (lead vocals), Ron Elliott (lead guitar), Ron Meagher (bass), Declan Mulligan (rhythm guitar, bass and harmonica) and John Petersen (drums). They were initially discovered by local Bay Area disc jockeys looking to sign acts to their fledgling label, Autumn Records, where Sly Stone produced the group’s early sessions.

The band’s debut single, “Laugh Laugh,” entered the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart in 1965, peaking at #15 it helped them break into the mainstream and would later be cited as helping to establish the San Francisco Sound. The song is in the Rock N Roll Hall of Fame list of “The 500 Songs That Shaped Rock and Roll.” It also swayed listeners into thinking the group was British and many lumped them into the same category as the Beatles and The Zombies.

Through the middle and into the late 1960s, the band underwent personnel changes and by 1968 vocalist Valentino and guitarist Elliott were a duo when they stepped into Owen Bradley’s studio in Mt. Juliet, TN, about a half hour outside of Nashville. With legendary producer Lenny Waronker in tow and backed by some of Nashville’s finest session musicians—including Wayne Moss, David Briggs, Norbert Putnam and Kenny Buttrey (who would appear on records by Neil Young, The Monkees, The Byrds and Bob Dylan)—the duo conjured up an intimate and heartbreaking final stop to their five year journey from Britishfolk rockers to alternative country obscurity. What they created was like nothing else and has stood the test of time. This deluxe expanded edition for Record Store Day pulls together the homespun, inviting and timeless music created in Bradley’s Barn and adds a bonus LP of demo recordings that are finally making their debut on vinyl.