December 18, 2010

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The Beau Brummels - Innovative and neglected all at the same time.


When The Beau Brummels first single "Laugh Laugh" came on the radio, everyone swore up and down it was another band from Britain since it seemed like every other week a new band from "over there" was appearing on the charts. In reality, The Beau Brummels were from the Bay Area in California and they were part of a growing contingent of West Coast bands cultivating a quasi-folk rock approach and they were instantly enjoyable.

That they only had three hit singles over a span of four years makes them something of a footnote in the world of top-40 hit makers, they nonetheless were widely influential during those formative years of the West Coast Sound and many groups followed their innovations and wound up taking the credit for it.

But thankfully, they left a good sized legacy of great material which has been rediscovered over the years and, even though they've never really gotten the credit they deserve for their distinctive sound, they have come to be discovered by a whole new generation of musicians and so their contribution lives on.

Tonight it's one of the follow up singles to Laugh Laugh. Don't Talk To Strangers did not fare all that well as a single, but as a song it's a two minute classic.

If you aren't familiar with them - here's a good starting point.

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