2000 Great Songs #1291: Deep Water

Of all the 60s San Francisco bands, the Beau Brummels seem to get the least attention these days, which is a real shame, as they covered a lot of ground in their initial 1965-1968 run, a neat encapsulation of pop music trends. Their earliest work was highly influenced by British Invasion bands and the Everly Brothers; they soon added some folk elements, giving them a more Dylan/Byrds/Turtles flavor; and then finally pivoted to jangly Americana for 1968's Bradley's Barn. Like Dylan, the Byrds, and the Band (and a few years ahead of the Grateful Dead), they embraced their musical roots, landing somewhere between bluegrass and country rock. 

Beyond the material--maybe just a bit too rustic for my taste--Bradley's Barn just sounds great, one of those largely acoustic records that feels like the band is right there finger-picking in your living room. It could've been spoken of in the same breath as Sweetheart of the Rodeo or American Beauty--maybe not in the same league song-wise, but sonically definitely in the room--but the band broke up soon after its release and it just never got the support it needed. (Frontman Sal Valentino then formed the underrated proto-jam band Stoneground, picking up where he'd left off.)

See the entire Top 2000 to date in a sortable database!