San Fran Sessions is a box set compilation

Compilation album

A compilation album is an album featuring tracks from one or more performers, often culled from a variety of sources The tracks are usually collected according to a common characteristic, such as popularity, genre, source or subject matter...

 which collects 60 demos

Demo (music)

A demo version or demo of a song is one recorded for reference rather than for release. A demo is a way for a musician to approximate their ideas on tape or disc, and provide an example of those ideas to record labels, producers or other artists...

, outtake

Outtake

An outtake is a portion of a work that is removed in the editing process and not included in the work's final, publicly released version. In the digital era, significant outtakes have been appended to CD and DVD reissues of many albums and films as bonus tracks or features, in film often, but not...

s, rarities and unissued performances recorded by The Beau Brummels

The Beau Brummels

The Beau Brummels were an American rock band. Formed in San Francisco in 1964, the band's original lineup included Sal Valentino , Ron Elliott , Ron Meagher , Declan Mulligan , and John Petersen...

 from 1964 to 1966. The three-disc set, released by Sundazed Records

Sundazed Records

Sundazed Records is a record label based in Coxsackie, in the Catskills of New York. It specializes in obscure and rare recordings from the 1950s to the 1970s.Label founders Bob Irwin and his wife Mary started the label in 1989...

 on June 11, 1996, includes alternate takes of the band's singles "Laugh, Laugh

Laugh, Laugh

"Laugh, Laugh" is a song by American rock group The Beau Brummels, written by guitarist Ron Elliott and produced by Sylvester Stewart, later known as Sly Stone. Released in December 1964 as the band's debut single, the song reached number 15 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart the following February...

" and "Just a Little

Just a Little (The Beau Brummels song)

"Just a Little" is a song by American rock group The Beau Brummels. The song is included on the band's debut album, Introducing the Beau Brummels, and was released as its second single, following "Laugh, Laugh". "Just a Little" became the band's highest-charting U.S. single, peaking at number eight...

", as well as early versions of songs that were likely targeted for their never-completed third album on Autumn Records

Autumn Records

Autumn Records was a 1960s San Francisco-based pop record label. Its most prominent contract was considered The Beau Brummels, a band who released a pair of top 20 singles, "Laugh, Laugh" and "Just a Little"....

.

Background

In addition to demos and alternate takes of some of the Beau Brummels' early material, San Fran Sessions contains songs—such as "I Grow Old", "Gentle Wandering Ways", "Dream On", "Love is Just a Game", "This is Love", and "Hey Love"—that were recorded in 1965 and early 1966 and were likely planned for the band's third album on Autumn Records

Autumn Records

Autumn Records was a 1960s San Francisco-based pop record label. Its most prominent contract was considered The Beau Brummels, a band who released a pair of top 20 singles, "Laugh, Laugh" and "Just a Little"....

.
Ultimately, the album was never finished because the entire Autumn roster, including the Beau Brummels, was transferred in early 1966 to Warner Bros. Records

Warner Bros. Records

Warner Bros. Records Inc. is an American record label. It was the foundation label of the present-day Warner Music Group, and now operates as a wholly owned subsidiary of that corporation. It maintains a close relationship with its former parent, Warner Bros. Pictures, although the two companies...

, who wanted the band to record an album of cover versions of recent hits.
The result was Beau Brummels '66

Beau Brummels '66

Beau Brummels '66 is the third studio album by American rock group The Beau Brummels, and their first on Warner Bros. Records. The album consists of twelve cover songs and no originals...

, released in July.

Critical reception

Author and music journalist Richie Unterberger

Richie Unterberger

Richie Unterberger is a US author and journalist whose focus is popular music and travel writing.-Life and writing:Having worked as a DJ at WXPN in Philadelphia, he started reviewing records for Op magazine in 1983...

 said San Fran Sessions "should only be acquired by serious fans of the band" and added, "from a historical viewpoint, it's interesting in that it presents a lot of previously unheard Sal Valentino

Sal Valentino

Sal Valentino is an American rock musician, singer and songwriter, best known as lead singer of The Beau Brummels, subsequently becoming a songwriter as well. The band released a pair of top 20 U.S...

-penned tunes (Ron Elliott

Ron Elliott (musician)

Ron Elliott on October 21, 1943) is an American musician, composer and producer, best known as songwriter and lead guitarist of rock band The Beau Brummels. Elliott wrote or co-wrote the band's 1965 U.S...

 wrote most of the songs that ended up on official releases)".
Unterberger favorably compared the previously unreleased tracks to the rest of the band's Autumn material, praising the band's "beautifully sad harmonies and glittering guitar arrangements". He noted the album also features "substantially different versions of officially released songs like "Laugh, Laugh

Laugh, Laugh

"Laugh, Laugh" is a song by American rock group The Beau Brummels, written by guitarist Ron Elliott and produced by Sylvester Stewart, later known as Sly Stone. Released in December 1964 as the band's debut single, the song reached number 15 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart the following February...

" and "Just a Little

Just a Little (The Beau Brummels song)

"Just a Little" is a song by American rock group The Beau Brummels. The song is included on the band's debut album, Introducing the Beau Brummels, and was released as its second single, following "Laugh, Laugh". "Just a Little" became the band's highest-charting U.S. single, peaking at number eight...

".

External links

• [ San Fran Sessions] at Allmusic