Ralph Walsh - guitar; Sal Valentino - vocals, guitar; John Blakely - keyboards; Doug Killmer - bass; John Chambers - drums; Lydia Moreno - vocals
Sal Valentino has been a mainstay on the Northern California music scene for nearly half a century. His earliest bands were formed in the Bay area in 1961 and '62 and were essentially garage bands. In 1964, responding to the success of the Beatles, he formed the Beau Brummels, with songwriter Ron Elliott. The Beau Brummels were signed early on to DJ/music entrepreneur Tom Donahue's Autumn Records (where they were produced by Donahue's radio DJ associate, Sly Stone, prior to his own stardom).
The Beau Brummels burst onto the international music scene with a handful of hits that included "Laugh Laugh" and "Just A Little." The Brummels had a short but bright star during their heyday, even getting a cartoon characterization on the Flintstones. After the Beau Brummels split in 1968, Valentino formed Stoneground, a ten-piece, high-energy blues-rock-jazz outfit. Stoneground made three albums for Warner Brothers.
This recording from the Bill Graham archives is from 1973, and features Valentino's own solo band, formed weeks after the demise of Stoneground. The band would change members throughout the year, and would be put on hold in 1974 when Valentino, Elliott, and the other original members would reform the Beau Brummels.
Featured here is material from various periods of Valentino's career, and several tracks that were never recorded. There are severe technical problems in the first four songs, including a nasty buzz, which eventually is cleaned up. He closes the show with "Dancing In The Moonlight," a different song than the Top 40 hit by King Harvest.