Influential beat group The Beau Brummels was formed in San Francisco in 1964, when Italian-American singer Sal Valentino needed a backing band for a nightclub residency. The band eventually comprised of Ron Elliott on guitar, Ron Meagher on bass, drummer John Petersen and rhythm guitarist Declan Mulligan. Their early recording sessions, produced by future funk hero Sly Stone, yielded the monster hit 'Laugh Laugh'. this song has widely been cited as a forerunner to the San Francisco Sound that emerged later in the decade.