The Brain Police were an early psychedelic garage band who, in the late 1960s, opened for many national acts, including the Who, the Byrds, Cream, Jefferson Airplane, Strawberry Alarm Clock, Steppenwolf, and Buffalo Springfield.
They essentially spun off from the Man-Dells, with guitarists Rick Randle and Larry Grant and bassist Norman Lombardo, who were all still in junior high when that group released its first single in 1965, “Bonnie” (with “Oh No” on the flipside). The trio also played with the Other Four.
Jan Tonnesen recalls “Norm Lombardo, bass player for the Man-Dells, and later The Other Four, played with the Avengers, the band I was in before it became the Contrasts. I also dated Bonnie to whom the title refers.”
They became the Brain Police in 1968, with Rick Randle’s younger brother David Randle joining on guitar, and earned a large local following.