Unicorn

Unicorn's second album, 1971's Blue Pine Trees, just might be the greatest West Coast rock album made by a British band. For a follow-up, the group shifted its California fascination from the rustic vibes of Crosby, Stills and Nash and the Dead to the Doobies and Fleetwood Mac. That meant more beach funk and wonderfully produced soft pop full of chiming guitars. If these guys had actually followed the Mac to the Golden State, who knows what kind of fame they could've achieved? They were that good.