Born in Mount Ephraim, New Jersey, Vaughn grew up in Collingswood, New Jersey, outside Philadelphia.[2][3] At age 6, his uncle gave him a Duane Eddy record and forever changed his life. He started playing the drums in a garage band when he was 12, then transitioned to the guitar. After school, he would go to a local department store, where he would borrow the guitars and practice over chord sheets.[4] He attended Audubon High School.[1]

In 1983, he formed the Ben Vaughn Combo. The band was together for five years, releasing two albums and touring the U.S. several times. They received rave reviews in Rolling Stone and People magazines as well as video airplay on MTV. The attention inspired Marshall Crenshaw to record Vaughn's "I'm Sorry (But So Is Brenda Lee)" for his Downtown album.

Vaughn embarked on a solo career in 1988, recording several critically acclaimed albums, touring extensively in Europe and the U.S., and receiving more MTV exposure. During that period he produced three records for the Elektra Records American Explorer series (Memphis rockabilly legend Charlie Feathers, Muscle Shoals country soul singer Arthur Alexander) and recorded "Cubist Blues" a collaboration with Alan Vega and Alex Chilton. He also scored two films (Favorite Mopar and Wild Girl's Go-Go Rama), as well as appeared as a frequent guest commentator on nationally syndicated radio shows Fresh Air and World Cafe.

In 1995, Vaughn moved to L.A. and released "Instrumental Stylings," an album of instrumentals in a variety of styles. A guest appearance on KCRW's "Morning Becomes Eclectic" led directly to being hired as the composer for the hit TV sitcom 3rd Rock from the Sun. That '70s Show soon followed, and for the next ten years, Vaughn would provide music for a dozen other TV shows and pilots (Men Behaving Badly, Normal, Ohio, Grounded for Life). He also provided scores for several films (Psycho Beach Party, The Independent, Scorpion Spring) and continued producing records (Ween, Los Straitjackets, Mark Olson of the Jayhawks, Nancy Sinatra, and the Swingers soundtrack CD).

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