The
Phil Bodner-led
Brass Ring took their light instrumental pop back into the Top 40 for a final time with the
Mitch Leigh-penned title track "The Dis-Advantages of You." On its own, it is doubtful that the tame melody and equally docile performance would have made much of an impact. However, stateside the song was concurrently being incorporated in a humorous cigarette advertising campaign for Benson & Hedges 100s, thus making it all the more memorable. To similar effect, "Music to Watch Girls By" -- which had been used in a late-'60s diet soda commercial -- was updated by
Bodner for inclusion on this LP. Continuing a trend that began with the
Brass Ring's debut collection, there are a few show tunes worked into the project. "I Will Wait for You," from the film Umbrellas of Cherbourg (1964) takes on a definite Tijuana Brass feel, while the "Theme From (The Sand Pebbles)" aka "And We Were Lovers" is served up in a pensive and wispy arrangement. By contrast, the tempo of the catchy and familiar theme to "A Man and a Woman" is quickened, giving it a freshness and buoyancy that escaped many of the better-known versions.
Bodner even dips back into the
Brass Ring's previous long-player
Lara's Theme (1966) for an encore presentation of "Born Free." The trend of recycling material off of earlier albums doesn't end there as the cover of "California Dreamin'" -- by Dunhill Records labelmates,
the Mamas & the Papas -- had also been featured on the aforementioned
Lara's Theme platter. In 2007, Collectors' Choice Music reissued The Dis-Advantages of You coupled with
The Now Sound of the Brass Ring on a two-fer CD -- making both available for the first time in decades. ~ Lindsay Planer