The Brass Ring

[Captaindave]

Hey, everyone,

Here's a comment and a question...

I have a double album by a group called The Brass Ring. Anyone remember them? They were an instrumental group from the late sixties that had something of a Tijuana Brass influence, but had a little less aggressive beat, and often featured a saxophone lead - I think by Phil Bodner, a well known sax player back then.

The album I have is a greatest hits collection. It is called 20 GOLDEN HITS OF THE SIXTIES FEATURING THE BRASS RING. A couple of my favorite songs on it are LOVE THEME FROM THE FLIGHT OF THE PHOENIX and THE DISADVANTAGES OF YOU (used for a cigarette commercial on TV back in the sixties). All the rest are other very well known tunes from the sixties.

Anyone remember this group? And these songs?

Captaindave...
in a typical nostalgic frame of mind...
wishing the better parts of sixties music would return...

 

[LPJim]

I've got that album as well. Back in '68 there was a commercial for a cigarette (Benson & Hedges, I think) that was "a silly millimeter longer" than other brands. Smokers were shown accidentally breaking the ends off their cancer sticks.
"The Disadvantages of You" was used as theme music.
JB

 

[jimac51]

Yes,an obvious TJwannaBe,but very professionally done,their hits were usually original material,even if they didn't write them,and I like to think that Herb's influence both in sound and sales spawned a cottage industry of instrumental records away from the Percy Faith/Mantovani orchestral sound. Phil was a session man and the group was probably filled with similar hidden stars,with Dick Hyman's keyboards likely there on many. These guys played on lots of Enoch Light's Command albums and Ethel Gabriel LIVING... series on RCA Camden. Here is the personnel on a typical Living Jazz album:Bodner-woodwinds;Bernie Glow-Trumpet,flugelhorn;Mel Davis-trumpet;Buddy Morrow-trombone;Paul Faulise-bass trombone;John Pizzarelli-guitarserek Smith-keybords;George Duvivier-bass;Phil Krause-percussion; and Bobby Rosengarden,drums. It's probable that these guys worked on the Brass Ring albums too,along with some other hidden heavy hitters. At one time I probably had all of their albums(sans EVOLUTION,which I have never seen). Today I still have:LARA'S THEME,THE DIS-ADVANTAGES OF YOU,SUNDAY NIGHT AT THE MOVIES and ONLY LOVE. One song that I don't have any more and is my favorite,is "Love In The Open Air",written by Paul McCartney for the movie "The Family Way". I believe it was Paul's first movie work outside of the Beatles and very derivitive of George Martin's pop work. A nice arrangemet by Phil Bodner and it sounded real nice on radio. the "Dis-advantges of You' single got a lot of airplay,too-interesting to note that the composer of that little ditty,Mitch Leigh, also did the music for Broadway's MAN OF LA MANCHA,probably the biggest show playing when the commercial was running. Mac

 

[bob knack]

I believe I have them all including Evolution. Steve Allen did the liner notes for it. That record also had the theme from "The Italian Job", called "In Times Like These", which was just re-made.

"Love in the Open Air" is a very good record and was on "The Now Sound of The Brass Ring" LP.

One really good tune that I have on 45, I never saw it on an LP, was "Flower Road". The Mills Brothers did it also.

By the way, I think it was "La Bamba" used for a silly millimeter longer...and maybe a different cigarette. "A silly millimeter longer...101"... or something like that.

Now, how bout them Fluegel Knights?

 

[JMK]

It was definitely The Dis-advantages of You that was used for the Benson & Hedges commercials. Mitch Leigh had a long and very successful career as a jingle writer which he was able to translate into Broadway success only once (his follow up, Cry for Us All, is one of the most notorious flops in Broadway history).

My sister used to have a bunch of the Brass Ring albums--didn't Bud Shank play sax on at least a couple of them?

 

[jimac51]

I think the Brass Ring was an East Coast group,though they recorded for Dunhill,known for their West Coast sound and the presence of a certain Lou Adler. Rather than Shank,that was usually Bodner's sound. Bud did his share of pop/jazz albums on World Pacific/Pacific Jazz:MICHELLE and A SPOONFUL OF JAZZ(an album of Lovin' Spoonful covers) are just a couple,while Chet Baker wasted time and collected some quick bucks with the Mariachi Brass. As much as I can enjoy lots of these instrumental groups,Chet's talents on anything but a legitimate jazz album were a sin. I suspect it was one of his demons,too. Mac

 

[bob knack]

From there, Chet went with the Carmel Strings. I didn't buy any of those.

I didn't say "Disadvantages of You" wasn't Brass Ring. There was another one to the tune of La Bamba retitled "A Silly Millimeter Longer". The Trombones Unlimited did it with Frank Rosolino and Mike Barone. Anyway, I don't smoke. How bout some Alka Seltzer instead with the T-Bones.

 

[daveK]

I really loved THE BRASS RING. PHIL BODNER's sax work on those records was great! I wish some of their albums would get a CD issue. I've found "Phoenix Love Theme" and "Dis-Advantages Of You" on various artists compilations.
I have to admit that I'm a MARIACHI BRASS fan too. I'll apologize to CHET BAKER's fans, who seem to universally hate these albums, but his jazzy flugelhorn inflections on top of the straight brass charts are really wonderful. I'm particularly fond of the first album, "A Taste Of Tequila" with JACK NITZSCHE's great arrangements of "Flowers On The Wall", "Tequila", "Hot Toddy" and "Speedy Gonzalez". The later albums with GEORGE TIPTON arrangements are not nearly as good. So while I can appreciate that fans of CHET BAKER look at those albums as one of his lowest ebbs (and indeed they were since he probably only did them for drug money), I still find them enjoyable along the same lines that I enjoy BRASS RING or TJB stuff.

 

[venturenut]

Mainly because of the Benson and Hedges commercials (Let's see...that would be "The Disadvantages of You" I believe).

Wouldn't mind having some of their stuff on CD!

 

[Mr Bill]

Dave Twogood! Welcome back, dude! You've been missed for quite some time. Funny you shoudl reappear the day after I peruse the Rogue's Gallery (still don't know which guy in the picture is you, though, as the captions says "surrounding" without giving an accurate starting point -- I've long assumed you're the gent with the beard).

--Mr Bill

 

[jenny1]

Can anyone suggest where on the internet I can purchase some Brass Ring Albums. My Father was a big fan and always talks of the band but he has lost or broken his old albums and I would love to get new (used) ones for him.

Any suggestions?

 

[Rudy]

Can anyone suggest where on the internet I can purchase some Brass Ring Albums. My Father was a big fan and always talks of the band but he has lost or broken his old albums and I would love to get new (used) ones for him.

Any suggestions?

My top two suggestions:

1. eBay. You might have to wait for someone to sell them, but if you set up a "favorites list" and have it e-mail you when there's a new listing, you might chance upon a copy that way.

2. GEMM. http://52stjazz.gemm.com . GEMM is a huge database of thousands of used record/CD dealers. You can search by artist and see what it brings up.