Nevertheless, Agent is a respected group, even revered in some circles. Granted, they never achieved the heady reach of, for instance, Yes at their finest, but neither did they stoop to that group's self-indulgent nadir. Rather, Argent had the good sense to pack it in before their tenuous grip on artistic relevance slipped away. In the end, I would put them on par with any number of more-celebrated, middle-level prog rockers such as Procol Harum or the Nice - and I'd rank them well above lightweights like Flash or It's A Beautiful Day.

So why, pray tell, has Epic Records never undertaken anything resembling a decent reissue campaign regarding Argent's catalog? Way back in the early days of the compact disc, the label spat out a lackluster reproduction of The Argent Anthology: A Collection of Greatest Hits (1976). Since then, nothing. They couldn't even be bothered to release All Together Now, Argent's biggest album, choosing instead to license it to independent label Koch Records - and that edition is long out-of-print. Over the years, most of Argent's albums have seen CD reissue somewhere in the world (on various labels), but Sony (the conglomerate that controls the Epic masters) has never seen fit to compile a thoughtful, thorough collection similar to what they did for, say, Blue Oyster Cult or Moby Grape.

But, as writer Giles Smith observed in his marvelous book Lost In Music, "This is the fabulous democracy of pop: it stands or falls on the popular vote." So, we can assume that the bean counters at Sony know what they're doing, and that the market for Argent may indeed be soft. In their brief career, Argent charted five albums, but only one approached Top 20 status while the rest foundered near #100 or below. Most consumers now view Argent as a one hit wonder - and arguably so, given the group's lone hit, "Hold Your Head Up," a Top 5 smash in 1972.

But, what a hit! Written by Rod Argent with fellow former Zombie Chris White, "Hold Your Head Up" is an indisputable high-water mark in 70's hard rock, simultaneously baroque and anthemic, riveting from start to fade. Beginning with Argent's shimmering organ trills, the song soon gives way to a martial bass-and-drum stomp punctuated by Ballard's staccato power chords. The lyrics, pointed simple and dispassionate, set up the swelling, uplifting choral exhortation. Hold my head up? You bet I will!

After a couple of verses, the band retreats, allowing Rod Argent to commence a lengthy, brilliantly-conceived organ solo (in the 6-minute album version, at least). As his group crescendos, Argent's keyboard figures swirl and dance, growing ever more complex, building to the orgiastic, head-banging finale. Yooowww! I was all of eleven-years-old when "Hold Your Head Up" stormed the airwaves, and I found the dark, otherworldly quality of the music truly mysterious, unfathomable even. Listening now, some 30-odd years later, the record still baffles me, though it is clearly produced by a four-piece band playing conventional instruments. Lightning generally strikes but once, and Argent never sparked so brightly again.

"Hold Your Head Up" was extracted from Argent's third LP, All Together Now (1972). While the group's first two albums, Argent (1969) and Ring Of Hands (1970), are generally considered musically superior, All Together Now represents Argent's popular peak. The follow up, In Deep (1973), generated an English Top 20 hit with Russ Ballard's "God Gave Rock and Roll To You," but the album failed to create much of a stir in the United States beyond the then-rarified realm of FM radio. More albums followed, including Nexus (1974), Encore: Live in Concert (1974), and Circus (1975), each with diminishing returns both commercially and artistically. Abandoned by Epic Records, Argent released one last, dispirited album (Counterpoints, 1975) on the United Artists label before breaking up in 1976.

Russ Ballard had already departed in 1975 to pursue a solo career, but he achieved only marginal success. He had written many of Argent's best songs, and he ultimately attained renown primarily as a songwriter, most notably for "Liar" (an Argent tune made famous by Three Dog Night), "Winning" (a minor hit for Santana), "You Can Do Magic" (America's last Top 10 entry), and two chart singles by Frida Faltskog of ABBA. Ballard also wrote "New York Groove," a 1978 solo smash for Kiss guitarist Ace Frehley that had originally been waxed in 1975 by British band Hello. Much later, Kiss adopted "God Gave Rock and Roll To You" as a battle standard, while other Ballard tunes have been covered by Redbone, Rainbow, Roger Daltrey, Head East, Nona Hendryx, and British pop band Hot Chocolate.

To most listeners, however, Ballard is best remembered for his own 1984 recording of "Voices," a sinewy FM perennial during the sallow years preceding grunge. That recording sits on Voices: The Best Songs From Russ Ballard (1994) alongside Ballard's own versions of his more popular songs, both from his Argent days and afterward. More recently, Renaissance Record's Anthology (2001) focuses more specifically on original tracks from Ballard's solo albums.

For thirty years, Rod Argent has kept a fairly low profile, releasing the occasional album in England and producing the odd artist (Tanita Tikaram, Jules Shear, Nanci Griffith). He also works as a session man - that's him pounding the piano on the Who's "Who Are You." Lately, he's been touring with another former Zombie, Colin Bluntstone, playing both Argent and Zombie hits, and sitting in occasionally with Ringo Starr & His All-Starr Band. [Interestingly, both members of the Argent rhythm section (bassist Jim Rodford and drummer Bob Henrit) cycled through the Kinks' unstable latter-day lineup.]

Until Sony finally doles out respect for Argent's small-but-significant role in progressive rock history, the best overview of the band's career is either the aforementioned Argent Anthology or any number of budget-oriented packages. I recommend Collectables Records' Hold Your Head Up (2000), despite its bare-bones packaging. The limited, 10-song track listing adds up to 45 minutes, and the mastering is surprisingly sharp. The disc compiles most of Argent's essential songs, including the full-length version of "Hold Your Head Up" and the band's gentle holiday ode, "Christmas For The Free." A late, European entry into the sweepstakes, Argent Greatest: The Singles Collection (2008), comes painfully close to perfection, but it utilizes truncated single edits of the band's expansive opuses - a fatal flaw in the indulgent world of prog rock.

Collectables has also reissued three original Argent albums: Ring Of Hands, In Deep (adding "Hold Your Head Up" as a bonus track), and Encore, plus a DVD, Inside Argent. The three albums, along with the largely redundant Hold Your Head Up collection, are further available bundled together as a boxed set. And, I should note, the Koch Records edition of All Together Now (now a much-sought-after rarity) functions well as an ad hoc best-of, as the disc's seven bonus tracks pick up a number of Argent's best songs from their other albums.

Beyond that, dedicated fans will find a baffling array of discs floating about, mainly reissued by boutique labels like American imprint Wounded Bird and English diehards BGO and Edsel. Collectively, these discs allow collectors to corral all but Argent's very last (and wholly unnecessary) album, Counterpoints. But, what Argent's catalog cries out for is perspective - to have the band's place in rock history pointed out and clarified. As curators of the Argent catalog, and with their vaunted promotional resources, only Sony can make this happen. So, hold your head up, but don't hold your breath.... [top of page]