Argent - All Together Now (1972)

Founded in 1969 by Rod Argent, formerly of The Zombies. The first three demos from Argent, recorded in the autumn of 1968 featured Mac MacLeod on bass. The other original members were drummer Robert Henrit and bassist Jim Rodford (later members of The Kinks) and guitarist/keyboardist Russ Ballard, who contributed to several compositions through the group's career (some of Ballard's compositions became hits when they were covered by other artists, including Rainbow and Santana). When Russ Ballard left in 1973, he was replaced by guitarist/vocalist John Verity and guitarist John Grimaldi and there followed a period of intense recording and touring until the band decided to come off the road late in 1976.

Argent's biggest hit was "Hold Your Head Up." They also recorded the original version of "God Gave Rock 'N' Roll To You," which was covered by KISS in 1992. It also became a Contemporary Christian Rock anthem and was twice covered by Petra in 1977 and again in 1984, albeit with new verses. The sound of the band was a mix of rock and pop but also covered more progressive rock territory in songs like "The Coming of Kohoutek," an instrumental from their Nexus album. When Russ Ballard left the band after Encore, they took an even more progressive/fusion turn and signed to a new label (RCA) for the two final albums. By 2005, all albums, including compilations, have been re-released on CD, except Counterpoints.

# Hold Your Head Up (Argent/White) - 6:18
# Keep on Rollin' (Argent/White) - 4:32
# Tragedy (Ballard) - 4:50
# I Am The Dance Of Ages (Argent/White) - 3:46
# Be My Lover, Be My Friend (Argent/White) - 5:21
# He's A Dynamo (Ballard) - 3:48
# Pure Love (Argent/White) - 13:07
# Celebration (Argent/White) - 2:54 *
# Kingdom (Argent/White) - 3:09 *
# Closer To Heaven (Ballard) - 3:31 *
# Rejoice (Ballard) - 3:47 *
# God Gave Rock 'N' Roll To You (Ballard) - 6:45 *
# Christmas For The Free (Argent/White) - 4:16 *
# It's Only Money [Part 2] (Ballard) - 5:15

Argent