I'm back (believe it or not). And what better way to mark this homecoming but with another one of our Rock's Greatest Classic Albums section. And so we now add this latest (contributed by Robert Metcalf) masterpiece by Argent of their magnificent Ring of Hands from 1971. Without delay:

Rock's Greatest Classic Albums
Ring of Hands - Argent

Born out of the demise of The Zombies, expert keyboardist Rod Argent formed Argent with his cousin Jim Rodford on bass, Robert Henrit on drums and guitarist and keyboardist Russ Ballard.  With all but Robert Henrit contributing vocals, and with a strong orientation toward keyboards, their second album fit right in with bands like Yes, ELP and Genesis at the time (though not really sounding like any of them on the whole).  Their first album from 1969, the self-titled Argent proved to be a wonderful album with a nod to The Zombies as well as a look forward.  (Time of the Season, from The Zombies last album Odyssey and Oracle, became a hit after The Zombies ended and Argent began – “Season” became an Argent live staple).  Ring of Hands exploded onto the scene with great songwriting, restrained but technical playing and enough twist and turns to keep a listener interested and excited – creating a true “Argent” identity.

Ring of Hands boasted no hit singles and relied instead on song craft and instrumental, structured workouts.  Covering a mix of musical styles, it sounds as fresh today as it did thirty-nine years ago.  Starting with the track Celebration, a glorious wall of vocals with a gospel feel, it acts as an invitation “to come and join in a ring of hands together”.  It then moves into a blues-based Sweet Mary, followed by two “progressive” tracks, the nearly five minute Cast Your Spell Uranus (with twin dueling pianos) and the tribute to Lord of the Rings, the nearly eight minute Lothlorien which includes plenty of great guitar and keyboard workouts.  Chained mixes rock with a touch of white soul, and the remaining four songs all mix the above styles in varying degrees, and all stick in your head afterwards too. 

Argent changed somewhat in later albums, and began producing more single-oriented music mixed with their still worthy brand of album/progressive/art rock.  You might know and love singles like God Gave Rock and Roll to You, It’s Only Money and Hold Your Head Up, but even though I am a big fan of all their work, I still think that Ring of Hands, with its less popular music approach, is worthy of consideration in the Rock Classics Hall of Fame!  

I do have two reviews for you. The first is one that I've misplaced for a while but is now up. It is a review of the CD/DVD Edition of Live at the Troubadour by Carole King and James Taylor. The other is of Stones in Exile, a documentary chronicling the rise and creation of Exile on Main Street.

I'd like to express our sadness for the loss of Pete Quaife, the original bassist from The Kinks. He died on June 23 of unknown causes at the too young age of 66.

I want to alert TAP readers to the fact that I have finally put together a FaceBook fan page that you can access and join by clicking on the badge below.  What this offers is the exact same thing as my Twitter feeds provide and that is first buzz on upcoming releases and free offered downloads, many announcements  that beat our main post, sometimes by days.  We also provide a Google BUZZ page that expands on most of the Twitter/FB feeds. On Buzz, you can even hear the music stream if a stream is offered.  There are still things that I'm working on in the FB page, like calender notes as well as links to great sites like The Second Disc.  I invite you to join us at our FB page and bookmark it.  Visit it daily and you'll be rewarded with much news and info.  Of course, you'll still want to come to the main MusicTAP page for our noisy commentaries.  Remember, with our Twitter feeds, you can elect to receive the news bursts as text on your mobile phone keeping you effortlessly up to date with stuff.  Lots of choices.  Find one, or two, that fits.

MusicTAP

Promote Your Page Too 

The latest album by revered UK band, Hawkwind, is expected on August 10 (US) in both CD and 180g LP formats. There's talk of a bonus track to be included. The album, Blood of the Earth, will be supported by tour later in the year.

Nonesuch Records will release vinyl LP for Antifogmatic by the Punch Brothers on August 10, which will come with a bonus CD.

Atlantc Records has a CD coming from the Arkells called Jackson Square, which is currently scheduled for August 3.

New reissue for the Paul McCartney titles include a set for Band on the Run, which are scheduled for August 31 on various CD configurations and LP.

Kemado Records will release the latest album by The Sword on August 24. The new album is called Warp Riders and should be a treat for metal fans.

Here's a bit of advanced notice for Leonard Cohen fans: His new album should be expected sometime in the middle of 2011. just so you're aware that the master is working diligently (as if that tour wasn't work enough).

An Elton John/Leon Russell album collaboration is expected sometime in October of 2010.

Eagle Rock will re-release One Night Only by The Bee Gees on DVD, which is scheduled for August 31. Eagle Rock has also scheduled a DVD release of Live: The Early Years for ELO (Electric Light Orchestra) for August 24. The label also plans the DVD and BD (Blu-ray) release of Live Voodoo from Jane's Addiction on August 31.

Decca Records will release Ithaca by Paula Cole on September 21 in several CD configs.

Sofa Entertainment plan a Beatles CD release of The Complete Ed Sullivan Shows starring The Beatles, scheduling for September 7.

Interscope Records has Humanoid City Live coming from Tokio Hotel on July 20.

Kirtland Records will release Feeler by The Toadies on August 10.

Sanctuary Records will release on CD, an Anthology for X-Ray Spex called Let S Submerge: The Anthology on September 11.

Contributing labels will release a series CD title: Icon, for several bands and artists, all on August 24. These will be for KISS, Marvin Gaye, Smokey Robinson, Rick James, James Brown, Johnny Cash, Jackson 5, Hoobastank, and Hole.