Hold Your Head Up

"Hold Your Head Up"
Single by Argent
from the album All Together Now
B-side "Closer to Heaven"
Released June 1972
Format 7-inch single
Genre Hard rock, progressive rock
Length
  • 6:15 (album version)
  • 3:15 (single edit)
  • 2:52 (radio edit)
Label Columbia
Songwriter(s) Rod Argent, Chris White
Producer(s) Rod Argent, Chris White
Argent singles chronology
"Sweet Mary"
(1971)		 "Hold Your Head Up"
(1972)		 "Tragedy"
(1972)

"Sweet Mary"
(1971)		 "Hold Your Head Up"
(1972)		 "Tragedy"
(1972)

"Hold Your Head Up" is a song by the English rock band Argent, released as a single in 1972. The song was a Top 5 hit in both the US and UK, peaking at No. 5 in both countries. Billboard ranked it as the No. 50 song for 1972. The song appeared on the third Argent album All Together Now. The album version is 6:15 while the single version is 3:15. The DJ edit has a run-time of 2:53.

Background and composition

The song was written by Rod Argent and Chris White.[1]

Release and reception

The song was warmly received by music critics. The Hammond B3 solo on the track was cited by Rick Wakeman as the greatest organ solo ever.[2] The track remained a staple on AOR-format radio stations for years after its release.

Other versions

  • Marc Tanner Band covered the song in 1980 on their album, Temptation.[3]
  • Steppenwolf covered "Hold Your Head Up" on their 1982 album Wolftracks.[4]
  • The Party Boys released a cover in 1987.
  • Uriah Heep also covered the song on their 1989 album Raging Silence.[5]
  • Mother Love Bone also released a cover of this song in 1989 as a non-album single.
  • Fish performed a version of the song on his covers album Songs from the Mirror.[6]
  • Mr. Big covered the song during their 2009 reunion tour and is available on Back to Budokan live DVD and CD;[7] a studio version was also recorded as a bonus on the CD version.
  • The Zombies performed the song in 2013 at Mellow Johnny's Bike Shop in Austin, Texas, introduced as "Hold Your Head Up, Woman".[8]
  • Phish has covered "Hold Your Head Up" at least 524 times in live performances between 1987 and 2015.[9]
  • Lana Lane released a version on the 2003 album, Lana Lane Covers Collection.
  • Jellyfish covered the song in live performances during their first album tour.
  • Glass Hammer released a version on their 2017 compilation of studio outtakes and live recordings, Untold Tales.

References

  1. ↑ Erlewine, Stephen. "All Together Now review". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved August 31, 2012.
  2. ↑ "Ron Galloway: Interview With the Zombie - Rod Argent On Gershwin, Bill Evans, Miles Davis & The Penny Lane Piano". Huffingtonpost.com. 18 March 2013. Retrieved 24 July 2014.
  3. ↑ "Temptation". Allmusic.
  4. ↑ "Wolftracks Overview". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved August 31, 2012.
  5. ↑ Henderson, Alex. "Raging Silence review". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved August 31, 2012.
  6. ↑ "Official Fish site: Discography and lyrics - studio albums". Fish-thecompany.com. Retrieved 2016-10-07.
  7. ↑ "Back to Budokan review". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved April 15, 2013.
  8. ↑ Argent, Rod. "The Zombies - Full Performance (Live on KEXP)". YouTube. YouTube/KEXP. pp. comments start at 21:00. Retrieved 2014-04-13.
  9. ↑ "Phish.net Song Histories". Phish.net. Retrieved November 5, 2014.


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