FRONT OF HOUSE
HOW DID THEY DO THAT ? | Kent Morris
It ’ s a long ride home from the Atlanta airport each week through all the joys of one of the worst traffic cities in America . To break up the tedium , a little Sirius / XM goes a long way and last night did not disappoint . Argent ’ s “ Hold Your Head Up ” was playing on ‘ 70s on 7 and I was struck by the impressive musicianship , deft arrangement and pretty stellar sound quality , given the song was recorded in 1972 as part of the All Together Now album . If you can recall 1972 , it was well before digital recording of any type and studio processing was limited to a few longstanding tricks of the trade . Synths were beginning to make a mark , but they were confined to analog generation and processing . So , the resulting track is impressive in its ability to draw listeners in forty-eight years later . The follow-on question begs asking : how did they do so much with so little ?
The first and obvious answer is talent . Skill can be taught , execution can be learned , but talent must be inherent . Argent founding member Rod Argent had been in The Zombies where his keyboard finesse was well known . When his bassist cousin Jim Rodford , who had been with Mike Cotton , teamed up with Rod and The Roulettes duo of Bob Henrit on drums and Russ Ballard on guitar , the band
Argent came to life and their talent was put to work on several successful albums and tours . However , talent must be channeled to function . A group of talented musicians is not a band . Only through disciplined practice , rehearsals , songwriting and collaboration does a viable band emerge . In the same vein , tech teams do not function as a unit until each member merges into the greater whole . If we are strong in audio , we must help those who are weak in that area while they assist us in mastering video transitions . Though typically less prone to emotional issues than musicians , we as techs must corral any outbursts or hurt feelings when migrating service functions in order to improve the overall team performance . The greater good really is the greater good .
The second answer is playing to your strengths . Though Argent had a strong hit with “ Hold Your Head Up ”, their real success came when KISS covered “ God Gave Rock and Roll to You ” in 1991 . Of course , CCM fans know the song was covered by Petra twice , in 1977 and 1984 , which may have brought it to Gene Simmons ’ attention . KISS took the song well beyond the reach of Argent or Petra . The point is Argent found more success letting others cover their songs than they did through their own effort .
The takeaway for techs is sometimes we devise a methodology or a trick and we present it as ours , but someone else takes it to the next level . Instead of being angry our version wasn ’ t selected , we should be grateful we planted a seed others watered .
Third is realizing the end is not the end . Argent as a band only lasted a few years and quit touring in 1976 . But , Rodford and Henrit went on to become members of The Kinks and enjoyed decades of worldwide success . Rod Argent , meanwhile , started working with famed composer , Andrew Lloyd Webber . Thus , the band multiplied beyond its own accessible realm . In the same way , church tech teams morph over time as members move , take other roles within the ministry and , thereby , open the door for new members to fill those positions . Sometimes , a superstar in the making arrives , disguised as a young teen named Charlie Pike who is eager to learn tech . Engage them and show them the ropes , for one day they may make you proud by becoming the lighting director for Sir Paul McCartney .
Kent Morris Kent is a 40-year veteran of the AVL arena driven by passion for excellence tempered by the knowledge digital is a temporary state .