Agents of Fortune

Agents of Fortune is the fourth studio album by American hard rock band Blue Öyster Cult, released by Columbia Records on May 21, 1976.

Agents of Fortune
Studio album by Blue Öyster Cult
Released	May 21, 1976 (1976-05-21)
Recorded	1975–76
Studio	The Record Plant, New York City
Genre	Hard rock heavy metal
Length	36:35
Label	Columbia
Producer	Murray Krugman Sandy Pearlman David Lucas
Blue Öyster Cult chronology
On Your Feet or on Your Knees (1975) Agents of Fortune (1976) Spectres (1977)
Singles from Agents of Fortune
"(Don't Fear) The Reaper" / "Tattoo Vampire" Released: June 1976 "Debbie Denise" / "This Ain't the Summer of Love" Released: 1976

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]
Christgau's Record Guide	B+[2]
Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal	10/10[3]
Rolling Stone	(very favorable)[4]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide	[5]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music	[6]

The Platinum-selling album peaked at No. 29 on the U.S. Billboard chart,[7] while the cryptic single "(Don't Fear) The Reaper" peaked at No. 12 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart,[8] making it BÖC's biggest hit. The band became a bigger concert attraction after the release of the album, in part due to extensive airplay of "(Don't Fear) The Reaper," to this day a staple of rock-station playlists.

This is also the only album in the band's catalog to have every original member perform lead vocals on at least one song, and the only to not feature any songwriting contributions from Eric Bloom.

Track listing

Side one

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Lead vocals	Length
1.	"This Ain't the Summer of Love"	Albert Bouchard, Murray Krugman, Don Waller	Eric Bloom	2:21
2.	"True Confessions"	Allen Lanier	Lanier	2:57
3.	"(Don't Fear) The Reaper"	Donald Roeser	Roeser	5:08
4.	"E.T.I. (Extra Terrestrial Intelligence)"	Roeser, Sandy Pearlman	Bloom	3:43
5.	"The Revenge of Vera Gemini"	A. Bouchard, Patti Smith	A. Bouchard	3:52

Side two

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Lead vocals	Length
6.	"Sinful Love"	A. Bouchard, Helen Wheels	A. Bouchard	3:29
7.	"Tattoo Vampire"	A. Bouchard, Wheels	Bloom	2:41
8.	"Morning Final"	Joe Bouchard	J. Bouchard	4:30
9.	"Tenderloin"	Lanier	Lanier, Bloom	3:40
10.	"Debbie Denise"	A. Bouchard, Smith	A. Bouchard	4:13

2001 CD reissue bonus tracks

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Lead vocals	Length
11.	"Fire of Unknown Origin" (original version)	Bloom, A. Bouchard, J. Bouchard, Roeser, Smith	A. Bouchard	3:30
12.	"Sally" (demo version)	A. Bouchard	A. Bouchard	2:40
13.	"(Don't Fear) The Reaper" (demo version)	Roeser	Roeser	6:20
14.	"Dance the Night Away" (demo version)	Lanier, Jim Carroll	Lanier	2:37
Total length:				51:42

Personnel

Band members

• Eric Bloom – rhythm guitar, percussion, vocals
• Donald "Buck Dharma" Roeser – lead guitar, vocals
• Allen Lanier – keyboards, rhythm guitar, vocals
• Joe Bouchard – bass, vocals, piano
• Albert Bouchard – drums, percussion, acoustic guitar, vocals

Additional musicians

• Patti Smith – vocals on "The Revenge of Vera Gemini"
• Randy Brecker – horns
• Michael Brecker – horns
• David Lucas – vocals, keyboards, percussion

Production

• David Lucas , Murray Krugman, Sandy Pearlman – producers
• Shelly Yakus, Andy Abrams – engineers
• Tony Stevens – mastering
• John Berg, Andy Engel – design
• Lynn Curlee – paintings

Charts

Album

Year	Chart	Position
1976	Billboard 200 (United States)	29[7]
	UK Albums Chart	26[9]
	RPM100 Albums (Canada)	28[10]
	Swedish Albums Chart	10[11]

Singles

Year	Title	Chart	Position
1976	"(Don't Fear) The Reaper"	Billboard Hot 100 (United States)	12[8]
		RPM Top 100 Singles (Canada)	7[12]
1978		UK Singles Chart	16[9]

Sales certifications

Year	Country	Organization	Sales
1977	Canada	CRIA	Gold (50,000+)[13]
1978	U.S.	RIAA	Platinum (1,000,000+)[14]

Accolades

Publication	Country	Accolade	Year	Rank
The Village Voice	U.S.	The 1976 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll[15]	1976	10
NME	UK	Albums of the Year[16]	1976	6
Dave Marsh & Kevin Stein	U.S.	The Best of the Album Chartmakers by Year: 1976[17]	1981	12
Kerrang!	UK	The 100 Greatest Heavy Metal Albums of All Time[16]	1989	62
Q	UK	The Greatest Classic Rock Albums Ever![18]	2004	No order

References

1. Jurek, Thom. "Blue Öyster Cult - Agents of Fortune review". AllMusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved March 1, 2012.
2. Christgau, Robert (1981). "Consumer Guide '70s: B". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. Ticknor & Fields. ISBN 089919026X. Retrieved February 22, 2019 – via robertchristgau.com.
3. Popoff, Martin (October 2003). The Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal: Volume 1: The Seventies. Burlington, Ontario, Canada: Collector's Guide Publishing. p. 54. ISBN 978-1894959025.
4. Tucker, Ken (July 15, 1976). "Album Reviews: Blue Oyster Cult - Agents of Fortune". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on October 12, 2009. Retrieved April 8, 2012.
5. "Blue Öyster Cult: Album Guide". Rolling Stone. Retrieved February 5, 2020.
6. C. Strong, Martin. Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Canongate. ISBN 1841955515.
7. "Agents of Fortune Billboard Albums". AllMusic. Rovi Corporation. Archived from the original on August 31, 2012. Retrieved March 2, 2012.
8. "Agents of Fortune Billboard Singles". AllMusic. Rovi Corporation. Archived from the original on August 31, 2012. Retrieved March 2, 2012.
9. "Blue Oyster Cult Official Charts". Official Charts Company. Retrieved April 5, 2016.
10. "Top Albums/CDs - Volume 23, No. 5, October 30, 1976". Library and Archives Canada. 30 October 1976. Archived from the original on 26 March 2016. Retrieved 2 March 2012.
11. "Blue Öyster Cult – Agents of Fortune (Album)". Swedishcharts.com. Media Control Charts. Retrieved March 2, 2012.
12. "Top Singles - Volume 26, No. 7, November 13, 1976". Library and Archives Canada. 13 November 1976. Archived from the original on 1 November 2014. Retrieved 2 March 2012.
13. "Gold Platinum Database – Search for Blue Oyster Cult". Music Canada. Retrieved September 23, 2018.
14. "RIAA Searchable Database - search for Blue Oyster Cult". RIAA. Retrieved July 22, 2012.
15. "The 1976 Pazz & Jop Critics Poll". The Village Voice. Robert Christgau. Retrieved March 30, 2012.
16. "Blue Öyster Cult - Agents of Fortune". Acclaimed Music. Retrieved March 30, 2012.
17. "The Dave Marsh Lists". Book Of Rock Lists - Albums Of The Year: 1976. Rocklist.net. Retrieved March 30, 2012.
18. "Q Lists: Q Special Edition – The Greatest Classic Rock Albums Ever !". Q. Rocklist.net. Retrieved March 30, 2012.