Agents of Fortune
Agents of Fortune is the fourth studio album by American hard rock band Blue Öyster Cult, released by Columbia Records in May 21, 1976. The Platinum-selling album peaked at No. 29 on the U.S. Billboard chart, while the cryptic single "(Don't Fear) The Reaper" peaked at No. 12 on the "Billboard" Hot 100 singles chart, 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. However, the 2020 live album "40th Anniversary: Agents of Fortune Live 2016" added Bloom's name to the writing credits on "E.T.I. (Extra Terrestrial Intelligence)". Critical reception. "Rolling Stone" wrote that ""Agents of Fortune" is a startlingly excellent album — startling because one does not expect Blue Oyster Cult to sound like this: loud but calm, manic but confident, melodic but rocking." "Cash Box" said  of the single "This Ain't the Summer of Love" that "growling guitars churn out this realistic message with brief and pointed expression" and that "a mood of evil created in a humorous fashion."