The Touch

Touch originated from the pomp trio American Tears, which cut three Columbia releases throughout the 1970s. Mark Mangold played keyboards and handled lead vocals while Greg Baze covered bass and Tommy Gunn sat behind the drums. That configuration delivered two albums built around Mangold’s flamboyant compositions. By the third LP, Powerhouse, Kirk Powers had taken over bass and Glen Kithcart occupied the drum seat. The revised lineup meshed more effectively, prompting Mangold to retain Kithcart when he formed Touch. Doug Howard then stepped in on bass as singing guitarist Craig Brooks joined the lineup. Touch’s self-titled debut showcased several strong tracks once Brooks’s vocal harmonies aligned with Mangold’s bold keyboard work and songwriting. In 1980 the quartet appeared at the first Donington Festival, where Howard inadvertently swallowed a bee near the end of the performance. “Don’t You Know What Love Is” surfaced on the resulting Monsters of Rock compilation, yet the album failed to connect and the band disbanded amid disputes with their label and management. Todd Rundgren oversaw a follow-up project, after which both albums were packaged together as the compilation The Complete Works I & II. Mangold subsequently collaborated with Michael Bolton, Drive She Said, and numerous others.