10cc

10cc - 10cc - 1973 - Mercury

Displaying a command of pop styles and satire, 10cc showed that they are a force to be reckoned with on their first album. Hooks abound, harmonies shine, and instrumentation is dazzling without being overdone. Though charges of "self-consciously clever" could be leveled at the group, their command of witty, Anglo-styled pop is so impressive that even those criticisms must be weighed against the mastery of styles. All four members sing lead and are talented songwriters, and this leads to a wide variety of styles that add to their vision. Featuring their number one U.K. hit "Rubber Bullets," 10cc wade through ten selections of satire and parody. One of the best is "Johnny Don't Do It," a parody of all the "death discs" of the late '50s and early '60s (the misunderstood "bad but really good" guy who is killed in a wreck). More contemporary and bitingly sarcastic is "Headline Hustler," a commentary on the ravenous, scandal-hungry media. Medical facilities and the treatment afforded there is given ripe 10cc commentary in "The Hospital Song." ("And when I go, I'll die of plaster casting love.") Whether doing loving parodies of the music they grew up with or satirizing contemporary issues, 10cc show themselves to be top-level purveyors of pop on their debut recording. Some might criticize the group for being too self-satisfied with their own intelligence, but there is no denying the true craftsmanship and humor on their 1973 debut. © Michael Ofjord © 2013 Rovi Corp | All Rights Reserved http://www.allmusic.com/album/10cc-mw0000311059

10cc were a major force in British pop. The standard of 10cc's songwriting was amazing, and this debut album includes some classic songs from the band's catalogue. Collectively and individually, Kevin Godley, Graham Gouldman, Eric Stewart, and Lol Creme penned some of the best pop rock songs in modern times, so good in fact, that many of the band's songs are on a par with songs by composers of the stature of Lennon & McCartney. Many of the band's songs contain so many different twists, and hooks, that it often sounds as if three or four great tracks could be extracted from just one song. 10cc's "Deceptive Bends" album was full of killer material, as was their "The Original Soundtrack" album from 1975. Check out the band’s classic “The Original Soundtrack” album [All tracks @ 320 Kbps: File size = 79.7 Mb]

TRACKS / COMPOSERS

Side One

1 Johnny, Don't Do It (Kevin Godley, Lol Creme, Graham Gouldman) 3:36
2 Sand in My Face (Godley, Creme, Gouldman) 3:36
3 Donna (Godley, Creme) 2:53
4 The Dean and I (Godley, Creme) 3:03
5 Headline Hustler (Gouldman, Eric Stewart) 3:31

Side Two

1 Speed Kills (Stewart, Godley, Creme, Gouldman) 3:47
2 Rubber Bullets (Godley, Creme, Gouldman) 5:15
3 The Hospital Song (Godley, Creme) 2:41
4 Ships Don't Disappear in the Night (Do They?) (Gouldman, Stewart) 3:04
5 Fresh Air for My Mama (Godley, Creme, Stewart) 3:04

BAND

Eric Stewart - Lead Electric Guitar, Slide Guitar, Moog Synthesizer, Vocals
Graham Gouldman - Electric & Acoustic Guitar, Bass, Dobro Guitar, Tambourine, Vocals
Lol Creme - Electric & Acoustic Guitar, Grand Piano, Synthesizer, Mellotron, Percussion, Vocals
Kevin Godley - Drums, Percussion, Vocals

BIO

Deriving their name from the metric total of semen ejaculated by the average male, the tongue-in-cheek British art-pop band 10cc comprised an all-star roster of Manchester-based musicians: vocalist/guitarist Graham Gouldman was a former member of the Mockingbirds and the author of hits for the Yardbirds, the Hollies, Herman's Hermits and Jeff Beck; singer/guitarist Eric Stewart was an alum of Wayne Fontana & the Mindbenders; and vocalists/multi-instrumentalists Kevin Godley and Lol Creme were both highly regarded studio players. Formed in 1970, 10cc began as a session unit dubbed Hotlegs; after establishing residence at Stewart's Strawberry Studios, Hotlegs scored a surprise U.K. smash with the single "Neanderthal Man," subsequently issuing an LP, Thinks: School Times and touring with the Moody Blues. After signing to Jonathan King's U.K. label and rechristening themselves 10cc (a name suggested by King himself), the group backed Neil Sedaka before recording 1972's "Donna," a sly satire of late-'50s doo wop. The single reached the number two position on the British charts, establishing not only a long-running string of major hits, but also the quartet's fondness for ironic and affectionate reclamations of musty pop styles. The follow-up, "Rubber Bullets," topped the charts in 1973, and both the subsequent single "The Dean and I" (a nostalgic look at academia recalling Jerry Lee Lewis' "High School Confidential") and an eponymously titled debut LP further solidified 10cc as a major force in British pop. While 1974's Sheet Music and singles, including the Brian Wilson-esque "Wall Street Shuffle," "Silly Love" and "Life Is a Minestrone" continued 10cc's dominance of the U.K. charts, they found the American market virtually impenetrable prior to the release of 1975's "I'm Not in Love," which topped the charts at home and climbed as high as number two in the States. After 1975's Original Soundtrack and the next year's How Dare You!, Godley and Creme exited to focus on video production as well as developing the Gizmo, a guitar modification device the duo invented. In the wake of their departure, Gouldman and Stewart continued on alone, enlisting the aid of session men to record 1977's Deceptive Bends, highlighted by the perennial "The Things We Do for Love." After recruiting guitarist Rick Fenn, keyboardist Tony O'Malley and drummer Stuart Tosh as full-time members, 10cc returned in 1978 with Bloody Tourists, which yielded the number one reggae nod "Dreadlock Holiday." Following a series of unsuccessful efforts, including 1980s Look Hear?, 1981's 10 Out of 10 and 1983's Window in the Jungle, the group disbanded; while Stewart produced Sad Cafe and worked with Paul McCartney, Gouldman supervised recordings for the Ramones and Gilbert O'Sullivan before joining Andrew Gold in the duo Wax. In 1992, the original lineup of 10cc reunited for the LP Meanwhile, while only Gouldman and Stewart remained for 1993's Mirror Mirror. © Jason Ankeny © 2013 Rovi Corp | All Rights Reserved http://www.allmusic.com/artist/10cc-mn0000502163

MORE ABOUT 10cc

The biography of 10 c.c., as a band, begins under the name of Hotlegs back in 1970. Hotlegs, already containing three quarters of the ladder 10 c.c. had been working together in various circumstances. The core at that time was the duo project of Kevin Godley and Lol Creme, who were getting back into music business after years or stuying in graphic design. They had recorded several demo recordings for a company called "Marmalade" in 1968, that ran out of money shortly afterwards. These recordings had been initiated by Graham Gouldman, using Eric Stewart of The Mindbenders for the guitar parts. Eric Stewart, interested in the technical side of music production, had put himself into working at Strawberry Stdios, Stockport. So after the demise of "Marmalade" these three started recording and composing songs for "Kasenatz Katz", major purveyors of bummblegum music. Graham Gouldman, who had already been working for them some time longer, provided his songs to the likes of Tony Christie, Ohio Express etc. At that time, in 1970, Godley, Creme and Stewart penned their only hit, called "Neanderthal Man", releasing their only album "Thinks : School Stinks" shortly afterwards. Hotlegs made a short tour supporting The Moody Blues, augmented by Graham Gouldman on bass. After a bunch of unsuccessful singles and lots of studio work for other artists, Graham Gouldman as well as Hotlegs were getting frustrated about their situation, looking for a common platform to perform their own music. In mid 1972 Godley and Creme came up with a song called "Donna", sung with a high falsetto voice by Lol Creme. Eric Stewart made a contact with Jonathan King, who he thought was the only one crazy enough to release it. King said : "It's fabulous, it's a hit" and fell about laughing. The band agreed to let him release the song ... and it became a hit ! "Donna" reached No. 2 in the U.K. charts, followed by another 50s-type song, "Johnny, Don't Do It". The band afterwards admitted that it was a mistake to have this song released as the follow-up. The third single, "Rubber Bullets", released in early 1973, also ran into problems, as many radio discjockey thought it was connected to the North-Ireland problem. But it peaked at No. 1, staying there for 15 weeks and also made No. 45 on the U.S. charts. The following debut album made the audience realize that 10 c.c. was a force to be reckoned with. Containing their first three singles, the album also spawned another successful outtake, "The Dean And I". The band's first single in 1974 was the lyrical offensive "The Worst Band In The World", released at the insistance of Jonathan King. For the first time, he was wrong. As with many 10 c.c. single releases, the song fell through with airplay, but when "Top Of The Pops" also rejected it, the release was doomed. But more than anything else, the band's second album release, "Sheet Music", cemented thier popularity as on the of the most creative and successful bands to come from the U.K. Spawning another very successful hit single, "The Wall Street Shuffle", the group had manifested its status. After a U.K. headline tour and the third single "Silly Love" lifted from the album, 10 c.c. decided to sign to a truly international record company. The band's third album, "The Original Soundtrack", was already recorded and released within a fortnight after they signed up at Phonogram for around a million dollars. "Life Is A Minestrone", lifted from that LP, became an immediate success, followed up by "I'm Not In Love" in early summer 1975. This song had since been dominated for numerous "All Time Greats" polls.In November 1995 the preview single for the upcoming album was released, "Art For Art's Sake". It was the band's seventh top ten entry and with the release of the "How Dare You !" album it had become apparend that the band's writing skills had graviated into two different distict schools of thought (Godley/Greme on one side; Stewart/Gouldman on the other).By the end of 1995 it was reported that Godley and Creme had left 10 c.c. to persue a career in music and video business and developing their Gismo, a guitar attachment that give continuous sustain. Gizmos effects had already been used on various 10 c.c. recordings. Justin Heyward from The Moody Blues revealed in a BBC interview in 1995 : "So, Kevin and Lol left 10 c.c. in the autumn of 1976. Consequences, which I thought was fab, their triple album of Gismo music flopped. Costing them and the record company a quarter of a million quid. But in the 1980s, they went on to have a string of hits as well as producing scores of highly acclaimed music videos, films, television programs and commercials. Meanwhile, Eric and Graham went straight back into the studio to record another LP, 'Deceptive Bends'." "Deceptive Bends" was a trio album, introducing Paul Burgess augmenting 10 c.c. on drums. The album became the band's most celling longplayer ever, spawning two more chart hitting songs with "Good Mornin' Judge" and "The Things We Do For Love".At that time, in early 1977, 10 c.c. was completed by Tony O'Malley (keyboards), Stuart Tosh (second drummer !) and Rick Fenn on guitars. With this lineup 10 c.c. untertook a major tour, caught on the double live record of "Live And Let Live" which only brought yet recorded material and almost failed common interest or chart nomination. After the tour Tony O'Malley was replaced by "Cockney Rebel" Duncan Mackay on keyboards and synthesizers. Just when people were ready to dismiss 10 c.c. Stewart and Gouldman had another ace up their sleeves. "Dreadlock Holiday", the preview release single to their forthcoming "Bloody Tourists" LP was another massive success with its catchy reggae rhythm and gave 10 c.c. their third No. 1 hit, however ... it was their last. The album sold considerably well, followed by the "Greeatest Hits 1972-1978" compilation in 1979. This big lineup released another great album "Look Hear" (1980) and did another major tour through Europe but failed another chart buster. For that reason the 1981 release of "Ten Out Of 10" was a return to the 3-piece-band philosophy of "Deceptive Bends", obviously only a studio project using Paul Burgess on drums and guest musicians like Rick Fenn, Marc Jordan (organs, piano and backing vocals), Vic Emmerson (synclavier), Lenni Crookes (saxophone), Keith Bessey (maracas) and Simon Phillips, who played drums on one track and later showed up in Toto to be the substitute for Jeff Porcaro. After its failure and another 1983 album, "Windows In The Jungle", 10 c.c. amicably split up and everybody went his own way ... Graham Gouldman, who teamed up with Andrew Gold in Wax and Eric Stewart to persue two solo efforts, and working together with Paul McCartney on his "Press To Play" album. It almost took ten years and the breakup of Wax after three successful releases, to get together again as 10 c.c. Other than a bunch of highy acclaimed session musicians Eric Stewart and Graham Gouldman were joined by Lol Creme and Kevin Godley for selected tracks.The new album, the 1992 release " ... Meanwhile" spawned some very good compositions and a successful single - "Woman In Love". Critics and fans were happy about the reunition, but big success wasn't at hand immediately. A Japan tour using Rick Fenn, Stuart Tosh, Stepehn Pigott and Gary Wallis in the band, was caught on the live album "The Very Best Of 10 c.c. Alive", which was released by Arcade Records. It was followed by the 1995 und until today last release, "Mirror Mirror", opened by the Paul McCartney/Eric Stewart composition "Yvonne's The One". 10 c.c., at that time, were complemented by the likes of Adrian Lee (also producer on almost all the tracks), Andrew Gold, Paul McCartney, Ian Thomas (drums), Steve Pigott (keyboards) and Rick Fenn. But the album did not really look like a band effort, because either Eric's or Graham's songs were produced in its own, then all put together on this album. The album also contained an acoustic session of "I'm Not In Love" but didn't become a great success. © 2000-2007 sing365.com, www.sing365.com/music/lyric.nsf/10cc-Biography/8F700E9CC8E1C0994825692700233512