10cc

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…

2008 reissue of this compilation from the British Art-Rockers featuring one bonus track: 'The Secret Life of Henry'. Essentially a Best of the band's recordings for Mercury Records this includes the UK hit singles 'Life Is a Minestrone' 'Good Morning Judge' and 'Dreadlock Holiday' amongst others. Also features the rare 'We've Heard It All Before' and 'The Power of Love' singles, both non-LP and both co-writes with Andrew Gold.

The Very Best of 10cc is a comprehensive collection, featuring all of the group's biggest hits and best-known songs – including "Neanderthal Man," "Donna," "Rubber Bullets," "The Dean & I," "I'm Not in Love," and "The Things We Do for Love," as well as Godley & Creme's solo hit "Cry" – making it a definitive retrospective and introduction…

When Kevin Godley and Lol Creme left 10cc in 1976 to pursue a solo career, many thought it was the death knell for the group. However, Eric Stewart and Graham Gouldman kept the group alive as a duo (with the assistance of percussionist Paul Burgess) and turned in a surprisingly solid album with 1977's Deceptive Bends. It may lack the devil-may-care wackiness that popped up on previous 10cc albums, but it makes up for it by crafting a series of lush, catchy pop songs that are witty in their own right.

10cc are a British rock band formed in Stockport in 1972. The group initially consisted of four musicians — Graham Gouldman, Eric Stewart, Kevin Godley and Lol Creme — who had written and recorded together since 1968. All four members contributed to songwriting, working together in various permutations. Godley and Creme’s songwriting has been described as being inspired by art and cinema. Every member of 10cc was a multi-instrumentalist, singer, writer and producer. Most of the band's records were recorded at their own Strawberry Studios (North) in Stockport and Strawberry Studios (South) in Dorking, with most of those engineered by Stewart.

In a 7 year period from the autumn of 1972 to the winter of 1978, 10cc were rarely ‘off air’ as a series of singles repeatedly crashed the UK charts. With 11 top 10’s of which 3 hit the top spot,10cc established themselves as a stellar pop band capable of producing memorable, yet stylistically diverse songs with broad appeal. Formed in Stockport in 1968, the ability to create these very different yet equally catchy songs came from the fact that unlike most groups who’d usually have one songwriter or song-writing team, within 10cc there were two teams. Kevin Godley and Lol Crème were essentially more experimental and interested in the visual arts as much as song, whilst Graham Gouldman and Eric Stewart were predominantly ‘pop’ writers. All were multi-instrumentalists and competent producers so in short each could very much ‘hold their own’ when it came to making music.

10cc's first two albums, recorded under the sponsorship of entrepreneur and one-time pop star Jonathan King, are combined on one disc for this CD reissue. 1973's 10cc shows that from the start, the group had an uncommon command of recording studio technique; the performances are polished, the harmonies superb, and the production flawless and often witty (all the more remarkable from a new band producing themselves, albeit one comprised of music-biz vets). However, the group was still getting up to speed in terms of their songwriting at this point, and while the craft is fine, there isn't a lot of inspiration on hand. Except for the sardonic "Rubber Bullets" and sarcastically sprightly "The Dean and I," the '50s-inspired parodies on side one don't wear well, and most of side two is clever but not terribly distinguished. 1974's Sheet Music was where 10cc truly hit their stride; the album is full of effective barbed humor buffered by the superbly polished production, which leans toward pretension without quite falling into the pool.

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…