Originally Posted by
Progbear
Mini-thoughts on ALL their albums!
10cc: We all have to start somewhere! Incredibly, this was a bit of a controversial record at the time for containing curse words (“piss” and “shit” were just not found on pop records back in 1973. Well, except for this one). I guess “Rubber Bullets” raised the ire of the BBC (must have been the title, coupled with the intimation of prison sex in the lyrics). G&C in particular were influenced by Zappa, but it seems that their collection here stopped at Freak Out!, as the majority of this seems to be 50s and 60s pop-pastiche comedy numbers. There’s a few tunes that transcend it, the aforementioned “Fresh Air for My Momma” a perfect example.
Sheet Music: A quantum leap forward. This is probably my favorite by them: every song is fantastic, and the diversity is off the charts. I really love all the sonic detail that they pack into every song; “Hotel,” “Old Wild Men” and “Somewhere in Hollywood” in particular, but I wouldn’t want to be without anything here. No skips.
[I]The Original Soundtrack[I]: More or less on a par with SM, perhaps slightly lesser, but the highlights are so grand it makes it stand out. “I’m Not in Love” is like a “Good Vibrations” for the 70s. These guys really know how to make a lot out of a little; “Une nuit a Paris” is little more than piano, some percussion, and vocals. A TON of vocals!
How Dare You!: You can see the cracks in the foundation here. “I Wanna Rule the World” and “Head Room” are utterly cringeworthy, and I can never even remember how “Rock & Roll Lullaby” goes after it’s finished. That said, there’s a few real gems here that make it a must-own. If “I’m Not in Love” is their “Good Vibrations,” I guess that makes “Don’t Hang Up” their “Surf’s Up.” (Kevin Godley and his achingly beautiful voice really was their secret weapon)
Deceptive Bends: “The Things We Do For Love” was my favorite song when I was six years old, so obviously I have a soft spot for this one. You can hear Gouldman & Stewart attempting to cover for the loss of G&C by trying to write songs like they would (“Good Morning Judge,” “I Bought a Flat Guitar Tutor,” “You’ve Got a Cold”). That they were even a little successful probably explains why this one is as good as it is. “People in Love,” alas, points towards their disappointing future.
Bloody Tourists: Well, I kind of liked “The Anonymous Alcoholic,” but too much of this hinges on obvious “jokes,” MOR blandness and the sort of clichés this band used to mercilessly mock. “On a roller-coaster,” “on the road to ruin,” “on a one-way street,” and that’s all on track 2 (“For You and I,” which kind of sounds like a neutered version of “With a Little Luck”)!
Look Hear?: It seems most folks agree that 10cc’s worst song can be found on this album, but nobody seems to agree on which song that is. Doesn’t bode well, does it? For what it’s worth, I did enjoy “Welcome to the World” and at least “L.A. Inflatable” ends the album on an energetic note. Trivia time: “One Two Five” was the first music video I ever saw (pre-MTV, on HBO’s Video Jukebox).
Ten Out of 10: Well, it’s an improvement over the disaster that is Look Hear?, but it’s still pretty slim pickin’s. The US version with Andrew Gold involvement is better yet, though “We’ve Heard It All Before”—their jab at the then-more-commercially-successful G&C (replete with unflattering Kevin Godley impression by Eric)—seems awfully petty (their petulant revenge for “Hit Factory/Business Is Business” perhaps?). And did they need to tack on the dreary single “Run Away,” the neutered version of “I’m Not in Love”?
Windows in the Jungle: A nice return-to-form, to my ears. Bookended by two superb demi-epics, and thankfully the bland MOR that characterized the last three albums seems toned down here. I’d complain about the overlong, soporific “Yes I Am!” if it didn’t segue into one of my favorite songs on the album, “Americana Panorama.”
Consequences: It seems I like this less each time I hear it. Disc One contains exactly ONE song, and it’s a silly Hawaiian pastiche that’s little more than another excuse for Lol to use his Minnie Mouse voice. Side 6 is an interesting neo-classical prog suite which nonetheless isn’t going to trouble any of the genre’s leading lights. What’s in between is almost unendurable; a painfully unfunny Peter Cook (You did Bedazzled, and now you’re offering us this crap?) voicing half a dozen unlikable characters, interspersed by half a dozen forgettable songs. Best exemplified by the 20 page booklet, which seems to say, “Ha ha! We’re dumping dirt on a dummy head on Mercury Records’ dime!”
L: Proof that Freak Out! was not the only Zappa album these guys listened to. Warped, eccentric art pop with endearing prog flourishes and acerbic wit.
Freeze-Frame: My favorite G&C album. Less of the prog feel of the previous album, but more experimental, if that makes sense. No skips.
Ismism: Half good, half annoying. I guess I wouldn’t mind this one so much if it didn’t have so much spoken-word stuff, which is one of my pet-peeves in music.
Birds of Prey: I remember precisely zero about this album, which I guess is not a good sign.
The History Mix, Vol. 1: One of the most masturbatory, self-referential albums in music history. A bunch of old 10cc/G&C song snippets barfed out by a Fairlight, the result being tuneless mush. The exception is the splendid “Cry,” and you’re better off getting that in its single version.
Goodbye Blue Sky: You know, I should probably sit down and listen to this all the way through one day. Reviews are mixed, and I run hot and cold on G&C in general, but the very idea of a concept album about Armageddon featuring harmonica on every track intrigues me. And I do have a soft spot for “A Little Piece of Heaven,” the only track from this I have heard.
Bonus props to the excellent B-sides “Waterfall” and “Good News,” our last glimpses of G&C’s origins as folk-rockers.
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