There wasn’t much about 10cc that was conventional. Yes, they were a four-piece band of British guys, but that’s about where the convention ends. All four members were strong songwriters and they often wrote in pairs, swapping partners as if they were at a key party. Also, each of them were multi-instrumentalists, so it was nearly impossible to know who played what.

Kevin Godley and Lol Crème were art school brats with a wealth of creative ideas that brought them together to work on numerous projects (it was their penchant for creativity that eventually caused the pair to leave 10cc to continue work on a unique guitar they built called ‘The Gismo”). Eric Stewart was previously a member of the Mindbenders (he sang “Groovy Kind of Love”). Graham Gouldman had the most experience before forming 10cc, having written hit songs for everybody from the Yardbirds (“For Your Love”, “Heart Full of Soul”) to Herman’s Hermits (“Listen People”) and the Hollies (“Bus Stop”). It was while working as a writer for hire that that Gouldman teamed up with the other three as a demo band. Eventually, they decided to pool their talents and form a band of their own.

The band’s first album consisted of imaginative, satirical witticisms, mostly intended to be funny, but a lot of people did not get the joke. The American listening audience took songs like “Sand in My Face” and “Donna” at face value, and blanched. This was not macho rock and roll, so the album stalled before reaching the top 200.

For the second album, the band’s writing style remained much the same, but the sound was toughened up a bit, with strong guitar sounds (thanks to the Gismo) and muscular rhythms. Creatively, the album had no boundaries, as if each of the four members were throwing ideas back and forth and trying to make all of it fit on one disk.

Each of their idiosyncrasies were given a wide berth, giving “Sheet Music” a sweeping sense of grandiosity that brought heft to even the silliest material (One song is even entitled “Silly Love”). “Wall Street Shuffle” opens the album on a strong note and deservedly became the band’s biggest single to date. “The Worst Band in the World” summarizes the genius of the band, with self-mocking lyrics that subtly indicts the inanities of the record industry. It also bears the distinction of being the only tune in Great Britain that was banned for a word that is never even spoken!

Stylistically, “Sheet Music” is as wide-ranging as a ten-track album could be. Even after familiarizing yourself with the album, it’s hard to comprehend the variety of sounds and styles that hold the album together. It is an album that uses rock and roll cliché as a jumping-off point for wry observation and ironic twists. This is some of the most well-produced pop music ever created (Beatles and/or Beach Boys included), with an artistic bent and sense of humor that makes each track just weird enough to be unique from one another. 

Feature Tracks:

The Wall Street Shuffle

The Worst Band in the World

Hotel

Old Wild Men

Clockwork Creep

Silly Love

Somewhere in Hollywood

Baron Samedi

The Sacro-Iliac

Oh Effendi

May 1974 - Billboard Charted #81