My research has not yielded the backstory, but that’s the star of the evening. It’s always about the idea more than the execution, and this one was brilliant, because it has an afterlife.
Jimmy Kimmel told me it was not about the show, but creating viral moments that live online. That’s the ticket.
And that’s the world we live in, one in which we all consume different items at different times, and if you criticize me for being late I can point to a ton of stuff you were unaware of.
I saw the DJ on the flat screen last night. I had no idea what he was doing, I was just passing by on my way out the door. I can’t listen to these people rant and rave forever. Life’s too short, I can find the highlights later online.
And that’s what I did. I sampled all the videos served up to me, in bite-sized fashion.
Keep it brief. That’s the mantra of virality. Or, keep it really long, if it’s unique and great. It’s either hit and run or pure dedication. There is no such thing as a short attention span, that’s a canard cooked up by traditional media to explain why younger generations are not glued to their content. The oldsters grew up in an era where there was little. But when there is much, you keep clicking next until you find what you want, and then you go deep. Which is why you find kids who weren’t even alive when “Friends” went off the air bingeing that series.Â
Bingeing is an immersive process that the aged still don’t get. They think that the drip of every week keeps viewers coming back, keeps them subscribing. What they don’t understand is bingeing is not only about content, but mood. We want to be taken away to a special place, where the real world doesn’t exist. And this depends on high quality, which most can’t achieve, so they berate the system.
For all the b.s. about endless smartphone use, the truth is we’re dying to disconnect, it’s just what we disconnect for must be better than what’s on the phone.
Let’s take dating. How many nights did you waste in a bar or a club just hoping to meet someone. It was endless and depressing. And despite all the present blowback about internet dating, it’s a much more efficient use of one’s time.
Which is why I don’t watch the convention live. I don’t want to find out after the fact that it was a waste when I can cherry-pick content later or avoid it entirely.
So I’m on the cesspool known as X right after I wake up and…
Yes, I’m like those zombies in “Dawn of the Dead,” who go to the mall, because that’s their instinct. I love instant news, you can’t get it anywhere else. But in truth X is a cesspool unless you’re a virgin bro or a dyed-in-the-wool Trumper or both. It’s so frustrating.
But Meghan McCain said:
“I’m sorry but this #DNC2024 roll call with DJ Cassidy, themed state music and party/club atmosphere is blowing the RNC’s roll call out of the water. It looks like a giant party and celebration and everyone in that room looks like they’re having a blast.”
Then I knew something happened. Although more reasonable than many, McCain is a dedicated Republican, for her to put them down…
You know you’re on the losing team when your own members criticize you. This is exactly what was happening with Biden before he stepped down. There was all this public agitation from those in power. And if Biden refused to listen for weeks, what are the odds that Trump will change course? So far, nil.
So reading McCain’s tweet made me aware of the fact that something happened.
And it wasn’t long before I came across another reference, maybe in X, maybe in Apple News+, I was intrigued.
And then I found the playlist. The Spotify playlist.
BINGO!
You want to go back to the pre-internet era when people had to buy an overpriced CD to hear one good track? The ability to stick all these cuts together, instantly…allowed every news outlet to write about it and draw people to it, get them to listen.
And that’s the power of music.
Playlist – “DNC roll call”: https://shorturl.at/rRbGc
Click, you can’t help but check out the picks.
The obvious ones, with the names of the states in the title, the other references. This is how you get people to listen, THEY’RE INTRIGUED!
I don’t care if you’re a Democrat, Republican or Independent, you’re interested in the choices. And if you rain on the parade, nitpick… You’re a hater. No one likes a party pooper, NO ONE!
And the music covered all bases, unlike the Spotify Top 50. There were songs both old and new, it was a celebration.
So how can you do this?
Well, virality can’t be your sole motivation, that almost never works. Your idea must work on the surface. And if it’s cool enough, interesting enough…people will spread the word.
This is creativity, this is art, this is what’s missing in today’s music business, especially at the major labels. You can sell anything if it’s good and marketed well. But thinking outside the box? That’s anathema.
Everybody wants to go viral, but how do you do this?
Once again, you can pour a ton of cash on execution, but it really comes down to the idea. Is it unique enough to draw attention without looking like you’re doing it solely to draw attention?
And what will be the lifespan of this viral moment? Could be only two days.
That’s what old marketers don’t understand. That it’s nearly impossible to get noticed, but when you do, it doesn’t last, especially if it’s something universal. If you start from nowhere, with an act or event that few know about, it can grow over time. But if everybody is aware of the underlying cause, whether it be the convention or a concert or…virality lasts a very short time.
That’s what we’re waiting to see with Kamalamania. Will it last all the way to November, Election Day?
WE DON’T KNOW! We’ve never been in this situation before!
That’s how it used to be with music. We were surprised constantly. And in tech fifteen and twenty years ago there was a new app, a new platform, constantly, but those days of excitement are through. Apple stopped making the iPod, a huge hit that reached the end of its lifespan and then KAPUT!
So if you’re a band…
You can go on the road and do the same thing every night and wonder why you don’t get any traction outside the building or…
You can make it different every night. Instead of synching to hard drive, you can do something human, unique.
And the studio version… Rework your songs ad infinitum. The days of the pristine track are done. You need to cut it more quickly, to preserve the life. And then you can have alternate takes, acoustic versions, live versions, stems distributed to the fans… You want to enable virality, not shut it down.
It’s the public that made DJ Cassidy and this playlist go viral. It was spontaneous. In the old days, it would all be premeditated, there’d be a PR person who’d spread the word to major media outlets and a concentrated campaign to spread the news. Now each individual is a media outlet, if they see something amazing they tell everybody about it.
And it’s not only the playlist, which evidences its own creativity… Who is this DJ Cassidy guy? You WANT to Google him!
And the overall effect is to burnish the Democratic party and its convention and candidate. It all boils down to cool. And people want to be on the cool team. And in many cases, that’s more of a driver than the issues, which most people don’t understand, other than abortion.
Sure, the Republicans have Kid Rock, but not a whole hell of a lot more. That looks like a cult. Whereas all the performers of different stripes and colors at the Democratic convention…looks like the big tent the Democrats always say they are.
People want to belong. As a matter of fact, that’s what has solidified the MAGA cult. It’s them versus us. It’s about team sports. And so far, the Democrats haven’t found a way to counter this.
But now they have. They threw out the old for the new, not only getting rid of Biden but creating a viral moment with DJ Cassidy.
Has Kamala Harris’s campaign ushered in a new era of optimism?
Was the pent-up demand already there, just waiting to be released?
And was Taylor Swift’s Eras tour just a harbinger of a new era? And the nearly overnight success of Chappell Roan indicative of this newfound optimism?
Let’s be clear, there’s been a lot to be pessimistic about. The ’08 crash. Covid. And the hulking giant, income inequality. People thought not only could they not get ahead, but they were falling behind. And they were angry.
But something funny happened along the way, the younger generations detached. This is where Biden and the Democrats had it wrong. They looked on paper and saw what Joe had done, they looked at it as a math problem as opposed to an emotional one. People were beaten down, they were depressed, they wanted a ray of sunshine, ergo Harris’s great success.
And contrary to all the naysayers saying that the VP should have been Shapiro, to lock up Pennsylvania, the only people who have something negative to say about Walz are Republicans. Arguing about when he resigned from the National Guard after decades of service.
It’s laughable, when Trump skated service completely.
This is why the “weird” descriptor has worked so well. There’s no anger, no analysis of inane positions. Just a description of Trump and Vance as the other, out of step with the mainstream, not fully comprehensible.
Meanwhile, all Trump is selling is anger.
I can’t watch the convention. Life is too short. If there are any highlights, I’ll catch them later online.
There’s a lot of ink on Biden’s speech, which is ultimately irrelevant. It was the equivalent of giving him a gold watch before he rides into the sunset. Despite the hosannas, David Brooks was totally thumbs-down, saying the speech lacked intimacy, identity, all the elements that rile up the public in support of you. That it was just the usual political dreck and Joe was losing with this strategy and was going to lose again.
Actually, Biden’s complete strategy was to portray Trump in a negative light. You don’t want THIS guy, he’s going to end democracy!
Well, it turned out that plan didn’t work. The public is tired. They just can’t fight the usual bogeyman one more time, they can’t get it up.
But then the candidate was changed and this tsunami of energy and hope was unleashed. Suddenly, there were double digit increases amongst young people and those of color in support for the Harris/Walz ticket. The somnambulant awakened, the youngsters became active. And the weirdest thing is everybody believes their vote counts, and many of these people weren’t even planning to vote at all!
And speaking of weird, RFK, Jr. self-immolated. Never mind the issue of residence, the bear in Central Park was a bridge too far. Unfathomable to people who’ve never even encountered a bear outside of a zoo, never mind put it in their vehicle and then dumped it in a major city. RFK, Jr. was now laughable, indefensible, and his numbers tanked.
And RFK, Jr.’s position was one of no. No vaccines! The CDC is the enemy!
What he and the Republicans want is chaos. That’s what happens when you tear down government. As for the police, statistics tell us crime is going down. We want order. While not suppressing our individual rights. But somehow those in the hinterlands believe they have a lock on this, even when there is little law enforcement in the area.
Patriotism. Somehow the Democrats have reclaimed this. Turns out you can question your country and still love it.
As for Walz, he’s everyman. People can relate to him and his background. He’s not rich, he doesn’t own stock. He’s a man of the people. Not the people with rifles telling the government to stay away, but the people abiding by the rules who want a level playing field.
And all the Republicans are doing is attacking Harris.
She too could self-immolate, you can’t predict the future, faux pas are lurking around every corner, but in truth her candidacy is not even about her, it’s about what she represents. Hope.
Yes, that’s what Obama rode all the way to the White House, hope. But we were sold a bill of goods. Congress was locked, other than the Affordable Care Act nothing was passed and the division between the parties grew and Trump won.
Trump won because of dissatisfaction. But homey don’t play that no more. At some point you’ve got to have a plan.
As for Trump’s term in office, the only people who view that positively are those committed blindly to support him. Those who actually lived through the era remember the chaos. In truth, we want to stop thinking about politics, we want to get on with our lives, we don’t want to believe death and destruction is right around the corner. We’re sick of fear.
I’m not saying there are not issues. But if you don’t marvel at Shawn Fain’s success with the UAW, you must be an owner. As for all this negativity about unions… That’s an old paradigm. The corrupt officials. In a world where the federal minimum wage is less than ten dollars and manufacturing jobs have cratered, people want justice, they’re for the little guy. It’s less about you taking mine than all of us in it together for the benefit of everyone!
This is another way in which Trump bats zero. It’s always about him. Solely about him. Everybody sees that. Those who vote for him believe the goodies will trickle down to them, even though he benefited the usual fat cat Republicans in office, but the rest of the public ain’t buying it. They’re not looking for a narcissist.
Think about it, last year’s big hero was Barbie. The movie was dominated by pink.
As for “Oppenheimer”… A veneration of intelligence, of both the man and the viewer. It wasn’t dumbed-down for lowest common denominator acceptance.
This is what the movie studios don’t understand. They refuse to pivot to give the public what it wants. They make fewer movies in narrower verticals and even though some of these flicks do business, the overall numbers keep going down. You’ve got to break the trend.
Kind of like this spring’s rap battle between Drake and Kendrick. Questlove declared it the end of hip-hop. Insiders and acolytes were hanging on to every diss. But most of the public? They’d seen this movie before, they didn’t care, and what did it all mean anyway, two rich entertainers arguing about…exactly what? Their personalities, their choices? What about my personality and my choices!
Optimism does not mean no edge.
Then again, today’s rock is all edge and no substance, and is also negative. Look at the history of rock, it had many upbeat moments. The whole lifestyle was upbeat. Sure, people were drinking and drugging and f*cking, but that’s why they signed up, that’s what we all wanted before AIDS and sober living, never mind smartphone cameras. The world changed, but rock did not, and then it evaporated.
Grow your hair long, don your leather jacket, sport your tattoos…maybe you feel good about yourself but most people see you as out of touch, stuck in a past that is never coming back.
People need to be optimistic or they can’t go forward. Life is just too difficult sans sun. Sans belief you’re mired in the mud, sunk in depression. People won’t glom on to any false hope, but if everyone believes, they’re eager to jump on the train.
Which is why you’ve got these Zoom calls for Harris. Everybody wants to play. And every niche, in a world comprised of niches, is included. I attended a Deadheads for Harris Zoom. Likeminded people want to hang together, and feel that there’s a way forward.
And I could sit here and say how many ways Trump has it wrong, but that’s the change, it doesn’t matter, he’s selling black and Harris and Walz are selling white. No one wants to hear him spew about how bad it is, how this or that person is evil, they’re sick of it, they want something more positive.
And this does not only apply to politics. This optimism is and will continue to infiltrate all verticals. Sure there were scandals at the Olympics, then again there was Steph Curry’s three-pointer, and Simone Biles and… People felt nationalistic, Paris was not a downer. As for the people claiming that bunch of misfits were recreating the Last Supper…
Some of us are misfits. Actually, I’d augur all of us are misfits. Those were heroes, those were outsiders brought in. Does everything have to be seen through a negative lens? Does religion have to permeate every pore? Can’t we just have a good time?
But not be totally hedonistic?
The right keeps talking about the takers. Where on the left, people know they’re working hard and that being on welfare is no picnic, never mind being homeless. Are we just going to ignore America’s problems, throw our hands in the air, or are we going to dig in and address them, knowing progress is difficult, that not everything works out, but that does not mean you should stop trying.
This is a sea change in America. It’s been happening over the last four years and D.C. certainly hasn’t recognized it.
People want to leave the past behind. They want a fresh slate. They want something to believe in.
That’s what Swift delivered. That’s what Chappell Roan is delivering even more. You may not understand it, you may not care about it, but you must evaluate what it represents.
Everybody keeps painting the sixties as a dark era. And sure, there was Vietnam, protests, but there was also a hell of a lot of fun. Believe me, the Dead and the Airplane were having fun. Woodstock was all about fun.
That’s what people want, fun. When they’re not working hard.
And they want meaningful work. And they want to be heard.
All you have to do is give them opportunity.
When you keep telling them how bad things are, how the system is rigged, they are not energized. You’ve got to light a match to build a fire.
And that’s what Harris has done.
I don’t even care if you’re voting Republican. You’ve got to recognize how America has changed. We want things to work. We want progress. Enough with the negativity, we want to party like it’s…
Tell me about a band whose road numbers increased after they stopped having hits.
Tell me about a movie sequel that did better than the original.
Of course there are exceptions. Nitpicking is not the point. The point is if you’re not changing, you’re falling behind.
This is what is hobbling Trump. It’s no longer 2016. Eight years later the world has changed. Not only do we have all these new voters, Trump no longer represents the outsider throwing the long ball, up against the usual suspects. Now Trump is a usual suspect. And that ain’t working for him.
Of course Trump could still win. It’s only about seven states, and although Nate Silver has Kamala triumphing, things don’t look so good over at the WaPo. And never forget, if someone only has a twenty five percent chance of winning, that does not mean they cannot win.
But who is buying Trump’s spiel who did not buy it before?
And what are the odds that everybody who bought it last time is on board this time?
This is a completely different question from whether those with Republican values will vote for him. We’ve seen even the brass hold their nose and fall in line for him. But this election is about very few people. Are nicknames, insults and falsehoods going to convince those on the fence, the undecided?
Trends change. I guarantee what you’re doing today won’t be in vogue eight years from now.
Meanwhile, everybody will keep telling you to do the same damn thing.
Change course and a healthy chunk of your audience will abandon you. Furthermore, the odds of success in your new vertical are not good, just ask David Bowie. He had commercial misfires before he won once again. As for Garth Brooks, he wanted it both ways, changing his name for his rock album, which ultimately satisfies no one. People need to believe in you. Otherwise they won’t follow you to the next destination.
Look back, even the titans had very brief careers. The Beatles’ studio albums were all released in one decade. And that’s half a century ago. And as hard as they tried, no member of the band could achieve the ubiquity of the original band. Sure, Paul had huge commercial success following the same template he established with the other three, but John Lennon gets more respect because he widened his horizons, he experimented.
If you’re not willing to fail, you’re not going to succeed.
It’s nearly impossible to make it, to garner an audience. And once they get it, people are afraid to lose it. The more success you have, the less eager you are to experiment. But Neil Young did, and he outsold, and has more cred than Crosby, Stills or Nash, even though some of his records were commercial turkeys, relatively speaking.
This is where the labels come into play. This is one reason they’re faltering now. Because they’re providing the same thing they have for nearly two decades. And public tastes have changed. Once upon a time, hip-hop was new and fresh, and there are exceptions, but so much is calcified today. The audience has seen the movie, they’re looking for something different.
Nirvana killed the hair bands, but where do you go from there? There’s a harder edged modern sound that has its own format, Active Rock, but it reaches a fraction of the number of people rock did in the past.
And distribution makes a difference too.
Used to be even Tower Records carried a limited stock. Now streaming services have everything, meaning you’ve got to compete against the greats of music history, and that’s difficult. And if you’re doing a poor job of imitation, I’d rather hear the original, as most people would.
And the world changes nearly instantly today. Trump got shot not even two months ago and not only does it seem like ancient history, it has nowhere near the gravitas, the import, of what it had back then and usual suspect prognosticators believed it would continue to have.
Stratospheric peaks are no longer the poles holding up the big tent. Today you need a lot of peaks, maybe not as high, but without them, there’s no reason for the audience to continue to pay attention, it moves on.
And complaining gets you nowhere. If you think you’re going to win by carping about Spotify payments, you’ve already lost. And I hate to tell you, if you win, and continue to win, there’s a ton of money for everybody. But it’s easier to complain about the game than figure out how to break through yourself.
You’ve got to change it up. Even if you do it as well as you did the first time around, the public saw it the first time around, it’s no longer as incredible. There might be a bit of money involved, but very little excitement.
Post Malone’s recording career was going in the wrong direction. But now he’s gone country and it looks like he’s following the yellow brick road all the way to Oz.
And somehow Post did it with authenticity. Evidencing country roots. And he did it live before records. Which is the opposite of the way it used to be. Do something different on stage and even though few people were there, word can spread.
You cannot be a prisoner of your audience. It just isn’t comprised of enough people. This is Trump’s failure. He’s playing to the converted, not the uncommitted he needs to win.
As for Kamala… Most people still don’t know who she is. All they know is it’s no longer two aged men inured to the old system running for President. This is how much people wanted change. They’ve come out of the woodwork in support of…exactly what? Well, I don’t think it’s Harris herself, but what she represents, the new, the different, the young.
Harris is just like the new act replacing the old.
And you’ve got to make the news. The paper reports what has already happened. But news outlets need stories. Stunts can garner eyeballs, but how do you sustain viewership? Remember when BuzzFeed was all the rage? All those listicles? Well, they shut down their news department and no one has forwarded me one of those listicles in years. Turns out BuzzFeed didn’t have a second act.
Same deal with Yahoo. And AOL.
But with music, you can always rely on your catalog, your hits. But usually, these acts complain that they’re no longer on the chart, that no one wants their new music. That’s right, they don’t want new music that sounds just like the old. And blindly following trends doesn’t work either, all those rock bands who made disco records in the late seventies in a dash for cash ended up losing credibility, never mind not having success.
But reinvention, pushing the envelope is hard. It’s easier to rely on the tried and true.
But people always want the new. Look at the Sphere.
But that’s not the only place to look.
The public always wants something different, even though it says it wants the same and doesn’t know it wants the new until it does.
This is why market research doesn’t work in music, never mind anywhere else. How did Apple become the most valuable company in the world? By going by Steve Jobs’s gut. He famously did no research. He gave people what they needed, not what they wanted.
And this is all amorphous. It’s one thing to decide to change, it’s another thing to figure out where to go.
And don’t count on any support. Your audience will complain that you’ve changed. Your percentage partners don’t want to make less, they’ll tell you to stay the course.
So it’s down to you.
An artist challenges conceptions. Pushes people. Both irritates and thrills them. Which is why people who’ve never heard “Blitzkrieg Bop” know who the Ramones are.
Even the MLB changed the rules. The games were just too long. Going or watching is now a completely different experience.
But we haven’t had a new sound in decades, whereas we used to have one every four or five years.
And the landscape is amorphous. It’s a long hard struggle. There are no rockets to the moon. And TikTok is a game of chance.
No, it comes down to you.
Change is hard, but it’s the only way to continue to win and have impact, the only way to keep yourself in the conversation, to dominate it.
You never fail to take me back to the music I grew up with.
And I immediately wanted to be with you at The United Theatre.
So off I went, and what a show it was 🙂
“10cc – Donna – United Theater – Los Angeles, CA August 15, 2024”
With love and appreciation
Paul Holdom
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Hey, Bob: you really said it beautifully in your piece on 10cc.  I’ve been a lifelong fan since the beginning, and in fact saw them in 1978 in Cleveland on the same tour that you saw them.  I was delighted to see that they were touring the States this summer. Jill and I caught the show in Kent, OH on July 30. It was everything you said in your piece and more!!  In fact, they were so great that we trekked down to Cincinnati on Aug. 4 to see them again!! It was another perfect performance. Yes, it is no longer the full original band, but they did not lack for singing skills. In fact, their harmonies were staggering both nights. Your reference to The Beach Boys was right on-I don’t think there is another live band who can pull off those intricate vocal arrangements night after night. The word missing from the reviews I’ve read is “intelligence,” and it applies both to the words they have written and arranged, but to their tasteful playing as well.  Also, their collective sense of humor is…well…ridiculous! If 10cc’s music is new to anyone out there, let me suggest a silly but brilliant song from the “Deceptive Bands†album called, “I bought A Flat Guitar Tutorâ€, in which the words they sing are also the names of the chords to the song!!!!!  Think about THAT!!  Rumor has it that the band will return to the States next year.  If it happens, do not miss this unique and talented band.  They blew us away all over again.  Thanks for telling your audience about them.
Jimmy Fox
PS: in reading this back, I think I sound like a groupie. I guess maybe I am.  Damn, what a band!!!!!!!
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Bob: Couldn’t agree with you more. The a cappella version of DONNA and their rendition of FEEL THE BENEFIT were worth the price of the ticket. Prior to this L.A. show, like you I last saw 10cc at the Santa Monica Civic in 1978. Emailing you from Oakland Airport after seeing 10cc for the second time in 48 hours (at the Palace of Fine Arts in San Francisco). By the way, I brought friends (now converts) to both shows – just like I did back in the day.  Bob Paris
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Spot on, Bob.
I was also at Santa Monica Civic on November 1, 1978.
Early in my tenure at Virgin Megastore, 10cc released a “reunion” album of sorts, and I hoped for a US tour, but that just couldn’t happen in the new musical climate of 1992.
Thursday night was magnificent beyond my expectations. I literally bought my tickets solely to witness “Feel The Benefit” once again after 46 years.
Many of my “music business” colleagues were sitting amongst me, also participating in my many standing ovations.
I felt like we were in some private club for a few hours.
10cc is as relevant now as they were 51 years ago…
Bruce Kilgour
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Thanks for writing this review Bob.
My wife and I saw 10CC two weeks ago in Cincinnati. Admittedly, I was only familiar with three of their songs – I’m Not in Love, The Things We Do for Love, and Dreadlock Holiday. We were more than pleasantly surprised with the show. So many great tunes and musicianship.
We expanded our appreciation of the band’s work hearing tunes like Donna, Rubber Bullets, Silly Love, etc. for the first time.
Great to see the three veterans of the band and Andy Park was impressive with vocals and the number of instruments he played – sometimes simultaneously.
I’m glad you had the same impression we did with their show.
Steve Edwards
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You are spot on! Saw them in Phila last month. Art for Art’s Sake, Wall Street Shuffle, The Things We Do For Love, I’m Not in Love and Dreadlock Holiday. Wow! While they played those songs, I couldn’t help but think that if you told me in 1976 that I’d be watching them perform fifty years later well, you know the rest…
Would have loved to hear Graham sing No Milk Today but he stayed true to the music and the band…the things we do for love.
jeffsackstennis
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My wife, Carmen, and I went to see 10CC’s final show on the tour at the Palace of Fine Arts theater in San Francisco last night, Saturday. Much like your comments, we were blown away. The place seemed sold out, with 1000 seats. I was not a super fan; I always liked them and have most of their records, but I have not listened to them often or in-depth for years. I did not fit the demographic last night. Nearly everyone knew and sang along with the band on every song, even the new song done with Brian May. They did not phone it in. They were authentic, great musicians and performers who seemed to enjoy themselves. I was going to tell you how much we enjoyed them and this ground-breaking experience, and then your note came into my email box. I would have watched the show over again, too. Thanks for mentioning this excellent performance. It was one of the best shows we have seen in memory, and we often go out to listen to live music.
Steve Greene
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We were there, Bob. Yes, it was wonderful. Brought tears to my eyes and took me back to 1974. Donna was my intro, Sheet Music was my education. I’m so glad they came to our town.
Daniel Rosen
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With 10cc, you had four people who could all write…Â and all sing a hit song. That was pretty incredible. I saw them in my hometown earlier this month. All I had heard was that it was their first appearance in Saint Louis since 1975, which seemed impossible for such an important band. So I bought tickets without checking who was still in the band.
When I got there and realized that Gouldman was the only original band member left, I was kind of bummed. But I did not go home disappointed. Material that good just needs an airing by somebody. And in Gouldman’s loving and capable hands, with the help of some more-recent 10cc members, that material came off great. (As you expounded upon)
You had mentioned the Jewishness of Jonathan Richman and Joey Ramone in your Greg Kihn obituary. Surprised you didn’t mention it here. The Times of Israel called 10cc “the most successful three-quarters Jewish band in history.” And they were from Britain, not Brooklyn! I think it came through in their humor, all the way back to when they were known as Hot Legs and recorded “Neanderthal Manâ€.
Emmett McAuliffe Esq.
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What a great experience 10cc are today Bob!. We hosted them in the ICC Sydney smaller theatre (2,000 seats) back in June 2023 and it was a real blast. Exceeded everyone’s expectations. UP there being one of the tightest bands of the year. It didn’t sell to the back row,  but it should have. They did 20 dates on the Australian leg, Talk about a work ethic. Your readers should see this one if they can, it won’t disappoint, as you already know.
Don Elford
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One of the best I have ever seen live, and I have seen many.
Graham Williams
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Amen to That Bob – 10cc – Genius’s at work – observational brilliance and fabulous music sprinkled with sardonic humour – irresistible I always loved them – mostly recorded by an unsung genius from Stockport near Manchester called Richard Scott – the engineering is amazing.
Warm Regards
Jonathan Miller
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I recall buying Sheet Music, I think I was about 14. It was like nothing else I was listening to at the time – which ranged from Elton John to Sparks and everything in between. I bought all their records through Deceptive Bends—I thought they were the best band I had ever heard, and was particularly blown away by The Original Soundtrack. I also had the thrill of meeting Godley and Creme when I was 17 and working as an intern for WYSP in Philadelphia, when they came in for an interview.
When my daughter was in high school, which was a small independent school that Daniel Pink referred to in his book Drive as “turning the ‘one size fits all’ approach of conventional schools on its head”, I had the delight of teaching a class on the music of 10cc. It was a fantastic experience I’ll never forget.
Hope you continue to experience the joy of having seen 10cc!
warm regards
Debra Bouchegnies
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They were a huge on Montreal FM.stations (CHOM FM) And not just the hits (I’m not in love, Things We Do For Love etc)
I’m talking about :
Rubber Bullets
Wall Street Shuffle
The Dean and I
The Worst Band In The World
Thanks for the trip down memory lane
David Boloten
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I was wondering if you were at 10cc! We’ve never met, but I’m of the same vintage and we have very similar tastes (I’ve seen 10cc twice, last Thursday and on Nov. 26, 1975 at the Santa Monica Civic; I think I missed the ’78 show because I was in my 2nd year of law school). And of course I knew every word, as did everyone around us. While I missed Eric Stewart, Lol Creme and Kevin Godley (to this day the SM Civic show is among my favorites), I had no complaints about Fenn, Burgess, Park or Hayman. They were every bit as wonderful as you noted. Probably better. But that first show was amazing, and included Une Nuit a Paris, which I still love. (I loved the SM Civic. Among many others I saw there: Joe Cocker/Mad Dogs; David Bowie, Johnny Winter, J. Geils, Peter Frampton, Traffic, Supertramp, Derek & the Dominoes, ELP, ELO, Steely Dan, Lou Reed, Roxy Music, Sparks. . .)
Jeffrey Wruble
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Great review Bob, I bought The Original Soundtrack soon after my wife and I separated in ’75, me 25, she 21, I swear it and How Dare You got me through my divorce with many wry smiles.
Tony Barnes from downunder
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10CC were always the dog’s bollocks. Some of us have always known….since Hotlegs!
I’m envious, NO 10cc tour for Toronto or Canada, BUMMER!
In so far as Sabrina Carpenter and Chappell Roan, pfft.
Olie Kornelsen
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Saw them back in 1978 in Germany when I was in the army, it was a great show, jealous you just saw them!!
Doug Gillis
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Bob, I was a massive fan, and upon trying to lure friends into the web, I said, they are what the Beatles would have become if they had stayed together!, bloody tourists was every bit the equal to sheet music, in my opinion, doug bell, Bellevue Cadillac Band
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So great you enjoyed 10cc Bob.
One of The Great 1970’s  –  but now receding in the public consciousness – British bands like SuperTramp, ELO, Barclay James Harvest and Manfred Mann’s  Earthband amongst others…
although as you say they sounded like no one else, perhaps they are akin to being the UK’s Steely Dan in terms of their unique qualities?
Stephen Budd
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These guys wrote great songs! Besides what you mentioned, there was “I’m Mandy Fly Me,†“Life Is A Minestrone,†“Good Morning Judge,†“Dreadlock Holiday,†“For You and I,†a multitude of riches. I’m sorry they didn’t come through my neck of the woods, I would have gone to the show!
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Carl Nelson
Woodstock, MD
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I saw them the week before last in Nashville with my son who insisted that we go. Very small crowd but that meant I got to stand right in front of Graham Gouldman all night. It was like a private show. And boy can they still play. “I’m Mandy Fly Me†has lost none of its weird magic.
They don’t write or sing ‘em like that anymore.
Best
David Vawter
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In some ways, the funnier, Â pop side of progressive rock. 10cc are pioneers, and I had a Gizmotron, an original version.
“I’m Not in Love†is a masterclass in creative studio production.
Total fan. Glad to hear they “wowed†you
fritzdoddy
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Absolutely love your enthusiasm – this email is a perfect example!
I’m Mandy, Fly Me and Good Morning Judge are my favourites. Feel The Benefit is right up there too – what a band – as good as Lennon/McCartney as songwriters imho.
Cheers
Andy Fordyce
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I love love love 10cc!
I am envious… good for you!
Brad Merritt
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Such a great band – and it’s so fun to play songs by these guys for my wife and tell her “yea, that’s the same band that did the song “â€I’m Not in Loveâ€â€
“Dreadlock Holiday†freaked her out-nope not a reggae band !!
Thanks for always keeping us hip to the good stuff.
Craig Carrick
Clarkston, MI
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Barry Lyons and our crew saw 10cc — the original four — play the Buffalo State College gym right after I’m Not In Love (on Mercury) hit and place was still half-empty.  We were on to them early from their singles on UK (distributed by London not Mercury). A spectacular show captured somewhere on cassettes by my snuck-in Sony TC-224. Guess I need to look for ‘em.
Btw, Graham Goldman’s new solo album is pretty, pretty good too.
Richard Pachter
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Started with Sheet Music, worked my way back, and then kept buying their LPs thru Deceptive Bends. What a band! “I’m Mandy, fly me…”
Ross Field
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Hi Bob. Smiling throughout your entire review! Had the exact same experience of pure musical joy! Saw them in a 1,200 seat theater outside of Philly.  You could tell there were a lot of die hard fans. I only knew the three hits but knew that they were a very talented band and I was intrigued after your interview with Graham on your podcast. Every song was brilliant! I go to see a lot of live music and I have to say that I haven’t heard an audience roar with gratitude in a very long time!
Gary Sender
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I WAS AND AM STILL A 10CC FAN FROM DAY ONE. BOUGHT THEIR FIRST ALBUM THE WEEK IT CAME OUT. AND EVERY OTHER ALBUM AFTER. i had tickets for a show in Detroit late 70’s/early 80’a but was cancelled. Never got to see them. Glad you did. Twice now. Great band. Great songs.
Lee Bryan from Detroit. Take care.
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Hey Bob, my name is Dan Birkbeck, my friend Dick Huey sent me your review on the 10cc show in LA. It’s a shame that probably only music nerds read what you wrote, as I am not aware of the publication and accordingly would never have been exposed. What you have created was a perfect rehash of what I saw on their last show at the San Francisco Palace Fine Arts. a little background…
My brother passed away from prostate cancer two years ago much too young at the age of 62. He used to listen to this crazy band 10 CC in our family’s basement growing up in Michigan. Of course, as his little brother, I couldn’t help but be ruptured by what I heard. “Feel the Benefit†is one of my all-time favorite songs, and I began sobbing when they played it and I experienced the beauty and clarity you describe. Well, I didn’t know majority of the songs as you apparently do,but  I appreciated them with the same enthusiasm . Thank you for doing what you do and your summary brought me goosebumps.
All my best, keep it up.
Dan Birkbeck
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Being a Brit and one of my oldest Music Biz friends Steve Parker being their (10cc) booking agent I know and love this band, the big problem they have is that people know the name but don’t immediately put the songs to them, it has taken a few years of promotion to put the two together but now they are selling out Theatres and they are really an amazing band and so talented and of course the songs to match.
An amazing night out, probably one of your best shows.
Kindest,
Sir Harry Cowell
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Hi Bob,
I was hoping you were there and was looking forward your perspective.
I couldn’t agree more. The folks all around me knew every song in the setlist (easy to find nowadays) but we still high-fived in delight at the opening bars of such golden nuggets as ‘Clockwork Creep’ and ‘Feel The Benefit’. Oh, we wanted to hear the hits for sure. But 10cc is a band whose oeuvre is more defined by their ‘deep cuts’ than a small handful of hits, many of which never crossed to the US.
My first exposure to 10cc was ‘Rubber Bullets’ which received heavy rotation on KYA AM in San Francisco. I went straight to my local record shop (Banana Records) and put it on my dad’s system while he was at work. Yes, their debut is riddled in pastiche but oh my what a biting sense of satire lurked behind every track. And the production! I was gob smacked by the details in every track.
Of course, we now know that each of the original members had been in ‘the biz’ for quite some time and that they had their own recording studio (Strawberry) and had recorded dozens of singles and albums for other artists or under other monikers before making their debut album.
But it was ‘Sheet Music’ that stripped away the 50s/60’s pastiche and now here was a band that had all of the potential to be “The New Beatles”. I didn’t grow up with the Beatles. 10cc were my Beatles and their second album was my ‘Revolver’.
Sadly, after only two more brilliant albums the band split into two and all that potential fell by the wayside. Both factions still produced some fine music, ‘Freeze Frame’ by Godley & Creme is a masterwork, but the palpable magic of those four original members making music together is sadly lost.
The current touring band does a remarkable job of reminding us of an amazing body of work that still resonates when expertly performed by a caring and capable band of musicians who know what these songs mean to the fans.
Bravo.
Lee Elliott
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That’s such a great review Bob, however, many of us in attendance were not “super fans†of 10cc. I was going to law school and working full time and listening to their music in the car on cassette, years before my music business career started. My “date†wasn’t born yet. However, like everyone else in attendance at the beautiful Ace Theater, we found ourselves in what I would call a progressive pop/rock experience, with each member of a cohesive band excelling on each part. This was not formula music. There were tempo changes, style changes, key changes and fun intellectual lyrics, in each of the songs, with loads of the harmonies I love. Everyone knows “The Things We Do For Love†and it is a great song, but how often do you hear “new music†(new to me anyway) and become captured by an incredibly brilliant performance.
And why are all the great bands I am seeing from the UK? So far this year it’s been Alan Parsons, Al Stewart, what’s left of the Moody Blues, a live version of the Beatles’ White Album at the Grammy Museum, with Jeff Lynn’s ELO next weekend, Ringo Star a couple of weeks later, and British Lion and Tony Moore (of Iron Maiden heritage) in the wings.
I grew up in LA, but the British Invasion carried me away and gave birth to new sounding American pop, which was competing along side with the California country/folk/pop/rock artists hanging in Laurel Canyon and Hollywood and the Motown sound.
So, I find myself with all these great classic bands playing music from a lifetime ago that you hear in current movies and Netflix. The music still works.
The 10cc concert was a delightful surprise and shows that there is still a place for good artistry in a world of instant everything. Thursday night we found ourselves captured in a timeless moment that was everything but instant. I’m happy that you were there Bob, supporting good live music like we were.
David Chatfield, Harmony Records.
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I’m really sorry I didn’t catch this tour.
I knew ALL about 10CC from the outset because I knew ALL about Graham Gouldman’s songwriting prowess (“Bus Stop,” “Listen People,” “Look Through any Window,” “No Milk Today,” “For Your Love,” etc., and I knew Eric Stewart had been in the Mindbenders (“Groovy Kind of Love”). I even had (and still have) “The Graham Gouldman Thing” album, on RCA, production credit: Peter Noone. I got the first UK label singles and the first two albums – which I believe were through London in the USA, not Mercury. Harvey Lisberg, who managed both Herman’s Hermits and 10CC, and therefore also Graham Gouldman (I think they might have even been brothers-in-law at one point) knows more about the move from UK to Mercury. I interviewed Jonathan King back then for, I think maybe Zoo World, in the UK label’s NYC offices. A likeable and very smart record guy with great ears who went through some rough times later in life but is still around today.
There’s so much great music in the 10CC catalog, but I usually go all the way back to “Rubber Bullets” and “Donna.”
Toby Mamis
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From: Jonathan King
Thanks for the mention in your wonderful review of 10cc.
Had lovely lunch with Graham a few months ago.
All members of 10cc (my name) still speak to me. The problem is – none of them speak to each other!
I wanted them (and Genesis) to do a VOYAGE (we published Abba and I used to pick singles from demos) – so brilliant but better suited to my two bands – both of whom had spectacular solo careers as well as in groups. But only Graham agreed and even Peter G wasn’t convinced (I fear Phil C will not be around much longer).
Nothing to do with me anymore. But I witnessed the pure joy at Voyage (still sold out every night). My music ought to be available to the future generations (most at Voyage were my grand children’s age).
Anyway – again – so loved your review! Bet you wouldn’t feel the same about an Iron Maiden gig.
JK
x
P.S. I had a dream that they were huge in America and there was a giant billboard in Times Square saying “10CC No1 on the Billboard chart”. I phoned them the next day (having picked up Donna for release) and said “You have a name – 10cc”.
One of STORM’s first “hits” was the sleeve he did for me on Sheet Music (the name, by the way, should be said with a Mexican accent – sounding SHIIIIT!). One of the great things about 10cc was we shared an identical sense of humour. I was essentially the 5th member which was why it was so sad they were tempted away after two albums and then basically fell apart without me (as the “glue” – both personally and creatively).
