Stewart and Gouldman were straight pop-song-writers, who created the band’s most accessible songs; Godley and Creme were the experimental half of 10cc, featuring an Art School sensibility and cinematic writing. All are skilled multi-instrumentalists, vocalists, writers, and producers, and each could perform convincingly as lead singers, leading to favourable comparisons with The Beatles.
The band achieved its greatest commercial success during the 1970s.
In 1976 ... Godley & Creme left, releasing records under that name before making a significant contribution to the development of the music video in the 80s.
In 1977 ... 10cc embarked on an international tour with guitarist Rick Fenn, keyboardist Tony O'Malley and additional drummer Stuart Tosh and recorded a live album in 1977, "Live And Let Live", which mixed the hits with material from the previous three albums.
Fenn, Tosh, Burgess and keyboardist Duncan Mackay were full members of the band and performed on 1978 album "Bloody Tourists", which provided the band with their third UK No.1 single, the reggae-styled "Dreadlock Holiday".
1977-1983 ... After the departure of Godley and Creme, Stewart and Gouldman opted to continue as 10cc, bringing in to the studio drummer Paul Burgess, who had up to that point been their tour backup drummer. Their first album as a three piece band was "Deceptive Bends".
1984-1992 ... Separate projects - after 1983, the band went into recess as Stewart did produce recordings for Sad Café and Gouldman produced tracks for The Ramones before teaming up with Andrew Gold to form the synth-pop group Wax.
1992-1995 ... In 1992 the original four members reunited to record "Meanwhile", an album produced by Gary Katz of Steely Dan fame. ...the album was not a "reunion" in the strict sense of the word. All the album's songs were written by Stewart and Gouldman ... Creme and Godley agreed to guest on the album to fullfil their obligation to Polydor records.
1999-2009 ... since 1999 Gouldman has toured as 10cc consisting of Rick Fenn, Paul Burgess, Mick Wilson, Mike Stevens and/or Keith Hayman, with occasional guest appearances by Kevin Godley. The band has embarked on several national tours of the UK and various dates throughout the World playing 10cc hits, plus a section of Gouldman's hits written for others. Their first gig was at Ronnie Scotts jazz club in Birmingham in 1999.
Additional info:
There is much speculation about where the name of the band comes from but the general consensus was that it is named after the average amount of ejaculate in a single male orgasm. However one will find that the average is about 3cc ...the name "10cc" in fact comes from a dream: Jonathan King, the person who signed them, dreamed of a band called 10cc topping the charts in both the UK and America - see: snopes.com/music/artists/10cc.asp
Blackmail
10cc Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
She doesn't need diamonds
She's lookin' for pretty things
She doesn't want romance
She doesn't need finance
She's looking for rendezvous
But every time she's going down
I'll wait and watch her with my
Lens until she brings the curtain down
'There behind the keyhole'
With my fisheye
I'm back in the darkroom
I'm covered in fixer
I'm making a photograph
I'll send her some postcards
In glorious colour
I'm keeping the negatives
I'll form a letter from the news
With different type from different lines
I'll tell the world about her
I'll mail the People and the Times
'Oo it'll be so scandalous
For the both of them
But mainly her'
She showed them her husband
He ordered a dozen
He thought they were fabulous
The one with the --
The two of the --
And three of the --
He sold her to Hefner
Who put her in Playboy
He gave her a centre-fold
I made a real blunder
She made it in movies
I made her a superstar
The lyrics of 10cc's "Blackmail" tells the story about a woman who isn't interested in money or romance but instead seeks pretty things and rendezvous with men. The singer of the song is not involved with the woman romantically but instead spies on her through a lens and in the end ends up turning her into a star through blackmail. The singer waits and watches her through his fisheye lens until she brings the curtain down. He then takes several photographs, keeps the negatives and sends them to her as postcards. From there, he forms a letter from the news with different types from different lines in which he plans to tell the world about her. The woman then shows the photographs to her husband, who ends up ordering a dozen copies, believing them to be fabulous.
The singer then conspires with a man named Hefner who puts the woman on Playboy's centerfold. Unfortunately, this turns out to be the singer's biggest mistake as the woman then goes on to make it in movies and becomes a superstar. The lyrics suggest that it was the singer's attempt at blackmail that ultimately led to the woman's success.
"Blackmail" is a song that explores the theme of manipulation and power. The singer in the song represents an individual who has taken it upon himself to control the life of a woman. The song suggests that the woman had no idea of what was going on and that she was being manipulated into stardom without her knowledge or consent. The song is a cautionary tale about the dangers of power and manipulation and the long term consequences of such actions.
Line by Line Meaning
She doesn't need money
Money is not what she is looking for
She doesn't need diamonds
Diamonds are not what she is looking for
She's lookin' for pretty things
She is searching for aesthetically pleasing things
She doesn't want romance
She is not interested in romantic relationships
She doesn't need finance
Financial support is not what she is seeking
She's looking for rendezvous
She is searching for secret meetings and encounters
But every time she's going down
Whenever she is in trouble
She never looks around
She never pays attention to her surroundings
I'll wait and watch her with my
I will observe her closely through my
Lens until she brings the curtain down
Camera lens until she gets caught doing something scandalous
'There behind the keyhole'
Watching secretly through the keyhole
With my fisheye
Using a fisheye lens for a distorted view
I'm back in the darkroom
Developing the pictures in a darkroom
I'm covered in fixer
Covered in photographic chemicals
I'm making a photograph
Taking a picture
I'll send her some postcards
Sending her explicit pictures
In glorious colour
Colored pictures that are vivid and bright
I'm keeping the negatives
Keeping the original pictures under my possession
I'll form a letter from the news
Creating a letter from the newspaper headlines
With different type from different lines
Using different fonts and headlines to create a message
I'll tell the world about her
Exposing her scandalous activities to the world
I'll mail the People and the Times
Sending the pictures to news outlets such as People Magazine and The New York Times
'Oo it'll be so scandalous
It will be incredibly controversial
For the both of them
They will both be affected by the scandal
But mainly her'
She will be the one to receive the most negative attention
She showed them her husband
She showed off her husband to someone
He ordered a dozen
He requested multiple copies
He thought they were fabulous
He was impressed with the pictures
The one with the --
Reference to an explicit picture that is being referred to without explicitly stating it
The two of the --
Reference to another explicit picture being referred to without stating it
And three of the --
Reference to a third explicit picture being referred to without being explicitly stated
He sold her to Hefner
He sold the rights to her pictures to Playboy founder, Hugh Hefner
Who put her in Playboy
She was featured in a centerfold for Playboy magazine
He gave her a centre-fold
She was a main feature in the center pages of the magazine
I made a real blunder
I made a big mistake by taking and sharing these explicit pictures
She made it in movies
She became a movie star
I made her a superstar
By taking and sharing the explicit pictures, I helped her become famous
Lyrics © SCHUBERT MUSIC PUBLISHING INC. , Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: LOWELL T GEORGE, ROBERT PALMER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind