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
Une Nuit a Paris
10cc Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Bonjour, monsieur
Paris really welcomes you
It's the best room in the house (she lied)
It's forty francs a night, all right?
Touriste:
It's crazy, it isn't worth a centime
Mme. Bezier:
Merci, Monsieur
Offstage Chorus:
Rouged lips in the gaslight
A great view of the hall
That's the way the croissant crumbles after all
Narrator:
Paris is only one step away
Les girls are out on bail
Tres bien, there's love for sale
Coquette:
Oh my cheri, wish you were mine
And I'll show you a wonderful time
For the price of a cheap champagne
I'll show it you once again
Voice of the Streets:
One night in Paris
Is like a year in any other place
One night in Paris
Will wipe the smile off your pretty face
One girl in Paris
Is like loving every woman
One night in Paris
One night in Paris
One night in Paris
May be your last!!!
The song "Une Nuit a Paris" by 10cc is a story-telling song that takes place in Paris. The song is divided into three different parts, each providing a different perspective of the same night. The song opens with a Madame Bezier, who welcomes tourists to Paris, offering them a room at a steep price. However, the tourist agrees to pay, despite knowing that it is not worth the price. In the following stanza, a narrator introduces the city of Paris and where the music is taking place. A coquette then makes an appearance in the song, who tries to convince a man to spend time with her, offering a good time for a price. Finally, the voice of the streets comes, singing about the dangers and quickly changing fates that come with a night in Paris.
The song provides a seedy and dangerous image of Paris, focusing on the dangers of loving someone and the risks of midnight flings. It portrays the city as a place that is full of deceit, where everything is up for sale. The lyrics highlight the idea that the nightlife in Paris is something that should be experienced but needs to be approached with caution.
Line by Line Meaning
Bonjour, monsieur
Mme. Bezier greets the tourist.
Paris really welcomes you
Mme. Bezier emphasizes the welcome of the city.
It's the best room in the house (she lied)
Mme. Bezier claims the room to be the best when it's not true.
It's forty francs a night, all right?
Mme. Bezier asks the tourist for payment and confirms the price.
It's crazy, it isn't worth a centime
The tourist expresses dissatisfaction with the price of the room.
I'll take it!
The tourist agrees to pay for the room despite the high price.
Merci, Monsieur
Mme. Bezier thanks the tourist for accepting the room.
Rouged lips in the gaslight
The offstage chorus describes the appearance of the coquette in the gaslight.
A great view of the hall
The offstage chorus comments on the view from the room.
That's the way the croissant crumbles after all
The offstage chorus comments on the reality of the situation.
Paris is only one step away
The singer emphasizes the accessibility of Paris.
Les girls are out on bail
The artist implies that the girls are prostitutes who have been released after being arrested.
Tres bien, there's love for sale
The singer suggests that sex or love is easily available in Paris.
Oh my cheri, wish you were mine
The coquette expresses her attraction to the tourist.
And I'll show you a wonderful time
The coquette promises to entertain the tourist.
For the price of a cheap champagne
The coquette implies that the tourist can afford her services.
I'll show it you once again
The coquette offers to engage in sexual activities with the tourist.
One night in Paris
The voice of the streets emphasizes the uniqueness of Paris.
Is like a year in any other place
The voice of the streets highlights the intensity of the experience in Paris.
Will wipe the smile off your pretty face
The voice of the streets warns the tourist that Paris can be overwhelming and unpleasant.
One girl in Paris
The voice of the streets suggests that every woman in Paris has something to offer.
Is like loving every woman
The voice of the streets implies that one can experience diversity in Paris.
One night in Paris
The voice of the streets reiterates the uniqueness of Paris.
May be your last!!!
The voice of the streets warns the tourist that Paris can be dangerous and deadly.
Contributed by Caroline R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Bogart 7
Roy Thomas Baker, the pop perfectionist who had produced all the Queen albums up until then, later recalled his time working with Freddie, listening, mouth open, as the singer demonstrated on the piano an “idea for a song” that he had. “It was going to be a brief interlude of a few Galileos and then we’d get back to the rock part of the song,” Baker memorably recalled years later.
“When we started doing the opera section properly, it just got longer and longer.” Days went by with the recording. Every time a perplexed Baker thought they were done, “Freddie would come in with another lot of lyrics and say: ‘I’ve added a few more Galileos here, dear,’ and it just got bigger and bigger.” There had famously been long songs on albums before; tracks identified by their construction from seemingly disparate elements that built to a towering crescendo. Also, most recently in the mind of Freddie Mercury, the three-part pop operetta Une Nuit A Paris from 10cc’s summer 1975 album The Original Soundtrack.
10cc Graham Gouldman Is Convinced Rockers Queen Took The Lead From 10cc When They Wrote Bohemian Rhapsody As He Had Performed A Three-part Pop-opera During A Joint Concert With The Band.
The structural similarities of the two tracks prompted suggestions Mercury had been influenced by the earlier song, and now 10cc member Gouldman reveals the band had earlier performed Une Nuit A Paris during a show with Queen in Liverpool, England.
He tells Mojo magazine, "We did a gig with Queen in Liverpool - I'm sure they heard it. We were quite like them in terms of production values and song construction."
Robbie
[Part One: One Night in Paris]
Mme. Bezier:
Bonjour, monsieur
Paris really welcomes you
It's the best room in the house (she lied)
It's forty francs a night, all right?
Touriste:
It's crazy, it isn't worth a centime
I'll take it!
Mme. Bezier:
Merci, Monsieur
Offstage Chorus:
Rouged lips in the gaslight
A great view of the hall
That's the way the croissant crumbles after all
Narrator:
Paris is only one step away
Les girls are out on bail
Tres bien, there's love for sale
Coquette:
Oh my cheri, wish you were mine
And I'll show you a wonderful time
For the price of a cheap champagne
I'll show it you once again
Voice of the Streets:
One night in Paris
Is like a year in any other place
One night in Paris
Will wipe the smile off your pretty face
One girl in Paris
Is like loving every woman
One night in Paris
One night in Paris
One night in Paris
May be your last!!!
[Part Two: Same Night in Paris]
Is he gonna buy?
You wanna little culture?
Is he gonna pay?
Maybe Monsieur is into photographs, Non?
Or is he gonna fall in love
The all American way?
I got a watch wiz a beautiful Swiss movement
Is he gonna buy?
Forget the watch, I'll show you a good time!`
Is he gonna pay?
Le connoisseur, want something different?
Or is he gonna fall in love
The all American way?
Oh you know you ain't no Casanova
You can't even do the Bossa Nova
Or the Tango or the Samba!
Though you are so very charming
No you ain't no Casanova
Is he gonna buy?
Is he gonna pay?
Or is he gonna fall in love
The all American way?
Sometimes I think he will
But then again........................
One night in Paris
Is like a year in any other place!
One night in Paris
Will wipe the smile off your pretty face!
Try a girl in Paris
But try one of mine
Each night in Paris
Each night in Paris
Each night in Paris
Each night in Paris
May be your last!!!
[Part Three: Later the Same Night in Paris]
Forty-Two, Quarante-Deux
Rue de Saint Jacques
All our girls are how you say
Good in the sack
I was a stripper
On the Champs Elysees
He was a gendarme
In the gendarmerie
Going Oh La La La
Oh La La La La
He was a pimp
In a black beret
But he was an artiste
In his own way
Oh La La La
Oh La La La La
When they raided my club that night
They ruined my act with the leather umbrella
The Chief de Police got a fright
He was up in my boudoir with some other fella
It's only routine
But I got this feeling
It ain't good for business
Then the floor cleared
A woman screamed to herself
Henri...Though you're not the toast of Paris
I love you, although you bed and beat me
Henri, leave it alone
For the gendarme's just doing his job
Paris is only one step away
Murder is only one step away
Notre Dame is ringing her bells
Another gendarme has gone to Hell
Notre Dame is ringing her bells
Another gendarme has gone to Hell
Gone to Hell
Gone to Hell
One night in Paris
Is like a year in any other place
One night in Paris
Will wipe the smile off your pretty face
One girl in Paris
Is like loving every woman
This night in Paris
This night in Paris
This night in Paris
This night in Paris
May be your last!
Nick Landry
10cc was a groundbreaking group that never has achieved the acclaim they so richly deserve. Way underrated, one of my all-time favorites. Music was so great back in the 70s!
Steve Leake
Eric was a superb guitarist, like you say so much under-appreciated. "Feel the Benefit" one of my fave tracks of all time.
Steffan Hoffmann
I don't know what you are talking about.
In UK and Europe they were huge.
This song is over complicated though and it's bloody awful.
Nick Landry
@Steffan Hoffmann I'm referring specifically to the USA, sorry. And you do have the right to your opinion, but I disagree about how good this song is. It's a groundbreaking masterpiece that opened the door for the likes of Queen and others.
Yargundev
Probably the most underappreciated rock masterpiece of the 70's. En par with the Bohemian Rhapsody
Grouchy Jelly
Freddie said this was his biggest inspiration for writing it.
Greg Gower
I wish there was a video recorded.
les brown
Queen admitted this inspired Bohemian Rhapsody
Ross Clark
And I think previously somebody had been listening to Van Dyke Parks.
Blake S
@Greg Gower I know. I can't believe no video of this masterpiece. Great version on Santa Monica though if you've not heard it.