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
Waterfall
10cc Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Gonna take you out of town
Out to where the grass is greener
And no one can be found
Gonna be there in the morning
Gonna take you by the hand
Gonna get out of the city
Waterfall, and it's fallin' down on me
Waterfall, and it's fallin' down
But it ain't gonna let me be
Gonna be there in the morning
Gonna take you by the hand
Gonna get out of the city
Gonna get back to the land
Waterfall, and it's fallin' down on me
Waterfall, and it's fallin' down
But it ain't gonna let me be
Hey, Waterfall
Hey, Waterfall
Hey, Waterfall
Hey, Waterfall
In 10cc's song "Waterfall," the singer is expressing a desire to escape the city and find refuge in the peaceful countryside. The lyrics speak of meeting a companion on a street corner and taking them out of town to a place where the grass is greener and nobody can be found. The repetition of the lines "gonna be there in the morning" and "gonna get out of the city" emphasize the singer's determination to leave behind the hustle and bustle of urban life.
The title of the song, "Waterfall," is a metaphor for the steady flow of beauty and tranquility the singer hopes to find in nature. However, as the repeated lines "waterfall, and it's fallin' down on me" and "but it ain't gonna let me be" suggest, the singer also recognizes that the peace they seek may not be easily attained. The waterfall can be interpreted as a symbol of the unpredictable and challenging aspects of life that are still present even in nature's serenity.
Overall, the lyrics of "Waterfall" convey a longing for simplicity and natural beauty while acknowledging that the journey to find it may take effort and perseverance.
Line by Line Meaning
Gonna meet you on the corner
I am planning to meet you on the street corner
Gonna take you out of town
I am taking you away from the city
Out to where the grass is greener
We will go to a place where we can find more peace and calmness
And no one can be found
We will go somewhere remote where there is little to no possibility of finding anyone else.
Gonna be there in the morning
I will be there early in the morning
Gonna take you by the hand
I am going to take you by the hand to guide you to our destination.
Gonna get out of the city
We'll leave the city behind us,
Gonna get back to the land
We'll get back to nature, get closer to the earth
Waterfall, and it's fallin' down on me
The waterfall is falling down onto me
Waterfall, and it's fallin' down
The waterfall is falling down
But it ain't gonna let me be
I can't escape the waterfall's effect
Hey, Waterfall
I call out to the waterfall
Hey, Waterfall
I call out to the waterfall again
Hey, Waterfall
I call out to the waterfall a third time
Hey, Waterfall
I call out to the waterfall one last time
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: GRAHAM GOULDMAN, ERIC STEWART
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Ian Alterman
A common chord progression that they somehow make their own. Another lovely song from them.
AstraMusicOfficial
Lovely harmonies and the style is so different and melancholy from some of the more tongue-in-cheek stuff. Love the climbing notes on the word "land" at the end of the line. I'm a fan of the great diversity proffered by 10cc.
Alan
Great to hear this again. First came across it on the original 100cc Greatest Hits album back in 1975 but my copy has long since disappeared.
shandy227 shandy227
One of my favourites of 10cc often play it. Such a good song.
redkirk
I've loved this song since I first heard it on the "100cc - Greatest Hits of 10cc" album. Just got the "Live and Let Live" CD in the mail (after having lost the album 30 years ago) and still love listening to the live version as well. I still haven't figured out how to play "Waterfall" or "Fresh Air for My Momma" on the guitar.
Kevin Moss
This should have been on an album
BigCoolViking. G.S.
This is fantastic- it just is!
Virginia Bravo
Amazing track! Thanks for sharing.
PAS
Love this track!
Swedefunkygirl
Love this song <3 !