Biography
10cc are an English rock band founded in Stockport who achieved their greatest commercial success in the 1970s. The band initially consisted of four musicians – Graham Gouldman, Eric Stewart, Kevin Godley, and Lol Creme – who had written and recorded together for some three years, before assuming the name “10cc” in 1972. 10cc featured two songwriting teams, one “commercial” and one “artistic”. Stewart and Gouldman were predominantly pop-songwriters, who created most of the band’s accessible songs. By way of contrast, Godley and Creme were the predominantly experimental half of 10cc, featuring an Art School sensibility and cinematically inspired writing. Every member of 10cc was a multi-instrumentalist, singer, writer and producer, and the writing teams frequently switched partners, so that Godley/Gouldman or Creme/Stewart compositions were not uncommon. After Godley and Creme left the band in 1976, Gouldman and Stewart were the main creative forces behind 10cc. Stewart left the band after 1995 and Gouldman continues to lead a touring version of 10cc. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/10cc
Album & Cover
Greatest Hits 1972–1978 was the first compilation by the English rock band 10cc to include their recordings with UK Records and with Mercury. It was released in time for Christmas 1979 and was intended as a stop-gap between albums, whilst Eric Stewart recovered from his car accident. The album was a big success reaching No.5 in the UK charts. A single was released alongside, coupling their biggest hit “I’m Not in Love” with “For You And I” from the Bloody Tourists album. The single failed to chart. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Greatest_Hits_1972–1978
Storm Thorgerson enjoyed using puns for imagery and he used it to great effect for this album. Using the ‘Greatest Hits’ theme, on the front and back cover can be seen, Babe Ruth the baseball legend, a boxing glove-Ali’s?, William Tell’s arrow through an apple, Caesar about to be killed, a gangland killing, a bank job, the Titanic sinking, a hammer, a bride slapping her future groom at a wedding…The graphics done superbly by George Hardie which included the inner sleeve and the Titanic scene on the labels. The Titanic scene was set up in the studio by Peter Christopherson using a small plastic model with white polystyrene chunks for icebergs with imaginative background lighting.
Location: Hipgnosis studio, London.
Who Did What: Photography – A. Powell. Graphics – G. Hardie
Label: Polydor PD-1-6244(US), Mercury 9102504(UK)
Source: Vinyl. Album. Cover. Art, The Complete Hipgnosis Catalogue: Aubrey Powell
Tracklist
| Side One Rubber Bullets Donna Silly Love The Dean And I Life Is A Minestrone The Wall Street Shuffle |
Side Two Art For Art’s Sake I’m Mandy Fly Me Good Morning Judge The Things We Do For Love Dreadlock Holiday I’m Not In Love |
Credits
Mastered By [All Tracks] – Melvyn Abrahams
Producer – 10cc (tracks: A1 to B2, B6)
Written-By – Stewart (tracks: A3, A6, B1 to B6), Gouldman (tracks: A1, A6, B1 to B6), Godley (tracks: A1, A2, A4, B2), Creme (tracks: A1 to A5)
