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17 of 18 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
wealth of brilliant music--definitive package of early 10cc, December 29, 2004
First of all, a huge thumbs up to the Varese Sarabande label for this terrifically assembled, smartly sequenced collection. The first ten tracks on disc 1 collect all of tracks from 10cc's self-titled 1973 debut album, & likewise, the first ten on disc 2 collect all of the tracks from their second album, 1974's "Sheet Music". All 6 of their non-LP b-sides from this era are also featured--the first disc includes all of the non-LP b-sides from the first album's singles, along with single/ alternate versions of tracks that are on the album, & the same method is followed for disc two. In short, this 2-disc set truly lives up to its title. Plus the sound quality is fantastic and extensive liner notes are also included.
The original 10cc lineup of Eric Stewart, Graham Gouldman, Kevin Godley, & Lol Creme were a unique blend of talent--Godley & Creme had previously built a strong reputation for themselves as studio musicians, & they were a pair of pretty highly wacked-out, yet multi-talented & ambitious guys who had impressive composing talent. Graham Gouldman was an established songwriter, having written numerous hits for other artists in the `60s such as the Yardbirds classic "Heart Full of Soul", & was briefly a member of the Mindbenders, a band that also featured Eric Stewart who sang lead on their huge hit "A Groovy Kind of Love". Godley, Creme, & Stewart under the name Hotlegs, had a big hit with a track called "Neanderthal Man" in 1970. In 1972, Gouldman was officially & permanently added to the mix (Gouldman did play bass on one Hotlegs track), & 10cc was born. This early 10cc work displays impressive creativity & originality and is frequently a total blast. I do want to point out that, although 10cc's "lightness"/ sense of humor is a key element of their appeal, this early stuff is often rooted in flat-out parody/ satire, so if you're looking for music that's meaningful (with a capital `M') & tugs at the heartstrings, for the most part that's really not what this stuff is about. Also, there are definitely occasional missteps here--Godley & Creme at times do steer things into annoying, poor taste territory like on the rather obvious, eye-roll inducing doo-wop sendup "Johnny, Don't Do It!", & they really go overboard on the gross "The Hospital Song". Plus, the rocker "Silly Love" has grating electric guitar chords, & "Rubber Bullets" is catchy, but dumb in an eye-roll inducing way. It's worth pointing out though that, for such a unique, inventive, & ambitious band, they were bound to fall flat on their faces at times, & you've got to hand it to them because most of the time on here, they didn't; there is simply a load of really uncanny & mind-blowing music on this collection--the lion's share of the tracks from the 2 proper albums represented here are great. 10cc offer up lots of fun, excitement, & striking musicality on here. To put it a certain way, there`s a lot to listen for, & it keeps you on your toes--the music overall is very dynamic with lots of abrupt changes. Terrific tracks include the amusing, acoustic slide guitar-spiked "Sand In My Face"; the super-fun, hook-filled "The Dean And I" which is punctuated by great, layered guitar leads; the "Paperback Writer"-ish "Headline Hustler" which has rather mellow, terrifically melodic McCartney-esque verses with Harrison-esque slide guitar, plus a surging singalong chorus; the wildly exciting, Bo Diddley-ish "Speed Kills" with its layers of fluid, searing lead guitar work from Eric Stewart; the splendidly tuneful doo-wop tune "Donna"; the bouncy, infectious, lyrically paranoid uptempo pop-rocker "Ships Don't Disappear In the Night (Do They?); the brilliant, ultra-catchy, lyrically incisive pop-rocker "The Wall Street Shuffle"; the gorgeous, atmospheric "Old Wild Men"; the very amusingly sarcastic and catchy "The Worst Band In the World"; & the folky, smile-inducing ode to chilling out "The Sacro-Iliac". The melodic ballad "Fresh Air For My Mama" does have some poignancy, and it's a solid track. "Hotel" starts off with spacey sci-fi noises before eventually kicking into an infectious Carribbean-flavored tune, & the hyperactive "Clockwork Creep" (a snippet of which was sampled on their subsequent "I'm Mandy Fly Me") is a lot of fun as well. Eric Stewart offers up lots of terrific, rip-roaring guitar work on here--he truly deserves his guitar-god reputation.
The non-album material also provides interest--the instrumental "Hot Rock Sun" & the bluesy "4% of Something...", both b-sides, are clearly a bit tossed off, but they're fun, & there's also the nice (though not GREAT) acoustic guitar-based "Waterfall" which is dreamy & well-harmonized, although the mid-song backwards guitar portion, which gets to be easily predictable, is tedious. Also, it's interesting to hear how they cranked up the bass on the single version of "The Dean And I".
10cc, one of the greatest bands of all time, would go through big changes over the years in terms of sound & with Godley & Creme leaving the group. Most, if not all, of this collection might be redundant for diehard 10cc fans, but still, it's impossible to truly complain about this very well-priced, definitive chronicle of their 1972-1974 UK Records period. Any serious fan is better off with this collection than with just the "10cc"/ "Sheet Music" twofer CD (no offense to that splendid release). In the end, you simply can't go wrong with this superb collection.
(P.S. Annoyingly, there's a typo in the track listing on the back cover of the CD & on the (second) disc itself--"The Sacro-Iliac" is listed as "The Sacro-Illac".)
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
these guys are so underrated. great album, November 21, 2006
i remember the first time I was turned on to these guys was back in the days when Godley and Creme released a video called "Cry" in the eighties. Later, i really liked a WILL TO POWER song called "i'm not in love" (later discovering the original as recorded by 10cc). This collection of their ealy works is chock full of great hooks and clever pastiches of The Beatles and Brian Wilson. Also, recommended if you're a fan of Todd Rundgren.
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3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Could have been a great package..., December 13, 2006
Plain and simple, yes this thing is a comprehensive document of the early years of 10cc, BUT the re-mastering job on this release is abysmal. The slightly less completist versions that Repertoire have done recently have MUCH better sound.
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