10CC

The debut album from 10CC is a very enjoyable album to me. I never really listened to 10CC but of course I have heard some of the hits in the radio. After purchasing some of their albums I have learned that there is more to this band than meets the ear on first listen. This is their debut though and the more complex structures and progressive ideas that would emerge on later albums weren´t as present here.

The music is in fact very inspired by fifties Doo Woop and R´n´b. It´s done with a gleam in the eye though much like Zappa did when he played this style. It´s clear to hear though that 10CC really like the style though and songs like Johnny, Don´t Do It, Donna and especially my favorite the more uptempo The Dean and I are great examples of this style. There are more to 10CC than that though and even though every song is very catchy and potentionally commercial there is always a twist to the songs that keep them exciting. This is typical for 10CC. They make commercial songs that if you scratch the surface are very complex and even progressive to some extent.

The musicianship is excellent throughout the album and especially the vocals impress me.

The production is otherworldly. This is just such an excellent production and as other reviewers has mentioned 10cc´s music is best heard through headphones. What´s even more impressive is that the production is done by Eric Stewart and not some fancy famous producer. This is the exception from the rule that musicians shouldn´t produce their own music.

This is a really good debut album, but 10CC will be even better on later albums and I´ll wait with the big star ratings for those. I think this deserves 3 stars for being a good complex pop album. This is something you just gotta hear for yourself to decide if this is something for you. I think it is very recommendable though.