Great Pop Videos – Vol. 1
Came across this one accidentally. Unbelievably great early (1977?) promo film for 10CC’s new album “Deceptive Bends”, just after Godley & Creme split to form, um, Godley & Creme.
either 10cc before the breakup in '76 or the touring cast of "Hair"
It’s got everything: Tambourines! Split Screen! ’70s Hair! Star Filters! Link to the video after the jump!
And the song’s pretty great, too. If you read my earlier post “A is for Arrangement,” you’d know this thing is right up my alley. Beautiful, swooping harmonies, great instrumentation, and a cool half-time section (cue the tambourines…).
EDITED: Well, YouTube has disallowed embedding this video, so here’s a link instead!
A cool gear-head aside: Godley & Creme developed a guitar effect called either the Gizmo or the Gizmotron (depending on who you ask). It is an electromechanical box with rubber wheels that would stimulate the guitar strings to give a synth-like sound (kinda like an E-bow, but with more cursing and intonation problems). They’re rare as hen’s teeth now — I actually know someone who owns one. Here’s a link to a Japanese site with photos. I believe it was used all over Led Zeppelin’s “In Through the Out Door”.
Hopelessly Pop 
August 12, 2008 at 7:56 pm
This group was very strong — more songwriting chops than they needed and probably the artistic differences to go long with it . . . Some other guilty pleasures peek out on the right side of the same YouTube page. Follow the links and have some fun. Personally I had a good laugh hearing that robotic female voice saying, “Big boys don’t cry” (way too many times) on “I’m Not in Love.”
Thanks, Andy. I lost track of this group when Godley and Creme split off — now, through your generosity and YouTube’s magic I can catch up. Cheers!
August 12, 2008 at 8:06 pm
They still have a huge following, but I have a feeling they were bigger in the UK than they were here. What did Godley & Creme accomplish besides “Cry”? I think that might have been their only hit here, and that was early ’80s I think. I do know they became music video directors (for some biggies early in MTV’s history).
“I’m Not in Love” is also a great song. I really feel like this ’70s AM radio stuff was the soundtrack of my growing up… and probably shaped my taste for overproduced, heavily layered powerpop today.
August 12, 2008 at 9:22 pm
Their Opus after leaving 10CC (and perhaps the motivation for breaking away) was “Consequences” — a three-record album which I’ve been reading about online. It seems to be regarded — especially by co-creator Kevin Godley — as the “Ishtar” of the music business. Fascinating group of guys who, as contemporaries and industry colleagues with so many giants (from the Hollies to Pink Floyd), have a million stories to tell and countless internet threads you can chase down through the URL maze.
The other guys from 10CC — Stewart and Gouldman — are pretty interesting, too.
As you noted, Andy, the Gizmotron was just further evidence that this was a collection of guys who were bursting with talent and ability and confronted with almost too many opportunities. One strategy to keep all that “possibility” in check, apparently, was staying stoned during the mega-project, “Consequences” — by Godley’s own admission (nay, insistence).
August 14, 2008 at 7:08 pm
that’s so cool.
my former name was godley and i lived in britain during the 1980’s – i was always asked if i was married to godley of godley and creme. not a real common name.
and no, i wasn’t married to him.
love this blog, BTW
August 15, 2008 at 4:51 pm
Thanks, Lisa – tell all the kids. 🙂