Graham Gouldman was a co-founder of 10cc, the innovative band whose first run was between 1972 and 1995. These days the multi-instrumentalist and singer, who re-formed 10cc in 1999 and spends the rest of the year touring Heart Full Of Songs (playing some 10cc songs plus others from his catalogue, which includes hits for The Yardbirds and The Hollies), is the sole constant member.
Congratulations on getting your MBE last year in the King’s Birthday Honours List, awarded for services to music.
Thanks. I received it from Princess Anne at Windsor Castle. My wife and two daughters were with me, and we were all dressed up. It was the most wonderful day. Such a joyous occasion.
Did you establish whether Charles is an actual fan of 10cc?
Nobody told me that. But I did meet Charles when 10cc did a Royal Variety Performance in 1982. Back then he was very charming, as was Princess Anne. We had a lovely chat about my career and touring. She was quite genned up.
10cc’s latest tour has the tongue-in-cheek handle And Another Bloody Greatest Hits Tour.
We’re taking the mickey out of ourselves, obviously. Yes, it’s another ‘greatest hits’ tour, but there will be a few changes. We have a new drummer, Ben Stone, after Paul Burgess retired from the band, there are some new crew members, and I decided it’s time to change things up a bit. It’s also a reference to 10cc’s album Bloody Tourists.
Will that feature a little more heavily?
I cannot possibly say [smirks and throws his hands in the air]. We will still be doing all of the hits, but some things have been added, others dropped and some rearranged. That’s all I’m going to tell you.
Is there a 10cc song that you are now thoroughly sick and tired of?
No. I would hate to go through the motions. If I no longer enjoyed doing this, believe me, I no longer need to do it – I would stop.
A Martian comes to Earth and asks what 10cc are about. Which song do you play them?
Very good question. I would tell them: “Welcome to our planet, Mr Martian. Let’s sit down and have a cup of tea.” And I would play two 10cc songs – The Dean And I and I’m Mandy Fly Me.
How do you feel about the growing presence of AI in music?
I’m not surprised that it’s on the rise the way it is. My view is that it can be a useful tool, not for creation but enhancement. The caveat that disturbs me is that it puts musicians out of work. That’s something I really dislike.
In 2025, nearly 47 years after co-writing 10cc’s hit Dreadlock Holiday, which includes the line: ‘I don’t like cricket, I love it’, you made headlines by attending your first-ever cricket match. Are you now a fan of the game?
I am, yeah. I saw England beat the West Indies. I was shown around The Oval and given VIP treatment. There was some rain, naturally, but I loved that the spectators clapped equally for either side, and after years of watching it on the television I enjoyed the experience of being present. I would happily go again.
Last summer, along with fellow co-founder Kevin Godley, you performed 10cc’s perennial I’m Not In Love as part of a BBC Radio 2 Piano Room session, accompanied by the BBC Concert Orchestra to mark the 50th anniversary of the band’s classic album The Original Soundtrack.
That was a wonderful day. We also did a cover of the Everly Brothers’ All I Have To Do Is Dream, and a new song, Don’t Want To Go To Heaven. It was great to spend time with Kevin and write with him again.
The new track suggested the magic between you is still there.
Yeah, I think so. Kevin and I still have a strong connection. He has appeared live with us and we have collaborated quite a bit. Our relationship remains very strong.
Are there any circumstances under which you could release new material as 10cc?
Hard to say, really. I do know that there will never be a reunion of the original four. I haven’t seen Lol Creme for quite some time, and I’m aware that Eric Stewart is not a well chap. There’s no chance of him doing anything. The only possibility is something between myself and Kevin. But I don’t want to say it could never happen.
Maybe a better question is whether or not a reunion of the four original members is something you would like to take place.
In the respect that Kevin and Lol left the band [in 1976], I would like it. That really pissed me off. Kevin and I have often discussed the fact that we could have handled it better. Had we told them: “Go off and do your thing,” they might have come back. That would have given us a few more years.
Logistics aside, would it have been nice to put a full stop at the end of the band’s story?
If we are talking hypothetically, then it would be nice, yeah. But realistically speaking it just isn’t possible anymore. The differences between myself and Eric would be too big a hurdle.
10cc's And Another Bloody Greatest Hits Tour is now underway. Graham Gouldman's Heart Full Of Song dates are in July and October.
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