Rubber Bullets

 

I have relatively few singles in my collection. This is partly because I thought they were too expensive for the time and partly because LPs were easier to get hold of. That only changed when the first 12-inches were released.

I bought one of my first singles when I was 14, when some local DJs were selling off parts of their collection. I can't say why I bought Rubber Bullets by 10cc, probably because I liked the song and still like it today.

10cc were founded in 1972 and had their first chart successes as Hotlegs with Neandertal Man, a simple stomper. Years later, Abwärts, one of the first German punk bands, recorded the ultimate version of this song.

The defining members of 10cc were songwriters Kevin Godley and Lol Creme, whose talent for classic pop songs set the band apart from the crowd before punk changed everything.

In 1976 Godley and Creme left the band to concentrate on the development of an electronic music device, ‘The Gizmo’, and to enter video production and music as Godley & Creme. The device, which was supposed to imitate strings, was rather unsuccessful, as synthesizers were soon to do a better job. 

Musically, they both wrote a few hits and good songs, but then quickly disappeared from the stage. What remains is probably one of the most impressive videos ever produced.