Bloody Tourists is the sixth studio album by the English rock band 10cc, released worldwide by Mercury Records and in North America by Polydor Records in September 1978. Recorded at Strawberry Studios South in Dorking, the album was produced by Eric Stewart and Graham Gouldman.

Bloody Tourists
Studio album by
ReleasedSeptember 1978
RecordedStrawberry Studios South
(Dorking, Surrey, England)
Length49:57
Label
Producer
10cc chronology
Live and Let Live
(1977)
Bloody Tourists
(1978)
Greatest Hits 1972–1978
(1979)
Singles from Bloody Tourists
  1. "Dreadlock Holiday"
    Released: 21 July 1978
  2. "Reds in My Bed"
    Released: 10 November 1978 (Europe & Japan)
  3. "From Rochdale to Ocho Rios"
    Released: December 1978 (Oceania)
  4. "For You and I"
    Released: December 1978 (North America)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]

Overview edit

The album is the first 10cc studio album to feature the band as a six piece. The new lineup was already assembled for the tour in support of the band's previous album, Deceptive Bends, but changing Tony O'Malley for Duncan Mackay on the keyboards. The band was solidified with songwriting and lead vocals contributions from other members than the core duo of Stewart and Gouldman. It was also the first 10cc album to feature songs written separately by Stewart and Gouldman.

Cover art edit

The cover art was again created by Hipgnosis with graphics by George Hardie and shows a map being blown into someone's face. The map is showing the French island Martinique, located in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies in the eastern Caribbean Sea. The cover photograph was taken by Aubrey Powell of Hipgnosis. The cover idea had been first presented to Genesis, who rejected it.[2] The cover was also the first to feature the longtime 10cc logo with a star inside the zero.

Release and reception edit

The first single, "Dreadlock Holiday", backed with non-album track "Nothing Can Move Me", preceded the album and topped the charts in several countries, including the United Kingdom, where it became the band's third and last number-one hit.[3] Driven by the success of the lead single, the album reached number 3 in the UK Albums Chart.[4]

The second single varied in different territories. While most of the countries received "Reds in My Bed", "For You and I" was issued in America where it was also featured on the soundtrack for the film Moment by Moment, while "From Rochdale to Ocho Rios" was released in Oceania. The B-side was "Take These Chains" for all territories.

Record World said the single "For You and I" "is a typically lush production with picturesque lyrics and a pop perfect hook."[5] The Globe and Mail noted that "this is not what you would call progressive music exactly, yet it's probably as advanced as pop gets, in or near the mainstream."[6]

The album was reissued on CD in 1997 adding "Nothing Can Move Me", the B-side to "Dreadlock Holiday", as bonus track. In 2008, the Japanese reissue added additional versions of the album songs as bonus tracks.

Track listing edit

Side one
No.TitleWriter(s)Lead vocalsLength
1."Dreadlock Holiday"Eric Stewart, Graham GouldmanGouldman with Stewart4:28
2."For You and I"Stewart, GouldmanStewart5:20
3."Take These Chains"Stewart, GouldmanStewart2:36
4."Shock on the Tube (Don't Want Love)"StewartStewart3:38
5."Last Night"Gouldman, Rick FennGouldman3:10
6."The Anonymous Alcoholic"Stewart, GouldmanStewart and Gouldman5:38
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Lead vocalsLength
7."Reds in My Bed"Stewart, Stuart ToshTosh with Stewart4:08
8."Life Line"GouldmanGouldman3:26
9."Tokyo"StewartStewart4:29
10."Old Mister Time"Stewart, Duncan MackayStewart4:27
11."From Rochdale to Ocho Rios"GouldmanGouldman3:41
12."Everything You Wanted to Know About!!!"StewartStewart4:25
Total length:49:57
1997 Mercury Records remastered edition bonus track
No.TitleWriter(s)Lead vocalLength
13."Nothing Can Move Me"Stewart, GouldmanStewart4:02
Total length:54:58
2008 Japan SHM-CD bonus tracks
No.TitleWriter(s)Lead vocalLength
13."Dreadlock Holiday" (long version)Stewart, GouldmanGouldman with Stewart5:01
14."Nothing Can Move Me"Stewart, GouldmanStewart4:04
15."For You and I" (DJ edit)Stewart, GouldmanStewart3:51
Total length:62:46

Personnel edit

Credits sourced from the original album liner notes.

10cc edit

  • Eric Stewart – lead (2-4, 6, 9, 10, 12), co-lead (1, 7) and backing vocals (all but 2), lead guitar (3, 4, 8, 11), electric guitar (3-6, 8, 10, 12), slide guitar (3, 6, 11), Fender Rhodes electric piano (1, 2, 7, 8), grand piano (3, 4, 7, 12), Polymoog (2) and Moog synthesizers (2, 7, 8), organ (1, 3), acoustic guitar (9), maracas (1, 5), cowbell (5), M/C (11)
  • Graham Gouldman – lead (1, 5, 8, 11) and backing vocals (1-4, 6-9, 11), bass guitar (all tracks), fuzz bass (5), electric guitar (1, 2, 4-8, 12), acoustic guitar (2, 3, 7-9, 11), zither (9), wind chimes (9), whistle (11), cabasa (1), tambourine (10), percussion (11)
  • Rick Fenn – backing vocals (1-4, 6-9, 11), electric guitar (1-7), lead guitar (8-10, 12), acoustic guitar (7, 9, 11), fretless bass guitar (9), saxophone (6, 10), "Dorking Horns" (6), electric saxophone (12), Polymoog (3) and Moog synthesizers (2, 6), organ (1, 8), tambourine (10), percussion (11)
  • Paul Burgess – drums (2, 4, 6, 10-12), cowbells (1), congas (1, 6), marimba (1), triangle (1, 8, 12), agogô (1), timbales (1, 8), concert bass drums (2), glockenspiel (3, 7), tambourine (3, 7, 10), military snare drums (7), roto-toms (8, 10), vibraphone (8, 12), percussion (11), backing vocals (11)
  • Stuart Tosh – lead (7) and backing vocals (1, 2, 4, 6-9, 11), "Shouted Encouragement!" (12), drums (1, 3, 5-9), tambourine (1, 7, 10), snare drum (4), cowbell (5), sleigh bells (5), congas (6), bongos (6), military snare drum (7), cabasa (7), percussion (11), trombone (6)
  • Duncan Mackay – backing vocals (4, 11), grand piano (4-6, 9-11), Fender Rhodes electric piano (5, 10), Yamaha CS-80 (1, 4, 5, 9-12) and Moog synthesizers (9), Moog Taurus (9), violin (4, 9, 10), tambourine (10), Steel drum solo (11), percussion (11)

Additional personnel edit

  • Kate Spath – cello (10)
  • Tony Spath – backing vocal (11)

Technical personnel edit

  • Keith Bessey – engineer
  • Tony Spath – engineer
  • Melvyn Abrahams – mastering
  • Hipgnosis – cover design and photos
  • George Hardie – graphics

Charts edit

Certifications and sales edit

Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia 300,000[19]
Canada (Music Canada)[20] Platinum 100,000^
Netherlands (NVPI)[21] Platinum 100,000^
New Zealand (RMNZ)[22] Platinum 15,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[23] Gold 100,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References edit

  1. ^ Guarisco, Donald A. 10cc: "Bloody Tourists" > Review at AllMusic. Retrieved 23 November 2016.
  2. ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "Tony Banks & Mike Rutherford Interview September 19, 2009". YouTube.
  3. ^ "10cc – Dreadlock Holiday". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 23 November 2016.
  4. ^ a b "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 23 November 2016.
  5. ^ "Hits of the Week" (PDF). Record World. 6 January 1979. p. 1. Retrieved 12 February 2023.
  6. ^ Gilday, Katherine (8 November 1978). "Bloody Tourists 10CC". The Globe and Mail. p. F9.
  7. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 307. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  8. ^ "Top RPM Albums: Issue 0071b". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 23 November 2016.
  9. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – 10cc – Bloody Tourists" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 November 2016.
  10. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – 10cc – Bloody Tourists" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 23 November 2016.
  11. ^ "Charts.nz – 10cc – Bloody Tourists". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 November 2016.
  12. ^ "Norwegiancharts.com – 10cc – Bloody Tourists". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 November 2016.
  13. ^ "Swedishcharts.com – 10cc – Bloody Tourists". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 November 2016.
  14. ^ "10cc Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard.
  15. ^ "Jaaroverzichten – Album 1978". dutchcharts.nl (in Dutch). Retrieved 21 February 2020.
  16. ^ "Top Selling Albums of 1978 — The Official New Zealand Music Chart". Recorded Music New Zealand. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
  17. ^ Scaping, Peter, ed. (1979). "Top 200 LPs in 1978". BPI Year Book 1979: A Review of the British Record and Tape Industry. London: British Phonographic Industry. pp. 182–185. ISBN 0-906154-02-2.
  18. ^ "Jaaroverzichten – Album 1979". dutchcharts.nl (in Dutch). Retrieved 21 February 2020.
  19. ^ Baker, Glenn (17 March 1979). "Australia - Down Under in Oz" (PDF). Billboard. p. SA-4. Retrieved 5 December 2021.
  20. ^ "Canadian album certifications – 10cc – Bloody Tourists". Music Canada. Retrieved 23 November 2016.
  21. ^ "Dutch album certifications – 10cc – Bloody Tourists" (in Dutch). Nederlandse Vereniging van Producenten en Importeurs van beeld- en geluidsdragers. Retrieved 21 May 2020. Enter Bloody Tourists in the "Artiest of titel" box. Select 1978 in the drop-down menu saying "Alle jaargangen".
  22. ^ "New Zealand album certifications – 10cc – Bloody Tourists". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved 23 November 2016.
  23. ^ "British album certifications – 10cc – Bloody Tourists". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 23 November 2016.

External links edit