Deceptive Bends

Deceptive Bends is the fifth studio album released in 1977 by rock band 10cc.

The departure of Kevin Godley and Lol Creme in 1976 to form Godley & Creme almost ended 10cc. However Eric Stewart and Graham Gouldman kept the group alive as a duo (with the assistance of percussionist Paul Burgess). The cover design was provided by Hipgnosis. The name of the album came from a warning sign for dangerous curves on the southbound A24 between Leatherhead and Dorking in Surrey; the sign is no longer there.

Stewart recalled: “I had a big challenge ahead of me to prove to the record world that we were not just 5cc, as some of the British media had graciously called us. The music was simpler than some of the previous 10cc albums, it was far more direct, streamlined and positive. The whole album was recorded very (in our terms) quickly. I was on a mission, and flying higher and faster than I had ever been before, and I knew by then that we had a very strong album. The new songs played a big part in the equation of course, I was out to prove also that we could write a hit album without Kevin and Lol … we did!”[2]

Godley and Creme were still band members early in this album’s history. The band’s original line-up debuted a live version of “Good Morning Judge” at the Knebworth Festival on 21 August 1976 and also did studio work on an early version of “People in Love” referred to as “Voodoo Boogie”. “Voodoo Boogie” featured a more offbeat arrangement and prominent backing vocals by Creme, but the track was considered “awful” when assembled, and Godley and Creme left the group shortly thereafter. The official versions of “Good Morning Judge” and “People in Love” were performed by Stewart and Gouldman alone, with the help of a few session musicians, for the eventual album release. The “Voodoo Boogie” version of “People in Love” was included in 10cc’s limited edition box set Tenology in 2012.

The first single taken from the album, “The Things We Do for Love”, reached No. 6 in the UK Singles Chart, No. 2 in Ireland and No. 1 in Canada.