Review: 10cc at Ludlow Castle

And then the big question. Could 10cc, a group famed for its multi tracking and multi layered harmonies, vocals, and arrangements, recreate their 1970s sound and magic on stage, especially as this was an incarnation of 10cc that was somewhat short of a full measure, in other words without Godley, Creme, and Stewart of the line-up that was the musical dream team of its day.

The answer, as the audience at Ludlow Arts Festival learned on Saturday night, was an emphatic yes.

Vocally and musically they were tight and you could close your eyes (or leave them open, it's optional) and be transported back in time. With 41 years since their first hit, a few vocal compromises here and there might have been expected to accommodate the march to maturity. Not a bit of it. It was a crooner-free zone, and sounded fresh and still young.

We interrupt this review for a weather report. The threat of rain meant the audience were prepared for the worst, with brollies at the ready and waterproofs wisely donned. Happily it stayed dry, albeit somewhat chilly.

As for the audience, it's fair to say that those who weren't even born when 10cc had their heyday were in a minority.

Back to the concert, which was held in the grounds of Ludlow Castle. The band with hitmaker in chief Graham Gouldman strolled onto the stage without any fanfare, although some may have noticed the strains of Neanderthal Man in the build-up, which was a 1970 hit with 10cc DNA.

The opening number was, strangely enough, the only one that was unfamiliar to me, and was followed by a musical journey through their back catalogue which underlined what a creative force they were in their prime - The Wall Street Shuffle; I'm Mandy, Fly Me; The Dean and I, etc, etc.

If they were going to be exposed, it was going to be on something like the wall-of-sound I'm Not In Love, but the stage version did full justice to the studio version.

"I don't like Ludlow," sang Gouldman, in adapting the Dreadlock Holiday lyrics. "I love it."

Ludlow reciprocated the affection. There was a treat with the penultimate song, an a cappela version of Donna. See the previous notes on vocal and harmonic tightness.

And then, at the end, a rousing Rubber Bullets, by which time many in the audience had risen up from their fold-up canvas chairs to boogie on the grass.

Toby Neal