The things we do for love of 10cc

For many it would be seen as a setback. Graham Gouldman's first single with his band The Mockingbirds was rejected by his record label, opting instead to release two inferior songs.

But the founder member of 10cc, and the writer of some of the most instantly recognisable songs of pop music, takes a very different attitude.

"In a way, I'm very glad they did reject it," he says. Gouldman's song, which had been unceremoniously dumped by his record company, was For Your Love, which a few weeks later became a No. 3 hit for the Yardbirds.

"It might have been that we would have had the same success, but you can't say. The world was watching, it was a very exciting time."

Gouldman will be visiting the Midlands in June as part of 10cc's first full UK tour for two years. In fact the tour is just the beginning of the story -Êthe group actually plans to visit 94 venues as part of a five-country trek which began in October last year.

"It's the biggest we have ever done," says Graham, now 62. "We did five weeks in Holland and Germany. I think music comes around in cycles, and at the moment people want to hear 10cc."

Gouldman says the tour has so far attracted an interesting range of age groups.

"We are getting quite a mix of people attending the concerts, both the people you would perhaps expect, and also the kids who you might think would have not even heard of 10cc."

Perhaps, given the quirky, satirical lyrics and catchy, retro tunes of Gouldman-penned hits such as Dreadlock Holiday, Rubber Bullets and I'm Not In Love, the music of 10cc is just the type of thing you would expect to have a young following, but Graham insists the music has a deeper appeal than simply a bit of light-hearted nostalgia.

"My daughter listens to The Beatles a lot, but she also listens to 10cc," he says. Certainly Gouldman is a very serious musician, and it is easy to underestimate the influence he had on the music scene of the 1960s.

"For example, many people will have noticed the similarity in the sounds of Herman's Hermits' No Milk Today and Bus Stop by The Hollies, without realising that Gouldman wrote both songs. Over a long and prolific career, Gouldman has also collaborated with Jeff Beck, Kirsty MacColl, and Suggs from Madness, and in recent years he has worked with boy band McFly.

Gouldman will not be drawn on which he enjoys most, writing or performing, saying it is impossible to compare what are two very different experiences.

"I enjoy them both. If you're writing something and it's going well, you think it is the greatest thing in the world, but if it's not going well it's very different. With writing, so much of your stuff goes in the bin.

"When you're on stage it is immediately gratifying, whereas with writing it is more of a sporadic satisfaction. They are different forms of satisfaction, but they are both very rewarding."

* 10cc will be performing at Birmingham's Alexandra Theatre on June 3, starting at 7.30pm.

By Mark Andrews