As a songwriter and co-frontman in 10cc, Graham Gouldman etched his name in British pop history, scoring three UK No 1 singles and another eight Top 10 hits as the group defined 70s soft rock. But he had a considerable songwriting catalogue before and afterwards and, ahead of him touring it in March, he will be answering your questions.
Having grown up in Manchester and rotated through a series of local bands, Gouldman was a songwriter for hire in the mid-1960s, penning major hits for the Yardbirds, Herman’s Hermits and the Hollies which weren’t just UK chart successes, but also popular in the US as the British Invasion took hold.
He released his solo debut album in 1968 and then in 1970 joined forces with three fellow Mancunians, some of whom he had known since school, to form 10cc, sharing vocals between them. Their 1972 debut single, Donna, went to No 2, and their third single – the sweetly rollicking glam stomper Rubber Bullets – topped the chart. The middle of the decade was their peak, with one of pop’s defining power ballads, I’m Not in Love, becoming a global smash. Gouldman and Eric Stewart successfully carried the band on after Kevin Godley and Lol Creme left – The Things We Do for Love was a huge hit, as was their puckish take on reggae, Dreadlock Holiday – but it petered out in the early 1980s.
Away from the band, Gouldman worked with Ramones, had success as one half of the duo Wax, wrote songs with the likes of Kirsty MacColl and toured with Ringo Starr, but since the 1990s he has also fronted various reformed incarnations of 10cc and put out the occasional solo record. The most recent of these, 2024’s I Have Notes, featured guest turns from Starr, Brian May, Hank Marvin and more.
Now 78, as he gets ready to tour that LP in a set that stretches right back to his mid-60s hits, Gouldman will answer your questions about his impressive life in music. Post them in the comments below before Tuesday 21 January – his answers will be published in the 24 January edition of the Film & Music section, as well as online.