Godley Crème – Consequences (1977)

One half of the highly successful quartet 10CC, Kevin Godley and Lol Crème left the band to venture out as a duo.  Partly too to advertise and try to popularise a guitar device they had invented for bending the strings rather than strumming them.  The Gizmo, as they called it, was however never a success as soon synths could make the same sound far easier.  However their first effort was ‘Consequences’ which grew from a simple bunch of songs and instrumentals into a full-blown concept album about a leaking tap which turns into a flood; a moral story about climate change if you will.  To complicate matters they employed Peter Cook to write a script, and let him loose to voice all the characters – about divorce negotiations happening in an attic flat of an alcoholic solicitor, come composer.  If you are confused – don’t worry, it didn’t matter really.  Except that Peter Cook went overboard and (despite Lol Crème being Jewish) took the almighty piss out of fictional Jewish lawyer Mr. Pepperman.  I think the critics were confused by the story, as well as the album being a triple…and it would never be released today.

Anyway, it was savaged on release and quite quickly removed; the music being released soon after as ‘Music from Consequences’.  It was never officially released on CD but the Japanese re-issued it as a double CD a decade or so later.  It has just been re-issued as an extended 6 disc box set at  reasonable price. I, of course have a copy, nut have just ordered this new version.  The characters voiced by Cook are incredible and I love it – the music is okay, but they made far better soon after, completing six more albums before ‘retiring’ to make video films.  Definitely worth a listen, if you can find it.