Sheet Music (10cc album)
Sheet Music is the second studio album by the English rock band 10cc, released on 24 May 1974. It was recorded in January 1974 at Strawberry Studios in Stockport, England. The album runs 37 minutes and 12 seconds and blends art pop, pop rock, avant-pop, and progressive pop. It was produced by 10cc for UK Records.
The album showcases many different co-writing pairings among the four members—Eric Stewart, Graham Gouldman, Kevin Godley, and Lol Creme—as the band experimented creatively while making the music. Paul McCartney used Strawberry Studios during the day while 10cc were recording, and the band even used his drum kit; his influence is said to be felt on the record.
One track, Clockwork Creep, ends side one and tells the story of a bomb aboard a jumbo jet counting down to detonation.
Three singles came from the album in 1974. The Worst Band in the World did not chart. The Wall Street Shuffle reached UK #10 and Netherlands #2. Silly Love reached UK #24. The album itself rose to UK No. 9 and US No. 81.
Sheet Music has been reissued several times with bonus tracks. The 2007 UK reissue focuses on Sheet Music-related bonus material, and the complete album plus its bonus cuts is available on 10cc – The Complete UK Recordings. Critics praised the album for its inventive sound and energy, with Rolling Stone and Billboard noting its clever, unusual approach to pop, and AllMusic calling it a lasting, adventurous record. Some reviewers view it as 10cc’s peak, a view echoed by the band’s members themselves, and Gouldman performed the album live in full in 2015 with his touring 10cc band.
The track “The Worst Band in the World” was later sampled by J Dilla in “Workinonit” from the 2006 album Donuts. In 2020, a copyright dispute arose over later use of that sample in Dave Chappelle’s Netflix specials, involving Music Sales Corporation and other publishers.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 17:08 (CET).