The song “I’m Not In Love” has always captivated me; it possesses a distinctive sound that sets it apart from any prior music. It appears I’m not the only one who feels this way, as it has garnered over three million plays on U.S. radio since its debut, along with nearly 300 million streams on Spotify as of now.

Debuting in May 1975, “I’m Not In Love” marked the second single from 10cc’s third album, The Original Soundtrack (Mercury Records, catalog number 9102 500). This was their first single to achieve chart success outside the U.K., reaching number two on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and charting in countries such as Ireland, Australia, Germany, New Zealand, and Norway.

However, the full track extended beyond six minutes, a duration that record companies were hesitant to release as a single back then. As a result, the band was compelled to create a shorter version. Yet, once the song gained traction, radio stations quickly shifted to playing the full-length version.

With its ethereal and almost celestial vocals, this love song was nearly left behind in the studio archives.

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I have often pondered how they achieved that distinctive sound. In 1975, synthesizers were still relatively new, yet the backing track had a vocal quality. To fully grasp the song's creation, it’s essential to explore the origins of the band itself.

Prior to establishing 10cc, bassist and vocalist Graham Gouldman was a member of the Mockingbirds, where he penned numerous hits for other artists, including The Yardbirds’ “For Your Love,” which was among his notable compositions. Artists like Herman’s Hermits and The Hollies also performed several of his songs.

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Eric Stewart, a guitarist and vocalist, was previously part of Wayne Fontana and the Mindbenders, a band that scored a number one hit with “The Game of Love” and enjoyed several other mid-1960s successes. After Fontana departed in October 1965, the group continued as the Mindbenders, with Stewart stepping in as lead vocalist. During the band's later days, Stewart began exploring production and recording at Inner City Studios, owned by Peter Tattersall.

In 1968, he became a partner with Tattersall, relocating to a larger facility and renaming it Strawberry Recording Studios, inspired by the Beatles’ song “Strawberry Fields Forever.” Notable artists, including Paul McCartney, the Smiths, the Stone Roses, the Ramones, and Joy Division, have recorded there.

While setting up recording equipment, Stewart enlisted drummer Kevin Godley and keyboardist, guitarist, and vocalist Lol Creme. The trio collaborated to create an improvised drum and guitar track that ultimately evolved into “Neanderthal Man,” which sold over two million copies, reaching number two in the U.K. and number twenty-two in the U.S. This song was credited to Hotlegs, a band that included Stewart.

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With their newfound success, Strawberry Recording Studios experienced a surge in bookings, leading the trio to become the house band. Shortly after, Gouldman joined, and his manager persuaded Neil Sedaka to record his new album at the studio.

After collaborating with Sedaka on multiple albums, he inspired the band to form a group. “I’m not sure why we hadn’t thought of it before, but we hadn’t,” Gouldman reflected. “Eric and I had written a song called ‘Waterfall’ that caught the attention of Apple Records, so we figured we should prepare in case they wanted to release it. Since Eric and I wrote the A side, we thought Kevin and Lol should craft the B side.”

Creme recounted that he and Godley went next door to record “Donna.” “When we finished, we thought, ‘Maybe this is even more marketable than ‘Waterfall.’”

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They shared the track with their manager, Jonathan King, who believed it would be a hit (which it turned out to be). However, they faced a dilemma: the band still lacked a name.

Stewart revealed that the name 10cc originated from King’s dream, in which he saw a sign reading “10cc, The Best Band in the World” outside the Hammersmith Odeon in London.

“Everyone assumed that this was somehow related to the average volume of a male ejaculation, which is entirely false,” King remarked. “There are many amusing stories surrounding band names, but the truth is that this one came to me in a dream.”

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King secured a record deal for them, and “Donna” climbed to number two on the U.K. charts in October 1972. The band recorded two albums with King before realizing they couldn’t sustain themselves on meager four percent royalties.

Nevertheless, those two albums and unrestricted access to Strawberry Recording Studios allowed the band to refine their musical and recording abilities. These projects also produced several hits and established their credibility.

“I believe that by the time we entered Original Soundtrack, we had demonstrated that our approach could yield success, allowing us the freedom to continue exploring,” Godley noted, adding, “We were eager to push our boundaries in new directions.”

Fun fact: The cover art for The Original Soundtrack was designed by the English art group Hipgnosis (entirely hand-drawn), known for creating iconic album covers in the ’70s and ’80s, including works for Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, and Paul McCartney. Read more about Hipgnosis in my article, Exploring the Lost Art of the Vinyl Album Cover.

Stewart, Creme, and Gouldman were all adept at multiple instruments and vocals, resulting in varied sounds, yet few songs sounded alike.

They were on the verge of recording the track that would become synonymous with their legacy.

Stewart recounted that he penned the lyrics for “I’m Not In Love” within a couple of days, inspired by his relationship with a beautiful girl named Gloria whom he met at Halifax town hall. They married three years later. Years after, Gloria remarked, “You don’t say ‘I love you’ very often anymore.” Stewart explained that he felt if he expressed it all the time, it would seem insincere. This led him to ponder how to convey that sentiment without using those exact words, resulting in “I’m not in love” becoming an introspective dialogue that transformed into a song.

Stewart shared the composition with Gouldman, who crafted the music. Both were fans of “The Girl from Ipanema,” which inspired a similar bossa nova style for the track. “When we played it back,” Creme recalled, “everyone felt underwhelmed. There wasn’t the enthusiasm to pursue it further; it just felt lackluster.”

Before the song was discarded, it received a second chance when Creme and Stewart noticed the studio crew humming it. Godley sensed something special about it but felt that the bossa nova style didn’t do it justice. “I suggested, ‘Why don’t we create a wave of voices instead of instruments?’”

However, Godley wasn't suggesting a traditional acapella arrangement; he envisioned using a choir of voices as the instrumental backing.

Stewart asked, “Fantastic, how do we achieve that?” To which Creme replied, “Tape loops.”

For the next three weeks, the band recorded Godley, Creme, and Gouldman singing “ahh” for each note in the chromatic scale, spanning from the top to bottom C, and then layered each one sixteen times. They utilized the control board as a “keyboard,” with each band member managing three faders for each note.

Yet, after completing the recording, they felt something was still amiss. Creme and Stewart had never been satisfied with the bridge, which originally featured Stewart's vocals.

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Ultimately, the finished track included one of pop music’s most recognizable interludes: a female voice softly whispering, “Be quiet, big boys don’t cry, big boys don’t cry.”

It took several attempts before they arrived at this final version.

After determining the initial bridge was inadequate, they considered the “big boys don’t cry” phrase, but with Creme’s voice, which still didn’t resonate.

One day during the sessions, the studio secretary, Cathy Redfern, whispered about a phone call, and that moment provided the perfect words to complete the track.

Interestingly, none of the band members anticipated the song would become a hit. They viewed it as a passion project, enjoying the completed track in the dimly lit studio and relishing their achievement until it reached the ears of the public.

As for Stewart’s wife, the muse behind the song, he shared in a 2018 interview, “Gloria and I have now been married for 51 years. I tell her ‘I love you’ every day.”

For an in-depth exploration of the song’s recording journey, check out the video below.

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