Music lovers this Saturday, September 13, 2025 evening at Carteret PAC in Carteret, NJ are ready to feel the benefit of a concert by the British band, 10cc. One of the most inventive groups in pop music, 10cc’s current Ultimate, Ultimate Greatest Hits Tour 2025 is a continuation of the ensemble’s first tour in the USA in over four decades.
Inside the modern Carteret PAC auditorium, the lights dim and the members of 10cc — guitarist Rick Fenn, keyboardist Keith Hayman, bassist Graham Gouldman, drummer Paul Burgess, and multi-instrumentalist Andy Park — take the stage to avid applause. They open their set with “The Second Sitting for the Last Supper” which features Rick Fenn, Graham Gouldman, and Andy Park singing, “Another reason for a visit,” on this high-energy rocker.
Music lovers whistle and applaud, and Park moves from guitar to percussion and Gouldman switches from bass to guitar for “Art for Art’s Sake” where, with his resonant tone, Gouldman croons, “Art for art’s sake/Money for God’s sake,” on this funky rocker.
The crowd cheers and Gouldman responds, “Thank you so much everybody!” before Park plays percussion and keyboard as he sings, “Life is a minestrone/Served up with parmesan cheese,” on the rhythmically-shifting “Life is a Minestrone.”
Gouldman switches to guitar and keyboardist Hayman moves over to bass for the electric rockabilly number, “Good Morning Judge,” which features the ultra-catchy “He couldn’t do it/He wasn’t there/He didn’t want it/He wasn’t there” refrain. Then, the audience sings along on the “Hum drum days and a hum drum ways” background line of the upbeat and catchy pop tune, “The Dean and I.”
Gouldman sings with Park on the contemplative ballad, “Old Wild Men,” as drummer Burgess plays keys along with Hayman before Fenn, Gouldman, and Park rock out together center stage.
Concertgoers enjoy the fast-paced novelty number, “Clockwork Creep,” which features Park on mandolin and guitarist Fenn singing lead on this song about an airplane and a time bomb.
Top-notch musicianship is on display on the rock suite, “Feel the Benefit,” where Park handles the lead on the piece’s slow opening movement before it shifts into a reggae mood and he cries, “You can walk on the water/You can dabble in the mumbo jumbo.” Fenn’s guitar sings on the piece’s instrumental interlude and Gouldman plays a funky and fast-picking bass solo which elicits avid applause.
Concertgoers react with a standing ovation as Burgess’s rolling drums bring this symphonic rocker to a conclusion.
“Thank you so much!” responds Gouldman, before revealing, “On the way to a gig, we were driving through the financial district of New York City when we passed a very famous street and came up with the idea for this song. ” Launching into “The Wall Street Shuffle,” four-part harmonies ring out on this shuffling rocker which has Fenn contributing an electric guitar solo and Gouldman’s bass and Hayman’s rhythmic keyboard playing accompanying Park’s lead vocal.
Gouldman introduces a song he recently recorded with Queen guitarist Brian May. A choir sound and Fenn’s slide vibrato guitar open “Floating in Heaven,” a sweet celestial ballad where Gouldman plays acoustic guitar as he sings, “I’ve never seen the light so clear/I’ve never seen the stars so near,” to wild cheers and applause.
Announcing, “Here’s one you’ll recognize!” Gouldman plays bass and sings lead on 10cc’s 1976 hit, “The Things We Do For Love.”
Music lovers clap along on the tune’s famous “Ooh, you made me love you/Ooh, you’ve got a way” refrain. Then, Fenn, Gouldman, and Hayman dance with their guitars in a line as Andy Park conducts with a drumstick while singing the operatic rocker, “Silly Love.”
The band soars into “I’m Mandy Fly Me,” a ballad in which Park, Fenn, and Gouldman sing, “She led me, she fed me/She read me like a book,” before shifting into a rhythmic instrumental interlude where Fenn shreds a guitar solo.
Gouldman introduces his bandmates and the musicians sail into “I’m Not in Love,” 10cc’s 1975 hit which became popular again in 2012 when it was featured in the film, Guardians of the Galaxy. Acoustic guitars, hand-held percussion, and three-part harmonies accompany Park as he cries, “I’m not in love/So don’t forget it/It’s just a silly phase I’m going through.”
The crowd stands and applauds and Gouldman thanks the audience prior to announcing, “This next song was a massive hit all over the world except for America.” Here, he invites the audience to sing along on the infectious 10cc reggae tune, “Dreadlock Holiday.” Lights dance over concertgoers as they happily cry, “I don’t like reggae (No no!)/I love it (Eh!),” before the group changes the lyric at the end to “I don’t like Carteret/ I love it!” and the crowd responds with a spirited standing ovation.
After exiting the stage, the musicians return for a doo-wop a cappella interpretation of the group’s 1972 debut single, “Donna.” The crowd cheers and Gouldman responds, “We had a great time playing for you tonight! If you feel like rocking out to this next one, please do,” as band plays wild and free on the rockin’ “Rubber Bullets.” Audience members clap along before responding with another standing ovation and the musicians take a group bow prior to waving goodnight.
As concertgoers make their way out of the auditorium, several comment on tonight’s performance by 10cc. Remarks Dave from Piscataway, “They were absolutely outstanding! The complexity of the performance, the dynamics, and the best sound I’ve heard in awhile made this one of the best shows I’ve seen in a long time. As an ensemble, these guys are fabulous — they played a wonderful selection of tunes, the a cappella number was outstanding, and the venue was terrific, too!”
Tom from Fort Monmouth, agrees, exclaiming, “10cc still has a lot of gas in the tank! They’re really good, and Andy Park brings a lot of energy to the group — it’s tough to cover the vocals of this band — but they did it so well.”
Jody from Staten Island asserts, “I am a huge 10cc fan! This is probably my 10th time seeing them. I had the pleasure of seeing them live in the ‘70s when they had two drummers including Paul Burgess playing timpani on ‘One Night in Paris.’ They were remarkable then, and all these years later, they’re still great; they played a great selection of tunes tonight and put on a fabulous show!”
Joseph from Sewaren acknowledges, “I’ve been a fan of 10cc for ten years now and it’s the theatricality and the creativity of the band that really appeals to me. I’ve seen them three times already — I even went to the Royal Albert Hall in England to see them — and tonight, as usual, they were fantastic; they played great songs, plus it was so much closer to home!”
Joseph’s dad, Scott, concurs, adding, “I thought 10cc was amazing! These guys really play, and it’s not just one guy playing keyboard, one guy playing guitar — they all play multiple instruments which they constantly switch around — and they make it look easy; also, their vocals are great, too!”
Joseph's mom, Tonya, insists, “They’re such an amazing band, I even went to London with my son to see them.” Revealing, “I would have never thought I would like 10cc so much, but my son surprised us by singing a solo on ‘The Things We Do for Love’ in his 12th grade chorus concert and, ever since, I became a 10cc fan,” Tonya contends, “They’ve been fantastic, tight, and on-target every single time I’ve see them.”
Lastly, Alex from Lafayette declares, “I really enjoyed this show! They played all the classics I was hoping for,” prior to concluding, “This was the first time I’ve ever seen 10cc live and they blew it out of the water!”
To learn more about 10cc, please go 10cc.world. For information about great upcoming performances at Carteret PAC — including Cinderella’s Tom Keifer Band with L.A. Guns on October 3, Annie Lennox in Conversation on October 11, An Intimate Evening with Priscilla Presley on October 24, John Waite on November 12, and Don McLean on November 14 — please go to carteretpac.com.
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