"Feel the Benefit" is a song by

10cc 10cc are an English rock band formed in Stockport in 1972. The group initially consisted of four musicians – Graham Gouldman, Eric Stewart, Kevin Godley and Lol Creme – who had written and recorded together since 1968. The group featured t ...

appearing on their 1977 album, ''

Deceptive Bends ''Deceptive Bends'' is the fifth studio album by rock band 10cc, released in 1977. History The band started recording sessions for the fifth album in late summer of 1976 with the song " People in Love", at that time referred to as "Voodoo Boo ...

''. It is the final track on the album, and is the band's longest studio recording at nearly 12 minutes. The song is a fan-favorite, and has been included on many of the band's compilation albums and has been performed live by the band many times since its release. The song showcases heavy

Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developme ...

-influenced sound. Some of its musical elements seem to be directly inspired by the songs "

Dear Prudence "Dear Prudence" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles from their 1968 double album ''The Beatles'' (also known as "the White Album"). The song was written by John Lennon and credited to the Lennon–McCartney partnership. Written in R ...

" (1968) and " Venus and Mars" (1975).

Composition

The song is a suite in three parts: * I: "Reminisce and Speculate" This part of the song starts out with a slow chord progression played on guitar in a similar fashion to "

". Eventually, loud orchestral crashes signaling the start of the song are added as well. Following a short orchestral melody, the song's verses are then sung by

Eric Stewart Eric Michael Stewart (born 20 January 1945) is an English singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and record producer, best known as a founding member of the rock groups the Mindbenders with whom he played from 1963 to 1968, and likewise of 10 ...

. The bridge is sung by both Stewart and

Graham Gouldman Graham Keith Gouldman (born 10 May 1946) is an English singer, songwriter, and musician, best known as the co-lead singer and bassist of the art rock band 10cc. He has been the band's only constant member since its formation in 1972. Before 10cc ...

. This part ends with an orchestral passage which leads into a guitar solo. After this guitar solo ends, a bass riff is played that leads directly into the song's second part. * II: "A Latin Break" As its name implies, this part of the song incorporates elements of

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, " Do the Reggay" was the first popular song to use ...

and

Latin music Latin music (Portuguese language, Portuguese and es, música latina) is a term used by the music industry as a catch-all category for various styles of music from Ibero-America (including Music of Spain, Spain and Portuguese music, Portugal) ...

, which would also heavily influence the band's next album. It is also more fast-paced and pop-oriented compared to the rest of the song. This part is primarily sung by Gouldman. This part of the song ends with a guitar riff that slowly fades out. * III: "Feel the Benefit" The final part of the song reprises many elements from the first part. While the guitar riff from the previous part is fading out, the same chord progression that started the song starts to fade in, and then this part continues very much in the same fashion as the first part did. Following the final verse is a 2-minute guitar solo that abruptly stops, ending the song.

Personnel

– lead and backing vocals, lead guitar, piano, electric piano, Moog synthesizer, maracas *

– lead and backing vocals, electric guitar, acoustic guitar, bass guitar, harp * Paul Burgess – drums, percussion * Del Newman – string arrangements {{authority control 1977 songs 10cc songs Songs written by Graham Gouldman Songs written by Eric Stewart