Dreadlock Holiday

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"Dreadlock Holiday"
10cc - Dreadlock Holiday single cover.png
Single by 10cc
from the album Bloody Tourists
B-side "Nothing Can Move Me"
ReleasedJuly 1978
Recorded Strawberry Studios South, Dorking, Surrey, England, 1977
Genre
Length4:28
Label Mercury
Songwriter(s) Eric Stewart
Graham Gouldman
Producer(s) 10cc
10cc singles chronology
"People in Love"
(1977)		"Dreadlock Holiday"
(1978)		"For You and I"
(1978)

"Dreadlock Holiday" is a reggae song by 10cc. Written by Eric Stewart and Graham Gouldman, it was the lead single from the band's 1978 album, Bloody Tourists . [3] It was a number one hit in several countries.

Contents

Composition

The song was based on real events Eric Stewart and Moody Blues vocalist Justin Hayward experienced in Barbados, and Graham Gouldman experienced in Jamaica. Graham Gouldman commented: "Some of the experiences that are mentioned are true, and some of them are ... fairly true!" [4] [5] Stewart recalled seeing a white man "trying to be cool and he looked so naff" walking into a group of Afro-Caribbeans and being reprimanded, which became the lyric "Don't you walk through my words, you got to show some respect". [6] Another lyric came from a conversation Gouldman had with a Jamaican, who when asked if he liked cricket replied, "No, I love it!". [7]

Music video

The music video for the song was directed by Storm Thorgerson. [8] The beach scene in the official video was filmed on the Dorset coast near Charmouth.

Reception

"Dreadlock Holiday" became the group's international number 1 hit topping the charts in the UK, [9] Belgium, New Zealand and The Netherlands. The single also reached number 2 in Ireland and Australia, became a top 10 hit in Norway and Switzerland and top 20 in Germany and Sweden. In Austria the song was 10cc's sole entry in the charts, peaking at number 18. [10]

In North America, "Dreadlock Holiday" became a minor hit, peaking at number 45 in Canada's RPM charts and number 44 on the US Billboard Hot 100. When asked why he thought the song didn't do better in the US, Gouldman said that reportedly some radio stations would not play reggae of any kind. [11]

In the UK, the song was the band's third number 1 and at the same time final top 10 hit. [12]

In a 2025 interview, Gouldman responded to claims that the song's lyrics perpetuated stereotypes about the Caribbean by stating that whilst people from the region he had encountered had expressed uniformly positive opinions, he would not have written some of the lines in the present day. [13]

Charts

Certifications

RegionCertification Certified units/sales
Netherlands (NVPI) [34] Gold100,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI) [35] Gold400,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Usage in media

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References

  1. ↑ Bryant, Tom (25 June 2014). "17 rock-reggae crossovers that work... and three that don't". Louder Sound .
  2. ↑ Guarisco, Donald A. "10cc – Bloody Tourists Album Reviews, Songs & More | AllMusic". allmusic. Retrieved 23 June 2023.
  3. ↑ Rice, Jo (1982). The Guinness Book of 500 Number One Hits (1st ed.). Enfield, Middlesex: Guinness Superlatives Ltd. p. 191. ISBN   0-85112-250-7.
  4. ↑ Graham Gouldman, The Songwriters Circle, BBC2, 1999.
  5. ↑ "10cc singer 'never seen cricket game'". BBC News.
  6. ↑ Schnee, Stephen SPAZ. "ERIC STEWART: An EXCLUSIVE interview with the former 10cc member and Rock icon!". Discussions Magazine.
  7. ↑ Sexton, Paul (23 September 2019). "'Dreadlock Holiday': How 10cc Bowled Out The Competition". uDiscover Music.
  8. ↑ "10cc – Dreadlock Holiday (1978) | IMVDb".
  9. ↑ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums"British Hit Singles & Albums" (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 357. ISBN   1-904994-10-5.
  10. ↑ "10cc in Austrian charts" . Retrieved 16 November 2019.
  11. ↑ Weiser, Carl. "Graham Gouldman of 10cc : Songwriter Interviews". www.songfacts.com.
  12. ↑ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 357. ISBN   1-904994-10-5.
  13. ↑ Simpson, Dave (23 January 2025). "10cc's Graham Gouldman: 'Every West Indian person I've spoken to loves Dreadlock Holiday – but I wouldn't write certain lines now'". guardian.com . Retrieved 24 January 2025.
  14. ↑ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book. p. 307. ISBN   0-646-11917-6.
  15. ↑ "10cc – Dreadlock Holiday" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40.
  16. ↑ "10cc – Dreadlock Holiday" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50.
  17. ↑ "RPM Top 100 Singles – November 25, 1978" (PDF).
  18. ↑ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Dreadlock Holiday". Irish Singles Chart.
  19. ↑ "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 45, 1978" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40.
  20. ↑ "10cc – Dreadlock Holiday" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
  21. ↑ "10cc – Dreadlock Holiday". Top 40 Singles.
  22. ↑ "10cc – Dreadlock Holiday". VG-lista.
  23. ↑ "10cc – Dreadlock Holiday". Singles Top 100.
  24. ↑ "10cc – Dreadlock Holiday". Swiss Singles Chart.
  25. ↑ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  26. ↑ "10cc Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard.
  27. ↑ "Offiziellecharts.de – 10cc – Dreadlock Holiday" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts.
  28. ↑ "Kent Music Report No 236 – 1 January 1979 > National Top 100 Singles for 1978". Kent Music Report . Retrieved 8 January 2022– via Imgur.com.
  29. ↑ "Jaaroverzichten 1978" (in Dutch). Ultratop. Hung Medien. Retrieved 12 July 2014.
  30. ↑ "Top 100-Jaaroverzicht van 1978". Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 7 August 2021.
  31. ↑ "Jaaroverzichten – Single 1978" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Hung Medien. Retrieved 24 April 2020.
  32. ↑ "END OF YEAR CHARTS 1978 – OFFICIAL TOP 40 SINGLES". nztop40.co.nz. Retrieved 12 May 2020.
  33. ↑ Top 100 1978, uk-charts.co.uk
  34. ↑ "Dutch single certifications – 10cc – Dreadlock Holiday" (in Dutch). Nederlandse Vereniging van Producenten en Importeurs van beeld- en geluidsdragers . Retrieved 21 May 2020.Enter Dreadlock Holiday in the "Artiest of titel" box. Select 2019 in the drop-down menu saying "Alle jaargangen".
  35. ↑ "British single certifications – 10cc – Dreadlock Holiday". British Phonographic Industry. 30 December 2022. Retrieved 6 January 2023.
  36. ↑ Potts, Diana. "Snatch Original Soundtrack review". Allmusic . Rovi Corporation . Retrieved 4 June 2012.
  37. ↑ "The Social Network (2010): Soundtracks". IMDb.com. Retrieved 13 October 2016.
  38. ↑ "New broadcast techniques for England cricket". ESPNCricinfo. Retrieved 4 November 2015.
  39. ↑ Salazar-Moreno, Quibian (17 November 2016). "Here's all the music featured in Watch Dogs 2". Gamecrate.
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