On this day in 1975, the 10cc single “I’m Not In Love” debuted on the US Billboard Hot 100 at #84 (May 17)

The inspiration for the song came from Eric Stewart’s wife commenting that he didn’t tell her he loved her often enough, and Stewart responding that if he kept saying "I Love You" over and over, it would become meaningless even though he did love her.

He wrote the lyrics in a couple of days, but his band mates weren’t impressed…

Stewart recalled,
“When I took the song to the band, they said: 'I'm not in love'?
What the f--k is that? You can't say that!'
But Graham Gouldman, our bass-player and chord-master, agreed to work on it with me.

We both liked ‘The Girl From Ipanema’, so we gave it a similar bossa nova style.
Then Kevin Godley, our drummer, said it was crap.

We were about to scrap it and wipe the tape but, as I walked around the studio, I heard the secretary singing it and the window-cleaner whistling it.
I knew we had a tune: we just hadn't captured it properly.

Kevin suggested doing it again, but with banks of voices.
I thought that meant hiring a choir, but Lol Creme, our keyboard player, said we could do it using tape loops."

Eventually, some 256 vocal dubs built up from chord loops and multi tracks were required to complete the lush harmonies behind Eric Stewart's vocal.

The atmospheric, innovative love song went all the way to to #1 in the UK, Ireland, and Canada, and was a top 10 hit around the world, in countries like Australia, New Zealand, the Netherlands, Brazil, Norway, Germany, Switzerland, and the US, where it eventually peaked at #2 on the Billboard Hot 100.

The whispered vocals of "Be quiet, big boys don't cry" came from the secretary of Strawberry Studios (the studio the band operated), Kathy Redfern.
The band were looking for a certain sound when Redfern entered the studio to quietly tell Eric Stewart he had a phone call.
When they heard her voice, they knew it was just right for the song!

A 70s classic....


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=STugQ0X1NoI&pp=ygUUMTBjYyBpJ20gbm90IGluIGxvdmU%3D

  That’s way before I became part of the collective..

Swap meet starts at 11 at the Albion Fairgrounds.  Maybe coffee in Maple Ridge somewhere beforehand?  We used to meet for coffee a spot near the old Albion ferry landing (Bruce's Country Market ??)  - is that still going?

Shawn, the clutch has been working fine.  It’s possible that it is to blame.  That would be an easy fix.  It doesn’t slip so much as chunk and juddder, and not all the time.  When I get the transmission cover gasket, I’ll ride it some more.  It could well be the clutch.  That would be my hope, but I’ll do some research in the meantime.

Steve, splitting the cases is the last resort.  I’ll certainly exhaust all other options first.

 Splitting the cases should not be taken lightly!!

Could be a bent shifter fork.  Most likely if a fork is bent, it’s because the dogs and ears are worn, then the gears slip apart and bend the fork.  One problem causing the other, I’m thinking.

  Weather this Sunday looks sunny. I’m headed over to the BCOM swap meet Sunday. Not sure yet if I’ll head for coffee first.

  JASO MA and JASO MA2 rated engine oils both have specific additives for wet clutch operation, and longer chain molecules for gearbox operation.

  Ross, are you concerned that you may have a bent shifter fork?

A trick from the Bevel Ducati guys that I found when I was trying to get the clutch in my 860 to stop slipping (it worked) .

Those clutch plates probably sat dry and stuck together for a long time.

Before spending a pile of money on transmission parts, I'd try pulling the clutch friction discs out and soaking them overnight in some ATF.

Transmission fluid has friction modifiers in it that are specifically for wet clutches. Engine oil doesn't have this and since it's a unit engine....

Won't cost much and beats tearing down the transmission.

Ya, it’s JIS. Thought I’d push some buttons. 

The screw was staked at the factory and you can see it hasn’t moved.  I thought it would be too good to be true.  So I’ll get the gasket and ride it a bit more maybe, to try a get a definitive diagnosis.  But I’m pretty sure I’m looking for a transmission or parts there of.