Hey guys! I archived the old page - it was huge! And as you can see I changed the format of this page a bit. I added links to Russ' Julian Cope Web Ring (see the bottom). I also densened the top part of the page, so that unsubscribed people could more quickly see if anything new had been posted.

By the way, my new hard disk crashed yesteday; I'll have to return it. I lost about 3 GB of Phish MP3s. :( Luckily, I hadn't moved any Cope files or web page stuff over to it yet. I have CD backups of Tiny Children's data files just in case, but the whole disk crashing thing is scary!

Well, at least my LAN is still working, so my system is still improved over last week [except for the missing Phish files].

Anyway, I hope this new format works!

Trav

trav

Sorry to hear about the phish that got away

sorry

couldn't resist

(really..too bad though)

..and

..and

..and..

StEven

looks nice btw

had to laugh! :) that was funny!

Trav

trav,

nic: network interface card

by separating the protocols i mean since you'll be running tcp/ip on your modem bind it to your modem. then bind whatever protocol you use internally to your nic.

i can supply and upload live mp3's but i don't have any space to dedicate to the cause.

somebody is streaming live phish mp3 if you're cxn is fast enough. i can't remember the address, but the site is listed at http://www.shoutcast.com under the "rock/alternative" section.

belbin, a while a go you mentioned the new mogwai disc--it's great, but i still prefer "young team". the lead off track "yes! i am a long way from home" is absolutely amazing. anybody like the new looper disc? i think it's great. it's stuart from belle and sebastien. i recommend these discs so highly.

jason

Trav,

Bummer about the Phish MP3s. Jason, I looked at Shoutcast to see if I could find the streaming Phish MP3s, but I couldn't find it. If you can come up with it let me know. (Sorry, not trying to turn this into a Phish discussion list . . .)

On a more "cope"ious note, I got to meet Courtney Love backstage after a Hole show here (Detroit) last week. It was one of those very formal, line up and get your autograph and move on type affairs. Reminding me of the Soup Nazi, for you Seinfeld fans out there. I was tempted to ask Ms. Love about Julian, but she was too bust railing on about Dave Grohl's ex-wife and all the Nirvana money she stole from Dave. As if!

Off to see Cake tonight! What say the list about these guys? I love 'em. Elvis Costello in eight days, togetrher again with Steve Naive! Rock'n'roll summer indeed. Been almost eight years since Copey was last seen in Detroit, on the Peggy Suicide tour. I really need a new Cope record AND tour. Heaven on earth.

"I'm in the mood for Easter eveywhere!"

Finishing up some Cope covers for Vol.2. You'll find TV &Pills on it!

In the song "don't call me Mark Chapman" I know who Mark Chapman was, but who was Seran seran (sp?)as in "Don't call me, cause he ain't Duran Duran" or some such?

???? St.

......all night Barry Manilow....

Sirhan Sirhan assasinated Bobby Kennedy

How could anybody use Autogeddon as an ashtray! Surely, One of JC's five finest, I'll always love I Gotta Walk, if only for the drudes performance of it on Top of the Pops, looking more out of it then he did when performing Teardrops stuff on acid

I'll have to stk it on after this long dull days work, if I can bring myself to take Joy Division Live @ Preston out of the CD player

still i hate to screw my ma

Belbin, you love it the most, Autogeddon was probably the album I liked quickest out of the triology and I still think it's an absolute beauty - clever, funny and fresh.

Mad Max, Don't call me ..., Ain't the One Way, I really don't think there's a track I don't like, I'll never understand why it's gotten such a bad rap.

I guess it's just different strokes for different folks. My shameful secret is that after my first listen to Jehovahkill I put it away and didn't listen to it for months thinking that it wasn't up to much. DON'T WORRY, I've seen the error of my ways, I admit that it is another classic. 20 Mothers on the other hand.....

St.

....just trying to drive the fucker out....

yeah,

but if it had been just "12 Mothers", it wouldn't have had such a good title, but would have been a better record - Highway to the Sun, I mean

Oh, and if it hadn.t included thanks &appreciations to an f'ing fascist

Been reading this all wknd (a dedication from the Hunter):

Re-direct your E-mail
To the Super-concious female
Til fields of vision bring you
To what's absolutely true
Who dares to know the Mother, if not you ?..
        

I think it's just the Autogeddon (to me) doesn't properly fufill the promise of Peggy and Jehovakill and end the trilogy with the bang it needed. On it's own Autogeddon is a fantastic album, but as the end of the triology it doesn't work.

Autogeddon is in my veiw Julian's worst offering of the main stream stuff. It just lacks bollocks

Russ

Should have some new stuff on the web site this weekend

I agree with Chris. I remember when I picked up the disc in the store and looked at the track listing I felt disappointed that there weren't more tracks and that they weren't broken up into phases. Even the design of the album sleeve seemed to separate it from its predecessors. I liked the album but it didn't have the epic scope of Peggy and Jehovakill. In my mind Autogeddon should have been the album that followed the trilogy.

On an Autogeddon side note. I do love the song "I Gotta Walk". For some reason when Julian sings "Yeah, I'm hip", I laugh. I wrote lyrics to a song I called "I'm Hip" and I realized later that they stemmed from Julian's "hip."

Hmm..sort of one the middle ground on Autogeddon...really severely disappoinrted when I first heard it and it took repeated listening before it started to grow on me..agree that it is one of his lesser efforts(though it still beats a lot of the crap released by other artist{term used loosely})and it really lacks as being the summation of the trilogy..to paraphase T.S.Eliot..it ends not with a bang,but a backfire..

some tracks do stand out (M.Chapman,Mad Max,Walk)but in general that and MNU are probably my least played

..and in my rage

and in my rage...

StEven

oh..STILL waiting on my Droolian..though I did get e-mail from the distributor that "YES" it was sent...some postal backup methinks

but re:QE..OK(REQEOK?)..I've heard much better synth electronica..heck I DO better(not baised mind you)..but its nice in the background and to paint to and its interesting to hear the old boy try something else..side 2 being the better of the pieces..side one having(imho) too many "oops I didn't mean to turn that knob" sounds..believe you/me..I'm familiar enough with that..

(anyone willing to tape QE2,as it seems non-existent?..just drop me a msg)

anything else?

hmm

Wilder..Great Dominions and Tiny Children are probably my faves..GD being one of my fave songs period..and the album in my top 2 or 3...yeh..Forever Changes gets the nod for #1

i'll hush now

sw

Trav- Was a copy of the cover songs CD ever sent to Julian?

Brian

Could you send me the info to order the CD from you. Thanks. I'll send payment this month I swear!

I'm doomed to lie awake in bed with visions of sugerplums in my head...

Autogeddon: My conclusion? Love it. Listen to it while driving, which in itself is pretty ironic, I know, but it is an excellent driving album. Quite often I'll load it in the car stereo and blast it out, singing at the top of my lungs to Autogeddon Blues, the screaming bits too. It took a few listens to get into it, but I think it stands up against Peggy and Jehovahkill. Of course it "ain't no Peggy", nothing else is, but it is still one of my favourite Cope albums. I was a bit disappointed when it first came out, but mostly because it was only a single album. But then we had been incredibly spoilt with the mammoth Peggy Suicide and then the 3 phased Jehovahkill, so I soon realised it was only my own selfishness that was disappointed.

It is unfortunate that when an artist puts out a trilogy then there is always a 1st, 2nd and 3rd place. Yes, Autogeddon probably does come in at number 3, but does that make it an inferior album? Not in my mind. The other 2 are 1st and 2nd more because of their scope. Peggy is and always will be a clear winner because of what came before it, but don't neglect Autogeddon, I urge you all to really sit down and listen to it, not in comparison to the others , but as it should be, on its own and at the same time, bear in mind that it is an incredibly valid piece of work, if only for the fact that you can't have a trilogy without there being 3 equal and seperate parts.

Ain't But The One Way pulls no punches (listen to it), I Gotta Walk is awesome (the bass!) and S.T.A.R.C.A.R. is just gorgeous (if one of the reasons you loved Safesurfer was the guitar, well...)

Those are just 3 reasons off the top of my head. Yeah I was disappointed too when I first got it, but it's a real grower. It also provided some live highlights on the last tour, not least the opening Autogeddon Blues.

Autogeddon is on the stereo tonight.

Then lie low...

Beyond being the "3rd place" in the triology. I feel that its really a let down since to me Peggy only leads the way for Jehovakill. Which is probably my favorite Cope album. I know lots of people love peggy (and rightly so). but Jehovakill was my bag. Autogeddon still kicks don't get me wrong.

Ordering info: you can click on the "CDs" links at the top of this page.

I haven't sent a CD to Julian yet. As I said earlier, I'm trying to wait until after everyone who wants a CD can get one. That way, if Julian (or his label) insist that I "cease and desist" all distribution of the CDs [there's always a chance this will happen], well, at least everyone will have CDs.

I've never talked to Julian, never sent him email, never even saw him in person. So it's hard for me to judge how he'd react. For some reason he strikes me as being mistrustful... of technology and the people who use it. He might very well pigeonhole me as a GreedHead; it doesn't help that I (ahem) think his religious and ecological ideas are silly (bam! a monolith drops from the sky and lands on me).

Things are much different with Springhouse, For Against, and Digital Sex. There, I get lots of email from the musicians and if I want to do something to which they might possibly object, I simply ask them first. Since we're in such close correspondence, there's no need or opportunity to get away with anything behind their backs. And since I know them, why bother? Why piss them off? It's a lot easier to consider someone's feelings when you've actually talked to him.

Cope, to me, is an "untouchable celebrity", in some other social [and religious] universe. I'll still try to behave ethically, but at the same time I'm much more closely allied with his fans than with him.

Travis

Hey, where's the rest of the page?

Mmmmm...

Oh yeah, the disk ran out of space. Let me try to fix up the page.

Shoot...

Trav

Fixed... Hopefully!

Hey, I recently migrated from Netscape to Internet Explorer, which seems to be much stabler. IE also remembers your form entries. So now I don't have to type my name and email each time - I simply select them from a list. Kinda cool!

Trav

Accept no substitions. Its Netscape and nothing else. Its an anti-Microsoft thing. I deplore Bill "The ultimate Greed-Head" Gates' business policies. I don't care how good his software is, the company ethic sucks the big one. Having said that, I do think that competing companies should get their thumbs out of their asses and come out with equivalent or better products. Rant, rant rant...

Got my new hard disk today... Take two! So far, so good. I'm scanning it thoroughly for errors as we speak.

As for Netscape, well, I kept with it as long as I could. Up until a week ago, I hated the idea of using Internet Explorer. but Netscape has been crashing over and over again for the past year, almost daily. My Dad switched to IE and told me he didn't have any crashing problems or anything. So I decided to give it a go.

Well, IE is nice. The forms thing (where you can select previous entries) is a godsend when it comes to Rail On. And the mailer (Outlook Express) has nicer mail filters. There are some things I haven't figured out yet [like how to force my signature into every email I send, whether it's a reply or an original; and how to have text-only buttons], but overall I'm very happy with IE. Sorry! :)

I feel so... dirty...

Travis Gates

With regards to feeling that cope is removed from his fans, I had an experience that refuted this. I faxed Cope on the number at the back of the 20 Mothers booklet and told him what I thought of it on the assumption that the fax number was there for that reason. Some months past and then a hand written postcard arrived apologising for the delay due to moving house to be nearer Avebury and thanking me for my fax. Nice gesture I thought. This also gave me his autograph on a piece of personal correspondence, cool.

Did anybody else fax? I think it is still a live number so give it a go and see what happens!

This might sound like a stupid question, but I'm really curious about it...

I wonder just how much influence our role models have on us, in terms of body image. Julian's really tall and thin, much like Howard Stern [I'm a fan of both]. I wonder if people who gravitate towards Stern and Julian tend to be thinner, taller, and with longer hair than, say, fans of John Popper [Blues Explosion] and Rush Limbaugh. If so, which came first: your look or your choice in an idol?

Man, I wonder what all those Fall fans look like!

Trav

p.s. In case you're wondering, this is prompted by that VH1 special on Culture Club last night [with all the Boy George look-alike fans] and also by my parents' complaints about my being too thin, and my dying my hair blonde. What next, platform shoes?

p.p.s. Do ZZ-Top fans tend to have more beards, even ones who aren't impersonating?

p.p.p.s. Here are some more:

• Bob Marley fans - dreadlocks, herbalizing :)
• Elvis fans - longer sideburns? [ignoring all intentional look-alikes]
• Arnold Schwartzenegger fans - more muscular?
• Ally McBeal fans - thinner?

I am most interested in unconscious selection in either appearance or role-models. Like with pet owners and their pets. Do people try to unconsciously become more and more like their role models?

Extra credit: It's not such a huge leap to considering how movies and video games could possibly influence behavior at a subconscious level. Not that I have any objection to violence, sex, or drugs in any sort of entertainment... But I wonder just how influenced we *are* by what we observe in "entertainment", behaviorally.

Cope is very fan oriented...

One of my Cope experiences was on the Peggy Tour at the Roxy in LA.

I met him after the show and as I went to shake his hand he said "Hey Brian, good to see you here..." The last time I had met him on the St. Julian tour when his previous manager (Cally from Outlaw management). I spent the next minutes stammering for words as I was completely unprepared for him to remember me of all people. He got a good laugh from that.

But my first time meeting him is still the best. After the show at a small club, I wished him a 'goodnight' as he walked out. He spun around and walked the 30 feet plus to me and lookin right in my eyes, just inches away it seemed, he shook my hand with both of his and hand a killer smile as he >thanked-me for being there!!!

Quite a gentleman indeed.

Brian

...Then again, I have a old tape where he asks part of the crowd if they had minded having had pouring water on them before the show from the balcony, then he fesses up to the deed!

My impression was also that Cope is very fan orientated. On the first date of his Modern Antiquarian tour he signed and chatted and signed and took comments and made compliments until the Wedgewood Rooms really had to close. All this after talking to some 2 hours. He was very nervous at first but seemed really surprised and gratified by the response. Did this continue through the tour?

I don't look anything like Copey, nor do I think I behave like characters in my favourite films and I certainly hope don't take after my pet snail...

Netscape, netscape, ra ra ra!

Julian always looks after his fans, I've talked to him on quite a few tours and signings and he always remembers me. I've been friends with loads of bands as I used to visit an alternative club on friday and saturday nights in Retford called the Porterhouse bands From Adam &the Ants to Ultravox all played their before they made it as did The Teardrop Explodes and you just talked to the bands after the show out of all the bands the most friendly where Teardrop Explodes/ Soft Cell !!/ Altered Images/ Bauhaus/ Japan/ Roman Holiday and The Chameleons the worst were The Icicle Works who came in saw the size of the place and walked out . When The Teardrop Explodes played there were about 75-100 people there but it was a great gig.

Well enough of the ramblings of an old man !!!!

Has anyone else seen a band that turned out to be huge at one of their first gigs.

The best one I can remember was Big Country around 25 people watched them again the gig was one of the best i've seen and Stuart Adamson is still a good friend

Russ

Russ

First off..WOW!..it must have been nice to have seen so many great bands in their early years and to see a Chameleons mention here..a hugely overlooked band...

Second..OLD!.don't say that!..we still have a few years left in us before that~l~(that's a laugh btw..followeed by a prolonged coughing and hacking spell and mummerings of 'them kids and their rock'n'roll and hula hoops and hootchie coo":)

And lastly..well,I was in Boston before/when Throwing Muses and The Pixies broke..I was closer to the Muses though..my friend Jim and I being some of their first "fans"..Jim,in fact,giving them his 4-track for keeps as they had no equipment of their own to use...a great guy..gave me his Oberheim OB-1 synth as well..my wheezy fussy dinosaur..still used and cherished to this day...

..let me in / let me in...

StEven

oh...and REM on their first tour when I was home after my freshman year of school...leaned on the front of the stage and trying to avoid getting accidently kicked in the face by a hyper-happy Peter Buck(whilst trying to figure out what the heck the Let's Active sticker on his guitar meant.."Let Us Active??..what the...???"..found out who later,obviously)

Talking about the trilogy (peggy,jk,&Auto), I agree that at first I thought Autogeddon didn't fit. Looking back, if you take into account the Skellington Chronicles and Droolian being recorded throughout this period, "Auto" can fit musically and the ideas are right on the money. By the same token, how does "Peggy" logically follow "Nation"? How does 20 mothers follow Autogeddon? Take a good look at all of his musical output. I don't think there's a logical pattern for his chronological output. I feel he purposely tries not to duplicate his self. I believe that's why the differences in his releases are so profound.

As for the "fan emulates performer" question, I look nothing like Cope in any way, nor do I share his beliefs about paganism. I respect his beliefs just as one should respect mine. I don't dye my hair, or shave my head. I don't dress like Julian. Actually I'm kinda concious about not having an image. Even in music, I don't like to stick to one style. Cope is a genius (musically)as far as I'm concerned. That's why I purchase his CD's and love to learn how to play his songs. I'm 3 years younger than Julian, so I've seen a lot of styles come and go. Having seen those things for almost 4 decades you come to realize how unfulfilling (musically, fasion, and spiritually) it is to keep up with someones style.

Oh yes REM I saw them the first time they came over here in Nottingham and i've seen them a few times since and will see them again at Glastonbury (I'm working there again!!). Anyone else going to Glastonbury

Russ

Yep--R.E.M.--$6 at Maxwell's in Hoboken, early '83--before "Murmur" and after "Chronic Town".

Saw The Chameleons in '84 at s.n.a.f.u.--played there a week later! I think a photo from the s.n.a.f.u. dressing room is the band pic on the back cover of Strange Times (one of the greatest albums of all time).

Keep on, o my droogies...

...have some speed, / have some smack...

About "fan emulates performer": now we know how original and unique you are, dear fellow copeheads, but, on the contrary, I would be delighted to know what at least some of you certainly did (or do!) To LOOK LIKE Julian.

I like the world better with people like you! In the short time when I was a barmaid in the early Eighties, you can bet that my favourite customer was this boy who had the most impossible "medieval" looking shirts and his hair looked like a haycock : in my little (you can replace with any adjective comes to your mind) universe, he actually WAS Julian and he got the biggest smiles from me. Come on, out of your closets, have no shame: stupid people do things in a stupid, banal way, but why should it prevent us from doing the same "stupid" thing our way? What's so wrong in taking (or having taken) inspiration from "someone " you like?

As to myself, being a little woman, short, dark-haired and, as regards being very thin, more like a Betty B. than like a Julian H., I take inspiration from him in wearing colourful clothes, strange shoes and hats, not just because he does, but because I realized I'm positively happier like that.

... Well, always better than my 'Sisters of Mercy' period!

Yours,

Vava.

Hi

A couple of changes to my web site. I've put in a whats new page on the home page and added the ZOO DISCOGRAPHY and a COVERS AND RELATED page to the discography section. If anyone can help me fill in any gaps on the covers and related pages or can send scans of picture sleeves that would be great. Decon Blue did a cope cover of Trampolene I think on the b-side of a single and the mighty lemondrops and PWEI both include a little piece of When I Dream on one of their tracks anyone help!!!

Russ

and tiny children have away of falling down!!!

Aah, another short dark-haired lass. I completely understand the post-sisters revelation. Today is red-stripey day. I generally try to be colourful not only for myself but for other's entertainment, especially in winter. Why do so many people dress so dour in this country?

In truth, my favourite man is tall, blonde and when we first met skinny and long-unkempt hair. He is, I suspect, in love with JHC (but don't tell him I told you). So there are some cope-a-likes out here.

Does anyone know if Julian frequents Bath? I was convinced it was he (or perhaps a very dedicated fan) who pushed past me rather purposefully in March...

I'm nearly as old as him, about the same height, hair as long (though I don't anything as imaginative with it as he does) but no longer quite as skinny. Do I model myself on him? No. However, his influence on me to carve my own way in an increasingly conservative world is very strong.

Vava - a Sisters Of Mercy period? Could have been worse. How you'd all laugh if you could see me in my Heavy Metal boy phase.

Izzy - I did once admit (in this very list) that I'd marry the Drude if it weren't for laws and Sweetie D. (I wouldn't take her on). So maybe your man does.

The picture chosen for the cover of Leperskin? Wow. If I was to try and look like him, that might be it.

Soft enough for you...

Thought I'd mosey in on this discussion...

Actually, I'm too ugly of a bastard to even try and say "well, I looked like this" or whatever--I still dress (as a dear friend of mine snidely put it) the way I did when I was 16. Except I'm thinner now than I was then (shocking!). I still look like a refugee from The Style Council. So sue me. I never had the Cope-cuteness. The mid-'80's was my only non-Mod period--I could have been in That Petrol Emotion, but that's the only other band I copied as far as look. I'm a pretty original geezer, considering I live where I grew up--Staten Island, New York is NOT exactly the most open-minded community on the planet, but it is my home and I'm 34 and no longer give a shit what people think.

Did any of that make any sense?

I look like an idiot with long hair anyway...

Does it even matter anymore? Obviously, all of us here (on this site, I mean) have hearts and minds that are open and wide and everyone's thoughts have far more value than whatever clothes we may wear--hell, none of us have ever seen each other and yet, we have this little community that's all our own. Nice thought, innit?

BURP!

(I hate getting sentimental, soppy or worse, hippy-dippy!)

God bless all...

le pere du les Mods!

(is that right?)

(Vava Fan Club #1)

Oh, mother where to go...

Afterthoughts.

Fan friendly? Always has been in my experience. I was nervous first time I met him, but he was so warm and open, and it was the Drude who gave me the Vybik bit. I never thought I was, but who am I to argue with a man who could vibe the world given the chance?

Early days? The Manic Street Preachers in a now defunct Coventry venue called The Stoker. 1990/91? About 25-30 people there. Loud and punky and obnoxious and untogether. It was pretty good. And not a design for life to be seen. (There was still 4 of them then).

Hi, it's a heavy load...

Teardrop explodes peel session 9/79 available on mp3. email me for ftp details

Russ,

I always feel like a braggert when I talk about the bands I've seen before they made it big. (Anyone ever hear Cake's Rock'n'roll Lifestyle? How do you afford the t-shirt you bought to prove you saw them before they were big?)

U2: First US tour, at a club in Detroit called Harpo's (1,000 capacity) for three dollars! An incredible show. They played everything off Boy, then had nothing to encore with. So Bono apologized to the crowd, and they played I Will Follow a second time.

Police: We went top a record signing for Outlandos de Amor, and no one showed! Unfortunately, the Police then backed out as not to embarrass themselves. Bummer. Saw them next tour in a 300 seat club called Bookies and got to chat breifly with Sting.

REM: I saw them as a back-up band for The English Beat.

Here's a funny one. When I was a young eighth grade rocker, I saw The Runaways (Lita Ford, Joan Jett, et all.) The warm up was Cheap Trick. Before Cheap Trick, some unheard of crap band called Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. Of courtse, I still think they're crap!

I could go on, but enough already, right?

And, for the record, I don't look like Julian, or most of the other musicians I hero worship . . .

Okay, well, here are a few more from the days of my youth (emphasis on "yoof")

1. Cheap Trick opening up for Kiss
2. U2 opening up for The Teardrop
3. Us (The Punch Line) opening up for The Bangles (when they were on Faulty Records)
4. The Smithereens opening up for us (when we were Two Minutes Hate)
5. R.E.M. and The Bangles opening up for The English Beat
6. Lloyd Cole and The Commotions opening up for Madness (okay, so they didn't make it big, but Cole's a lyrical genius...)
7. Ted Nugent opening up for Kiss (give it up for The Nug! The Motor City Madman!)

I'm not kidding!

Ah, memories!

I could go on for hours and I probably will...

VAVA: you are SO hip !

My list of 'saw them before they were big'- for what its worth:

1. Blondie supporting Television.- Nov 77.
2. David Bowie - Harlow Playhouse - Jan 72
3. Slade - Harlow Tech - about Oct 70 - They were still skinheads at this stage in their career
4. U2 at the Marquee about Sep 79
5. Bauhaus supporting Gary Glitter at the Lyceum.
6. Joy Division, Teardrops and The Bunnymen supprting Lora Logic at the YMCA. I believe it was the Teardrops first London gig, although I didn't take too much notice of them.
7. Queen at the Imperial College ( 30p a ticket ! ) about Nov 73
8. Pretenders at Harlow Tech - March 79
9. Thin Lizzy - Dagenham Roundhouse - Sep 73.
10. Siouxsie &The Banshees - Bishops Stortford - Feb 78
11. Human League supporting The Banshees - Nov 78
12. Simple Minds - Lyceum - Oct 80
13. Hall &Oates - Jan 77 - Yes I am embarressed.

Turning the subject back to Mr Cope, and being an habitual keeper of lists, I thought some of you may be interested in the set list played by him on his solo tour in Jan/ Feb 98 at The Junction in Cambridge. The majority of the songs played were requests from the audiance:

• Jelly Pop Perky Jean
• Trampolene
• Sunspots
• Pristeen
• Double Vegetation
• Autogeddon Blues
• Try Try Try
• Out of my Head on Dope and Speed
• Passionate Friend
• Great Dominions
• You Disappear From View
• Robert Mitchum
• LA Basement
• Upwards at 45 Degrees
• Land of Fear
• (New Song) - Sorry I Wasn't Paying Attention
• Soul Desert

A number of song requests were politely declined as they had "too many chords" and he didn't want to highlight his "inadequacies as a musician". Requests for Competition went unheeded.

Tim

Well as far as image appropriation goes..and Ms Voom(~l~) well knows this..the only instance I can eally think of was back in school when my group of friends and I looked straight off a bunnymen album cover..all long coats and dour..I did try to get my hair to have that Mac/Nick Cave/explosion at the rat's nest look..but besides that..nothing else really..I dress for and of myself..have my own fashion/style I suppose..or at least,not anything nicked..music I'm sure has affected my attitudes and views of things(openedness,tolerance,understanding,etc),but in dress..not really..I tend to lean to dark colors,but that's just because I look so darned good in black...

oh

but I have been compared to other's..let's see,at various times,Lennon,Costello,even a,"Hey,the guy in REM"(this from a stranger on the street) and my brother did once say I looked like Copey circa WSYM (the shag..haircut..not...well..y'know)

..once of the nicest things he's ever said to me...:)

..the candle burns the hour / that lights the day

StEven

Vybik! Its a match made in heaven - you and my man! Perhaps you could keep him company for the next couple of weeks while I tour the east coast (photocopies of the relevent pages of the Modern Antiquarian under my arm).

So, for my return, what festivals are people going to this Summer? I think Reading looks rather good (especially Saturday). But I don't fancy the 2-mile long campsite. It wasn't like that when we first started going was it? Last year we cheated and borrowed a friends back-garden.

I'll shut up now.

I have no idea what to say to that, Izzy. Have a nice time though.

This is not a dainty world...

I'm working at all the major festivals this year so If you see someone working behind the bar in a cope shirt it will be me. Glastonburys not bad just for its wide range of musical tastes it covers but the Red Hot CP's are always worth a look

Russ

I've just ordered a copy of Heathcote Williams' book Autogeddon from Amazon (Its the book that inspired the album). Has anyone out there read it? Just interested to know what people think of it before it arrives.

Andrew

P.S. Also been reading some Stevie Smith poems recently (She worte the poem "Not Waving But Drowning", which inspired the track "Not Raving But Drowning). Crazy stuff indeed, very dark but funnt too. So many Cope connections, too little time...

Funnt? Err, I think I meant "funny". Dislexic fingers, sorry!

The NME reports that Jason Pierce, head of Spiritualized, sacked all band members but Ray Dickaty.

Come on, Mooneye and Thighpaulsandra, get back to Julian...

hey Tim Maher- Your list is incredibely impressive, but I must ask: who the hell is Lora Logic? And also, after enjoying that most amazing (i am jealous) list of warm-up bands for that show, did you enjoy Lora Logic?

-kevin

A couple of years ago - around the time of te Sex Pistols reunion - I heard that Lora Logic (of X-Ray Spex) was going to play with Poly Styrene again - possibly as X-Ray Spex. Nothing came of it as far as I know, which is porbably a good thing as, a) most punk reuniions were crap, except as cabaret, &b) Poly is apparently now a Buddhist, and Buddhist punk music seems to be something of a contradiction in terms to me.

That said, I never got to see 'em, which is a shame as they wrote a number of marvellous chewns - OH Bondage! Up Yours! not least.

Does anyone know what did happen, and what happened to the lovely Lora?

Then my girl was skinning, set my head spinning.

Kevin

Lora Logic was, as another contributor has noted, the sax player in X-Ray Spex. When they split Lora Logic formed Essential Logic, who headed the bill at the YMCA.

I had gone that evening to actually see Joy Division, whose first LP I had bought 2 or 3 weeks previously, and was being played constantly by John Peel. As I said previously, I didn't take an awful lot of notice of the Teardrops and the Bunnymen that evening other than noting what I thought at the time, was their rather ridiculas name. Times do change.

Lora Logic after Joy Division was a disappointment, even though I had a bit of a crush on her at the time.

Anyway, better stop now my suppers ready.

Tim

For more news on the Spiritualized sacking go to:

http://www.no-fi.com/spiritualized/news.html

The "termination of their employment" with Spi sounds about right though. When I met the band in 98, Jason seemed like a fairly decent guy, but it was pretty obvious the drugs weren't helping any. Shame that he fired Sean though, and very surprising too. I really liked Sean. I think they should all go and play with Julian for an extended pre-millenium world tour, plus they hsould bring back Don-eye to really round things off. Hopefully now though Thighpaulsandra will be able to finally release his solo album!

I know someone here mentioned this before if I remember right, but as to what Thighpaulsandra is doing right now I found this at the Coil web site:

"The musickian known as THIGHPAULSANDRA has joined COIL as a permanent member as of today. Thighpaulsandra is a member of SPIRITUALISED and QUEEN ELIZABETH (with Julian Cope), as well as working with Jodie Evans of ANAL. He is a classically trained musician who has made a long and deep study of the work of Stockhausen. He is a wonderful bright Pagan STAR in his own rite and I are very happy he accepted my invitation. Now we are 5 sided. Pentagrammatical. Complete."

Found it at:

http://brainwashed.com/coil/

wow, i leave my emails unread for a few days b/c of work and the incredible mercury rev show in toronto (best show i've seen in years, really do check out their latest album) and look what happens to spi*! the nme article about it is at: http://www.nme.com/newsdesk/19990515154301news.html

mark@home: http://160.94.54.48:8000 is the phish shoutcast site. it find it's home at: http://xpager.ndis.umn.edu/phish.html

jason.

Does anyone know what's up with Echo &the Bunnymen? They were suppose to perform here in Minneapolis tonight but the show was canceled. I heard they kicked the drummer out of the band and that the release of their new album was pushed back. Sounds like some internal strife has struck the band.

Their last album didn't impress me much and I picked up an EP of their new stuff which sounded pretty sluggish too, but I'd still like to see them live again if only to hear some of the older gems and Will's guitar playing.

Aah, Mercury Rev. I saw them about nine months ago, supporting Bob Mould, and nearly had to chuck my pint over the bloke I went with when he called them a 'bloody prog rock band'. Then saw them again in Sheffield with the Flaming Lips supporting (nobody would accompany me to that one) and I'd have to say the Lips blew them away. Their new album is truly phenomenal, tho' I kind of hope JC doesn't get into them, as their previous album was only available as a 4 cd pack, all of which had to be playyed simultaneously - I have a feeling \that that's a trick Copey could go for himself. Needless to say, I only know one person who weven claims to have got a copy, and she's never actually produced it.

Looking over someone's list of their Cope collection, I saw they had a copy of the Reward/Treason remixes (early 90's?). I've never managed to come across this - what's it like? worth chasing up?

andrew (and other macophiles) have you had a look at: iCab? http://www.hotwired.com/webmonkey/99/24/index2a.html

belbin, i have to agree the flaming lips performance i saw when they opened for porno for pyros was outstanding. later that year i saw them and mike was so messed up that he couldn't stand and the sound wasn't that good--still a great band though i never could find a copy of that quadraphonic album. i so highly recommend deserter's songs to everyone...

was there a story to why mooneye left the cope camp? the peggy suicide/jehovahkill band seemed to disintigrate around 1993. no?

jason

Tim Maher kicked off the week with a set list from the '98 acoustic tour, and it reminded me of something I'd been meaning to do for ages. So here goes...

Julian Cope Set As Played At The Tivoli, Buckley - July 14th 1993.

• Subtle Energies Commission
• Hanging Out and Hung Up on the Line
• You
• Pulsar
• Books
• Bloody Assizes
• Know (Cut My Friend Down)
• Sunspots
• Greatness and Perfection of Love
• Jellypop Perky Jean
• Pristeen (Take 1)
• Double Vegetation
• Poet is Priest (Acoustic with mime!)
• Julian H. Cope (Acoustic)
• Robert Mitchum (Acoustic)
• Trampolene (Acoustic)
• Passionate Friend (Acoustic)
• Beautiful Love
• Safe Surfer
• East Easy Rider
• World Shut Your Mouth
• Spacehopper
• Reynard the Fox

I feel quite nostalgic and moist-eyed looking at it.

Be honest folks - wouldn't you just love it if he was around this weekend, on stage, with the band and doing a set like this? Julian H Cope, live, doing what he does best - it's been too long.

Playing games with other boys...

Is anyone else aware of the suspicious cough on track two of the first Queen Elizabeth album? If I remember rightly its about 12 minutes in. This only poses one question; who was smoking a fat one? was Cope or Thighpaulsandra? answers on a post card please.

Now let us drink the reindeers piss.

Vybik Jon,

I have a tape of the Buckley Tivoli gig if you are interested. Maybe you already have it. Anyway, drop me a line if you're interested.

Andrew

I think Julian rolled it, but Thighspaulsandra was on the receiving end.

he coughed 'cos he wasn't used to Julians killer numbers

hee hee

......they just keep on skinning away, skinning awaaaaay.....

Regarding the cough on QE... Any correlation to the cough on the 12" version of Raspberry Beret by Prince?

I couldn't resist asking.

(It's the beers typing tonight.)

and as two souls rush together...

Hi

I've updated the website again. Have added a pic of the Peggy Suicide promo packet of seeds that i've just recieved to the news section. Sorry to dissapoint but they are only flower seeds (with all this talk of who rolled what!!!). See you at Glastonbury where I will be rolling my own........RUSS

Vybik Jon:

John I have been trying to reply to your email but they keep bouncing back for some reason. A copy of the tape should be in the mail to you in the next couple of days.

Andrew

You're a star, Andrew! I owe you one.

So here I go...

All this royal wedding shit. The Earl of Wessex? Ha! I think we all know who the main man of Wessex is.

Inbred Fuckingham Palace Scum...

Its funny but the first thing I thought of when I heard that Edward was to be the Earl of Wessex was the same thing: "Hang on, don't we already have an (Arch) Earl of Wessex?"

So did anyone hear of the melee at Stonehenge?

wondering if our boy was there..or was in one of the groups that had their event cancellled because of the ruckus

Not that I'm a druid or anything,but I read reports of people climbing up on the rocks and dancing and besides being unsafe to both the site and the person it just seems so veryvery wrong

..stone circles and you...

Hi People,

Has anyone know anything about this compilation?

JULIAN COPE, CHUMBAWAMBA, THE POGUES, JUNE TABOR, POISONGIRLS: DISAGREEMENT PEOPLE

I figure its an older compilation

John

Just a quick one, inspired by the movie "I Want You". Saw it last night in a state of "heightened awareness", and it was the proverbial dogs bolloxs (v. good). It's an english movie and a good one to watch after a couple, if toking is your thing (I also think I'm in love with the main blonde female character, watch it you'll know what I mean). Anyway the Copian connection is that it's got a stonkin' sound track (Elvis Costello, Kirsty MacColl, etc), including "Beautiful Love". It was very cool as I was already well into the movie when it came on, and you don't really get the drude on many soundtracks. Actually that's a good cue for a trivia.

Q. How many soundtracks, if any other, has Cope appeared on?

Not only, but also; the whole stone henge thing. It seems to me that it's English Heritage and their attitude that caused the situation there. People were gathering at the stones for years without doing any damage before EH set up their little exclusion area. The real question is who owns they stones the people or a quasi public organisation like EH? Anyway if Copes theory is right the henge is no more than a show piece. So i guess we can be glad that they concentrate on there rather than some of the funkier ones. Still.....

......stay away from the government......

I did saw something on the news here about the Stonehenge midsummer madness. Its a real shame that things like that happen as it gives the greedheads all the evidence they need to come down on us with rules and regulations. It does make me wonder though, how it would have gone if there were no fences around the site and everyone could go wherever. It always strikes me that half the problem is the fact that they put up these barriers, it is almost as if the fat cats want trouble, probably they do. Shame, real shame. I agree that these sites need to be nurtured and protected, but remember that they have been there for 4000 years or whatever. I don't think a bunch of drunken revellers are going to cause that much damage, the stones reflect everything that has happened to them and the earth since they were erected. The damage happens when you deny people access and tensions rise. Sad, very sad.

Hey guys, the new format is a hit! People have requested I add it to my other lists, so that's what I've been doing [gradually] these last few days.

Okay, this morning I finally got my cancellation of my German Music Express Jam boxed set confirmed. They said they shipped me the Fall album, so I'll have news on that shortly. But after a month of trying to find the Jam set, they still didn't have it.

That's the bad news. The really good news is that CDNow.com is having a 30% off sale on imports, so they are selling the Jam boxed set for a whopping $50.04!!! Not only that, but they have Swervedriver's previously-hard-to-find Ejector Seat Reservation for $22.74! So I ordered them both.

Just to be Anal [heh heh], here's CDNow's Cope content:

Piano                           CD $11.99
Wilder                          CD $15.74
Saint Julian                    CD  $9.49
My Nation Underground           CD  $9.49
Peggy Suicide                   CD $11.49
Jehovahkill                     CD $11.49
Floored Genius 2                CD $12.99
Floored Genius 2                CD $14.69 [import]
Autogeddon                      CD $15.74 [import]
Interpreter [+bonus tks]        CD $27.99 [import]
Followers of St Julian          CD $14.69 [import]
Leper Skin                      CD $12.94 [import]
Various Artists
Postpunk Chron - Going Undergnd CD $11.49 "Passionate Friend"
1980 CMJ Year in Alternat Music CD $11.49 "When I Dream"
Where the Pyramid Meets the Eye CD $13.99 "I Have Always Been Here Before"
The Island Story                CD $17.99 "World Shut Your Mouth"
        

Speaking of movies... I recently saw "Roman Holiday" in a completely sober, non-heightened state. What a movie! It really affected me, more than any other movie. I moped around for days, completely bummed out that such loveliness existed but is now gone. Sigh. Anyone else have a crush on Audrey Hepburn? I saw her face on an Entertainment Weekly "Top 100 Stars" magazine last night so of course I bought it.

[ Yeah, yeah, first I swoon over Can's Tago Mago and now Audrey! Sorry folks! I need some testosterone boosters! ]

Which reminds me... heightened awarenesses and coughing... Has anyone every tried that Robotussin thing?

Trav

What I find astounding about all these arseholes having a go at 'hippies' is that they said bugger all about the army going on 'manouevres' across Salisbury Plain for years. Somehow I think a few tanks are going to do more damage than a bunch of heads sitting around listening to Hawkwind ever could.

I also find the idea that a bunch of so-called druids (an ancient tradition dating back at least, uhh, 80 years) have any greater right (rite?) to the place than the rest of us absurd, though. Whether its just a showpiece (strikes me as having been too big a job for that to be true) or whatever, its an amazing tribute to the skill and commitment of generations long gone, and should not be preserved just for the (self) selected few.

&ST. - I've heard reward on some film soundtrack, can't remember which tho'

belbin

on the cdnow tip, heres $10 off

http://www.CDNow.com/from=red:x:cdn:bk6

so my nation should cost about five bucks

enjoy

~db

fyi- someone is selling the Rabbi 7" on ebay.

re rabbi on ebay... it's there... and lots of other jc goodies too. But why oh why oh why would anyone want to get rid of their julian collection??? Beats me.

Must be alzheimers related. The patient's sedated.

Nob of nob end.

Hi,

Does anybody want to trade?

I'm looking for live stuff, preferably from the radio. In return for two tapes I currently have the following to offer with more to come soon:

TX Live at the The Left Bank Club New York 7/3/81+ Peel Sessions; Set List:

• Just Like Leila Kahled Said
• Reward
• Thief Of Bahgdad
• Sleeping Gas
• Passionate Friend
• I Suffocate
• Poppies
• Ha Ha I'm Drowning
• Treason
• Screaming Secrets
• When I Dream
• The Great Dominions

Peel 80

• Ha Ha I'm drowning
• Brave Boys Keep Their Promises
• Take A Chance
• Went Crazy

Peel 4.80

• When I Dream
• Thief Of Baghdad
• Poppies

JC Glastonbury CND Festival 20/6/6/; Set List:

• Culture Bunker
• Trampolene
• Pulsar
• Eves Volcano
• Strasborg
• St.Julian
• Non Alignment Pact
• Bouncing Babies
• Planet Ride
• Read It In Books
• Shot Down
• Space Hopper
• World Shut Your Mouth
• Reynard The Fox

If anybody does fancy a trade, please e-mail me at verianthomas@breathe.co.uk

Cheers

V

A Growing-Up-Ugly

Sorry, failed to mention that the stuff is on CD hence the trade for 2 tapes.

V

Audrey Hepburn (circa 1956) was the most beautiful creation on this planet in my opinion. If you liked Roman Holiday you will love "Sabrina" and "How to Steal a Million" (w/Peter O'Toole). If possible, she looked even more angelic in Sabrina.

(Forgive my typical pontification to follow) It gives me great hope to learn that there are others out there who find today's world filled as it is with a boom box mentality and show more tit approach towards romance really depressing. Every time Im out on my Vespa, visions of AH and GP careen into my head and the world becomes a little more classy. The world is what we make it I suppose.

Interesting comment questioning whether the self-styled modern Druids have any more claim to Stonehenge than the rest of us. I think whoever posted that is on to something there. And it does seem a little ironic that if one were REALLY into the Druid thing, that one would be so drawn to Stonehenge (possibly more of an in-your-face expression of power than a worshipful place) as opposed to the infinitely more awesome and mystical Avesbury/Silbury site.

Query to Triviamaster Modfather who I gather lives in NYC: In Atonement of WASP, Julian gives a Manhattan intersection (I forgot it just now) where he, Dorian, and Laurie Cabot meet Deb (who looked foxier than he's seen her in ages). Is this just a nondescript intersection, or is there something particular there that would be of interest to Cope?

Anyone who has info on the Donn-eye split please enlighten.

Passionate Friend was playing on someone's radio in an episode of Inspector Morse.

Ciao

Hello and greetings to fellow Drudes everywhere

I'm afraid this is going to be one of those long first time Emails where people rave on about how/why/when they got into TE/Cope. And I personally never tire of hearing how other people got turned on to Copey so...here goes.

Firstly let me say that this is one of the best and nicest sites that I have found on the whole Web. I really admire the way you fellow Cope fans use this site for communicating with others. When I say "nice" I mean in the context of there being no flaming or violent arguments or expressions of hatred that I have found here. BTW Travis - is this a moderated site? Do you cull out the abuse before it posts or are Cope fans so cool that its not needed here? I'd like it to be the latter.

I was especially impressed with the way that that cool Christian guy (Willie?) was handled. When I read his first posting I thought Oh-oh we have a fundamentalist here and there's gonna be trouble (ie. they're gonna cut him to pieces). However the debate was really nicely handled I thought so well done to all involved - this is a lesson that needs to be learnt elsewhere on the Net. Personally I didn't agree with Willie but I'm glad he was allowed to contribute. In any case anyone whose a Cope fan must be at least partly on the right track.

Now, what was I gonna actually say? I'm from Australia, 39 year old redirected male vegetarian. I vaguely followed Teardrop back in about 79 (with "Poppies" being my fave then) but like many semi-fans lost contact with (and interest in) Cope for some time. Then I was turned on to "Jehovakill" in about 1994 and I was absolutely thunderstruck. I can't quite recall which track I fell for first, maybe it was a cumulative effect (the album DOES have great consistency with about 1 exception only). "Poet is Priest" might have been the catalyst - Julian in top falsetto form singing about (?) cosmology I dunno but I knew I was hooked. The next few weeks were spent stocking up on his mainstream albums. Then I read "Head On" and "Krautrocksampler" - you can guess the rest. There is something deeply emotionally satisfying about his music - even when they don't completely work technically. He has changed my life for the better and helped make me a gentler person (I've had a tough life...)

So thanks to everyone who contributes here. I intend to be a regular here now. Got heaps of questions and stuff to relate but that will wait for later postings.

Malachy = Mark

G'day again all

Now that I got my first E posted let's get down to the nitty gritty.

Q. My favourite on "St Julian" is (far and away) "Crack in the Clouds". What is it actually about? I reckon its from the point of view of a young warrior (?) who has been captured by early Christians and refuses to convert so is executed by being drowned in a river. As he dies he continues to worship the goddess (sun?) as a ray of light breaks through. Now its probably a lot more metaphorical than that but thats what I get from it. I'd like to hear what more knowledgeable fans make of it all.

Some time ago Trav mentioned that he sometimes gets mistaken for a gay guy (do you recall?). That reminded me of a wonderful anecdote Julian mentions in Head On when TE were supporting Queen at Elland Road in Leeds. With 6000 Queen fans and 6 TE fans there it was a difficult gig. Julian was in a dress I think and wearing makeup. The Queen fans were about to lynch Julian and they screamed for the faggot to get off! The great irony was that macho Freddy came out with Brian May et al after JC had been abused as a faggot! A great irony and possibly an insight into the true nature of homophobia. What has this to do with your situation Trav? probably not much. (Come to think of it it may not have been in Head On after all but in a Culture Bunker archived interview?)

I recently spent 3 months travelling around UK and Ireland and had a sad experience in Ireland. I was on a coach trip with about 20 other tourists when we visited a megalithic site. The people I was with showed great disrespect for the site I thought. They didnt think that standing stones erected 5000 years ago was impressive or that a 4500 year old campsite had anything to offer. After a couple of photos and snorts of disdain (eg" this is fucked - let's go the pub" - I only had a problem with the first sentiment) we trooped back to the bus with 21 year olds complaining about it being a waste of time with nothing to see etc. I felt cheated so I waited for everyone to get on the bus then I said "sorry Ive got to visit the gents" and ran out. I went back to the site (this time alone) and sat down, closed my eyes and tried to imagine people there 5000 years ago. Much better...only wish I had more time and mobility (no drivers licence for me...) to see more. I used an early poor man's "Modern Antiquarian" - "Mysterious Britain" by Colin and Janet Bord published in about 1972. Now from what I hear MA shits all over MB so next time I visit the UK/Ire I'll defintely be using His. It will help my muscle tone if I carry it around with me also.

I'd love to hear from other Cope fans in Australia. Any Oz Drudes out there? Oh and if we want to see JC at all we'll have to visit him in UK - he aint coming downunder ever again in my opinion. If he hasnt played Germany in 12 years he aint gonna play Oz/Nz is he?

Right - I'm off home to read all the posts for the last few months then I'll be back to order Cds and other things. I don't have net access where I live (no phone line) so I apologise if I've repeated stuff that's already been dalt with elsewhere.

All the best to everyone.

Mark = Malachy

Mark,

I was in touch with another Cope fan in Australia a while back, his name is Andrew. I can't find his email address right now, but I'll have a search for it. I sent him my Cope videos to copy a while back, I'll see if I can dig out his address for you. I remember he worked at a University, but for the life of me I can't remember which city.

Andrew

According to a letter in today's Guardian, the latest (or at least the letter writers latest) theory about the origins of Stonehenge, is that it wasdesigned to let people know when their 'taxes' fell due. i kinda like this theory - it rather implies that modern day droids should actually be going and prancing around outside the new(ish) Inland Revenue Building in Nottingham if they want to carry out their cere'monies' outside of the reach of the fuzz. actually, my brother keeps inviting me to Notts to see the IRBuilding - managed to put it off so far.

Also, having just looked at andrew's e-mail address, isn't replacing AD with Common Era just as bad really. After all its only the common era in those places dominated by that whole judeo-christian thing (&not even all of them). Jews, Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, even bloody Druids - it aint their 'common' era.

belbin

Belbin,

Common Era is used as a neccessity in order to converse about the year without wanting to refer to it as the year of our so called lord. It refers to the commonly accepted era, and generally that is currently 1999. It's not perfect I admit, but it's a start.

steve, 1999 common error.

Dear all,

I'm going to Liverpool for a couple of weeks and I would like to make the most of my spare time there: any suggestions about where to go and what to do, etc.? I think this subject could be interesting for other people also, but you can always e-mail me privately at this address: temporaryruski@hotmail.com.

Thank you!

Yours,

Vava.

Anybody know where I can get the sold-out "experimental" releases of Julian's. Rite and Queen Elizabeth are quite desperately needed. Thanks, Luke

Hey guys! First of all:

You need the "#subscribe" not "Subscribe". Does "#s" sometimes get interpreted as shift-S or capital-S? I'd never heard of that before, but sorry if there's any ambiguity.

Mark - you have a good memory! Interesting bit about Queen. Did you see how ghastly gaunt Freddie/Freddy Mercury looked during the final recording sessions? He looked horrible! Protruding teeth and cheekbones, sunken eyes... Ugh! Julian isn't nearly that bad. He's healthily scrawny. :) Lithe? Like a long-distance runner.

Hmm, I wonder now that Cope has relaxed his anti-driving stance... Is he gonna stop walking and start getting pudgy? Well, I don't know many fat long-haired men. Howard Stern's skinny, Julian's skinny [or at least in the last pix I saw]... That Chili Pepper dude is skinny. Iggy Pop, Alice Cooper, Tom Petty... They all have somewhat long hair and are all thin. I guess there's always Meatloaf, but he cut his hair, didn't he? Bob Marley was skinny, but, well, he had cancer. Robert Smith ballooned... was that before or after he cut his hair?

Maybe long hair takes effort and a certain amount of vanity. Maybe the routine of hair-tending naturally leads to a routine of body-tending?

Dunno.

Speaking of Australia, I just saw Picnic at Hanging Rock a couple nights ago. Talk about creepy!!! Jeezzzzzzz.... I can't imagine going on a standing stone expedition after watching that.

Mark, glad you like the site! Don't worry about repeating stuff. When I look back through the archives I see we often repeat ourselves without really knowing it, often saying the exact same phrases. Pretty funny.

No, this isn't moderated. The only stuff I get rid of is errors, like when people accidentally post stuff twice, or type in some funky HTML. We're very well behaved. It's probably because of the soothing background colors. :)

Audrey, audrey, audrey!!! :) Let's see, I've seen:

• Roman Holiday - loved it!
• Sabrina - cool, but a little sad. I dig Bogie though!
• How to Steal a Million - nice light-headed flick
• My Fair Lady - fun, fun, fun! This and "Yankee Doodle Dandy" are my two favorite musicals. "Fiddler on the Roof" was also pretty good.
• Breakfast at Tiffany's - been a while. I remember really liking the scene when she's looking for the cat
• Nun's Story - really made me think! She seemed tired, though.
• Romance in the Afternoon - I remember liking it a lot, though I don't remember much about it. I have it on tape - maybe I'll rewatch it!
• Wait Until Dark - been a REALLY long time, back before I started watching [and appreciating] old movies. This was probably my first Audrey movie.

I also saw a movie with her dancing in Paris. A weird movie. Do you remember the name of it?

What other movies has she done that are worth checking out? Is the Maid Marion (sp?) one good?

"A Crack in the Clouds" is really cool.

This reminds me, ahem, we have a survey going on! I sort of forgot about it for a couple months there. I have 5 or 6 sets results. If we want, I can go ahead and tabulate what we have, and then start a more *fun* survey that all of us can get into. [The one we have now is a tabular beast].

The Jam set shipped this morning [along with Swervedriver's Ejector Seat Reservation], so they really do exist! It felt too good to be true, especially at those prices. Well, this will be a happy week, especially if the new Big Takeover arrives as well! Anyone else subscribed to it?

Okay, time for a shower! I completely wore myself out at the gym. I'm reading Jeff Noon's Vurt. Anyone else read it? I can't figure out if he's from the UK or not. It's all a mix of drugs and virtual reality, weird stuff. Makes me want to read Julian's sequel to Head On.

Trav

Hi

Back from Glastonbury REM were fab as ever the weather was great no mud this year. Head Heritage have joined the Julian Cope webring so the ring is growing. Trav glad you liked the stuff

Russ

Have a day off work and there's loads of postings - excellent!

Welcome to Mark Malachy. It is good isn't it?

Vava - have a look at the men's toilet in the Philharmonic pub. Not a Drude related thing (as far as I know) but everyone does it, women as well as men. I've been stopped from going in for a few minutes while a party of tourists were in there taking photos. In fact the whole pub is pretty cool. Try and get there in the day as it heaves at night. On a Drude theme, you could go to Paddy's wigwam and recreate his falling off one of the main supports!

You look good in plaster...

Yes I was going to suggest Paddy's Wigwam - the contrast between the inside and the structure and the buildings surrounding. Also Bold Street for fodder and collecter's shops. I once saw loads of Star Wars figures in a shop there for a very low price, but had absolutely no money. Otherwise I could be very wealthy now. Oh yes Allerton Road (?) - the real Penny Lane. What I always loved about Liverpool was that there seemed to be a stunning building at the end of every street.

Sorry can't think of any JC related things either, apart form the obvious.

ST - I'm trying to remember which film had Cope on the soundtrack that I saw about 6 weeks ago in a state of reduced awareness. Had a couple of lads beating each other up ... same one you saw?

Hi, I'm currently playing 20 Mothers over and over, and I wonder if anybody out there can tell me the guitat chords/tabs for any of the songs; especially wheelbarrow man; try,try,try; queen mother; highway to the sun; cryingbabies sleeplessnights. Thanks, Howard.

trav

that funny french film is the marvellous Funny Face (with Fred Astaire as AH's dancingpartner). This is easily my favourite Audrey movie - the scenes of her and Fred as beats in Paris is hilarious.

Robin And Marian is not bad - somewhat silly, but good romping fun all the same. The other one I'd recommend is The Children's Hour - a sad tale of two teachers destroyed by accusations of lesbianism. Shirley Maclaine is also magnificent..

Jeff Noon &Vurt. Yes, indeed Noon is very british - Vurt (and the follow up Pollen) are all very clearly based around Manchester (well, very clearly if you know Manchester). I thought Vurt was superb, but the others trail off quite rapidly - tho' I haven't read his latest which had a title that seemed kinda borrowed from Autogeddon - but a can't remember what it is or quite why I thought that.

Steve - I kinda accept your point about 'Common Era', but don't think it really answers my whole point - that it's only the Common Era in the Christian west (where we all live, of course). Lets hope it is just a starting point, and that we get a better phrase - tho' I can't really think of one that sounds good.

Ahem, does ANYONE have any information concerning the split between Skinner and Cope?

The Drude and Donn-eye.

Nothing solid to report, but on the last (musical) tour Julian did talk of how certain band members had been less than enthusiastic about his bce/MA explorations and research. Whether Donn-eye was one of these I couldn't say. Could this be a case of muse-ical differences?

I was a bouncing baby...

Just a few pointless points.

Vurt was an amazing book. Pollen was also very good, although it does get a bit hard to imagine was Mr Noon is visualising at the end. The third book was called Automated Alice, and it was written as a suppossed final chapter in the Alice in Wonderland books. T'aint that good. The final book (to my knowledge) was Nymphomation. Something about a domino game in the future. My friend bought it over a year ago and hasn't been arsed to read it yet.

One almost Julian related question...

In the Krautrocksampler book, Julian often refers to Frank Zappa as Jazz Shite. Now I happen to appreciate Zappa's humour and musical ability, I think he was a master arranger at least. Do you think Cope really dislikes Zappa's music, or only when compared to Kosmiche freak outs? Does anyone else rate Frank Zappa at all?

Anyone familiar with the works of the late great Bill Hicks? As a comedian and social commentator he was untouchable especially by the second rate Dennis Leary. Anyone who's interested should really check out www.billhicks.com

I didn't expect this message to be this long.

Can't say I'm a great fan of Audrey Hepburn.

Howardmorrison:

I used to know how to play a lot of cope songs but my guitar is 72 miles away and I can't recap. I'm pretty sure however that Wheelbarrow man is a simple G-C-D type of song. Keep playing around with the easy chords and you're sure to find it. As for the other songs you requested,can't say offhand without any form of musical instrument in this house, but if your still asking in a weeks time when I get ALL my stuff back from a horrible little market town just outside London called High Wycombe ( HI, Why Come?)I'll let you know.

Um, I don't think i really have anything else to add except, I went to Avebury recently. The English Heritage folks don't want people climbing up Silbury, but I did it anyway. Is this disrespectfull, or is it disrespectfull of them to expect me to travel all the way there and not climb it?

I don't know.

Oh yeah, lets all just rename the years starting when Julian Cope was born. We can call it OE (Our Era) and everyone else like the Christians will be confused and wonder why we aren't letting them in on our secret. Or maybe we should just restart at the turn of the millenium and attempt to forget all the shit that has happened in the last 2000 years.

THATS ENOUGH! Thats enough.

I'm from Merritt Island, Florida. I stumbled on to Julian Cope at the Cocoa Beach Public Library about 5 years ago. I'd never heard of him or TE. I saw the Peggy Suicide CD and checked it out. I was blown away and have since aquired a copy of Peggy Suicide, My Nation Underground, and 20 Mothers.

My problem is that I'm the only person I know who likes this music. My wife, my friends, my coworkers, no of them seem capable of relating. This area can be such a cultural wasteland. I can't find Cope's CDs in the local music stores.

I just found this site today and you can bet I'll be back.

Charade(1963 common era) is another entertaining Hepburn film. It has Cary Grant in it. Grant was supposed to have been in Love In The Afternoon instead of that stiff Cooper, but he had committed to another film.

The weird thing about Charade is that if you turn down the volume and play Peggy Suicide, it is really interesting how the music goes along with the movie. I'm only kidding, but I wonder if Autogeddon wouldn't match up with one of the Mad Max films?

Charade... I'll have to check that out! I'm a Cary Grant fan as well, so that should be cozy.

Don, you definitely came to the right place! We're an island of Cope fans in an ocean of Cope ignorami. :)

If you want to find Cope CDs, you should check out CDNow, German Music Express, and the other online stores. See the 25 June post (on this page) for CDNow's current Cope inventory. Also, check out Head Heritage for the harder to find material.

Heck, you have so many options, and so few Cope CDs (3), that you're in for a lot of puchasing pleasure!

Just don't be afraid of online shopping. Some people think it's evil, and that you should always buy locally if you can. However, when it comes to non-top-40 stuff, the local stores usually take forever to get special orders, if they can even find it, and the prices end up being steep.

Still, I've seen some really cheap Cope CDs in used bins. I see Peggy Suicide all the time for around $5. Saint Julian, too; that's one you don't have. And I've seen Jehovahkill and Floored Genius in the used bins too.

If I were you, though, I'd get on CDNow today; this is the last day of their 30% off import sale. Carpe Dium, dude!

Gotta go exercise now. Maintain my Cope-esque figure.

Trav

Re j.knight@aston.ac.uk question on the Drude &"Don-EYE" Ross Skinner, I don't know why they stopped working together but I do know that Don-EYE, started a band called STARFISH, about the same time as 20 Mothers hit the shelves. The did release at least one single, although I have never seen a copy, but I did hear it on BBC Radio 1, the band was also in session and were also intervieved. The band also comprised of the ex KATYDIDS singer.

Re: Don Downs and being the only one around who appreciates Cope...don't most of the people on this list who live in the States feel that way?

At work I had a photo I took of Julian as my screen saver on my computer[in leathers on the St. Julian tour- early 1987]...in two years no one who saw it had any clue whatsoever who he was. I would ask if they had heard of TE - no. How 'bout Echo &Bunnymen - some said yes, to these people I would explain about the Liverpool scene circa late 70's.

We all know what they are missing......

Jennifer

-mass in f minor- ;)

Wasn't that the best time? When you were first getting into Cope, heavy? You'd bought Jehovahkill or Peggy and were just blown away. Your whole outlook on popular music had changed. You'd discovered this new artist that just made it all new again. AND you've just discovered that he has a whole WHACK of stuff that you've not yet heard. I remember when I had just bought Peggy (after listening to Jehovahkill exclusively for 6 months). I went into this great store in downtown Toronto...they had the whole JC -TE works. I got SO excited just knowing that there would be new JC stuff for me for the next several years.

I think that's why I really take my time in buying his more obsure stuff - like QE and the stuff on Head Heritage, because I always want there to be Cope that I haven't heard yet...

Derek

(Zappa remains my second most listened to artist. I'll admit he gets about 1 tenth the time in my CD player, but still he's number 2 in my books. I can only hope I see Julian live one day, unlike Frank who died before I had the chance)

This is just to let everyone know that the Screaming Secrets website will be moving to a new home very shortly. It will also be expanding somewhat significantly in the process. More news as it comes closer to completion.......

BTW, interesting to read so many queries on various Cope trivia - some of which were actually answered in many a back issue of Screaming Secrets (*that* Julian Cope magazine). A lot of those early issues are selling out fast, y'know........

Paul B

"Running and jumping wins the race" J Wentworth Crazy

Hi,

Has anybody come accross juliancope.com , I came accross it whilst surfing today and it's offering a yourname@juliancope.com e-mail address!

Does anybody know if this is an official site or not? From what I've seen it doesn't appear to be though it is still under construction.

V

I'm travelling to England in October and want to try and get along to see Julian Cope live. Has anyone got any idea of where &when JC may be playing ? Anywhere in UK is possible

Common Era is the name of my design company. Yeah it is probably Cope inspired in some way, but basically I just thought it was a cool name. But in response, most of us here live in a western society and there is no getting away from the fact that a lot of our holidays, celebrations and other systems all date from the middle ages when the christian church ruled. Are you going to say "Hey I'm not a Christian therefore I'm not going to use your dating system" Are you going to rename the months of July and August because we ain't Roman? Lighten up people, they are just words, and yes words are very important, but the truth, the one with a capital T, is bigger than that. It is ok to decry something, but what would you use in its place? Common Era (C.E.) is an acknowledgment that this era is for all of us, not just Christians. Remember what came before? I grew up with A.D., Anno Domini, the year of our lord. No contest really. Yes, it is the common era only in the west. If I lived in China I'd work under the chinese calendar etc. At least Common Era doesn't refer to a date when our supposed saviour was born, the date does, but not the phrase. Once again, lighten up.

Hi

More info on the starfish single can be found on my website in the disography section under covers/related

Just had a weekend in Dublin with the lads i'm feeling worse than before I went so a good time was had by all

Russ

juliancope.com yes its not offical but a good idea just wish i'd have got there first

Russ

Reported in the Guardian, that over midsummer two of the avenue stones at Averbury were painted by a "new age traveller" as a piece of art. He then chose to name them one was entitled 'Cuckoo' and the other, which was painted red at the bottom and green on the top, was given the name 'Genetically Modified Tomato', I'm popping down over the next few weeks for a break and a scone at the Stones cafe.

Sounds like a fine idea Andrew. I'm trying to organise a trip to sea henge before it is moved/washed away. May take in the new art work on the way up. And yes, it is worth taking out a mortgage for a snack in Stones!

Izz

Watched a great show last night on one of the music channels here about the "wild boys of rock n' roll". Lots of clips of Morrison, Bowie, Lou Reed and Iggy.

It amazed me how much Cope has based his whole stage presence and performance on that of Iggy Pop and Morrison. I always knew he was greatly influenced by them, but it was quite freaky watching Iggy on stage and The Doors and realising just how much, but then Iggy based his stage presence on that of Morrison to begin with anyway and Morrison was just copying the performances of some of the avant garde theatre productions of that time.

Still, for some strange reason it did leave a bit of an empty feeling in my stomach. It really was quite spooky to watch Iggy go through his motions and see just how much Cope took from him. I guess I always thought Cope was out there on his own, very original etc, but I guess I should have known better, after all I am a designer and I know that there is nothing original and that one new idea is always based on something before it.

More thoughts anyone...?

According to the intenet movie database, Julian was in British TV film called "The Happy Valley", made in 1987. It was about the life of the English Aristocracy in Kenya (!)

Has anyone seen this film or know anything about it? I expect it was pretty shite (TV films usually are).....

Someone on another list mentioned http://www.gemm.com/ so I checked there and there's a ton of Cope stuff for sale, including the Droolian LP and a bunch of EPs. If you're desperate for cope stuff, you might want to check this place out. I can't vouch for their dependability, though, since I've never dealt with them personally.

Cope has struck me as derivative in the past. Many of his song and album titles are stolen from quotes another other titles. And his singing [especially in his early days] reminds me often of Syd Barrett and Scott Walker [from what little Scott Walker I've heard]. And of course much of his look seems to come from Iggy Pop.

Yeah, he's a thief... He's a really GOOD thief! Like Audrey's dad in "How to Steal a Million"... I don't care if he's making "fake" paintings, as long as the paintings themselves are appealing.

Shakespeare was a bit of a thief, too. And J.R.R. Tolkien.

I'd rather have those rogues at my dinner table than Iggy Pop, Scott Walker, and whichever ancient authors had their pockets picked by William and the Professor.

Trav

p.s. I wonder if Tolkien unconsciously hero-ified a burglar to comfort himself over his own literary pilfering...

Trav / Andrew...

Talent borrows, Genius steals.

..and ducks pivot

Trav,

Yes, that's why I put that bit at the end of my last post saying as a designer I should have known better. One thing we were quite strongly taught at art school was the first thing you do when you get a new project is go to the library and see what others have done in similar circumstances.

I think part of what I was feeling was due to the fact for the past 2 years I have smoked a joint just about every night. I started to realize it really wasn't a good way to live and besides, it just wasn't a thrill any more, so I quit 2 weeks ago. OK, we've all heard the arguments that THC isn't addictive, no it isn't, but the psychological effects deffinately are. Apart from having a fucked up emotional balance right now, the only other withdrawl symptom seems to be insomnia. Alcohol inhibts fear, nicotine inhibits anger and THC inhibits sadness. Makes sence to me.

I still love Julian and he has hugely infuenced me and I have plaigiarised (spelling?) a lot of things he has said and done over the years. We all need our heroes and I thank the universe that Julian David Cope is mine.

Andrew

It may have been me who posted something about GEMM site a while back. I have used this site several times now, but I've never ordered anything through them. You have the option of using them as a kind of broker to buy stuff, they contact the seller and then forward it to you for an extra 10%, or you can go direct to the seller themselves as most of the listings have an email address or some way to contact them. I have always gone direct to thye seller and never had any problems (you can also haggle a bit if you go direct to the seller). It is a great site as it doesn't just list all the Cope stuff etc from one place but combines all the listings from all over the world into one big list, so its easy to browse and shop around. Its a great resource and I highly recommend it, it is through there that I bought the Skellington original cd from somewhere in the US and I also got the Fear Loves...12" from a place in Edinburgh. You are also able to find those really hard to find items through there too. Check it out.

A message to Izzy, SEAHENGE has now gone.

Funny, after reading the recent discussion re: Cope and ripping off, I stumbled upon a Wayne Kramer-special (!) in radio. They played MC5's first single (itself a cover of some Them! song) and the bass riff (or whatever it's called) was - to my imperfect ears - identical to 'Reynard the Fox'.

Is this a well-known fact?

A related note: Cope's interest in obscure garage/proto-punk and psychedelia is well documented. For a while I figured I could find something in the 'oldies' section of the record store which would sound like, say, Wilder or WSYM. I found a lot of really great music:

• Love, Forever Changes
• the Elevators
• the Nuggets box set
• Kaleidoscope UK

Kaleidoscope sucked badly, and of the other stuff little reminded me of Cope. Still, the contemporary Swedish band 'Soundtrack of our Lives' sound chillingly like some aspects of mid-80s Cope, and they share that 60s connection, so I figure the blueprint must be out there somewhere, buried in the lost singles of one-hit wonders from 1966...

Any comments? Does this make sense?

I have this white lable, single sided 12" promo of 'Head' + Cherhill Down with VOCALS, Head is just the 'dancin heads' remix version, but Cherhill is diferent from the version on Rite. As this is a white lable, there's no info so I'm not sure if this is rare or not but it is groovy. Anyone else heard of this record ? the vocals go...

North, South, East, West....bring Cherhill Down.

Hi, guys! A quick bit of news...

First of all, I'm house-sitting until Wednesday or Thursday. As soon as I get back to my apartment, I'll be able to mail the Interpreters CDs to those people who are waiting for them - sorry for the delay!

Secondly, I finished Vurt. I thought it was okay, maybe 2.5 stars out of 4. It seemed a bit pretentious and purposefully intangible to me. I'm not a huge cyberpunk fan either, so the whole street/slang/hip/hop/jack-in/jack-off clothing doesn't intrigue me as much as piss me off. Whenever the author tries to hide things from the reader, or make the reader feel like he doesn't know as much as the main characters, well, I *hate* that!!! I've talked about this before, I think. I much prefer Tolkien's style of writing, where there's no pretentiousness, no hiding of plans or knowledge from the reader. I *hate* the device where one character says to another, "Let me tell you the plan..." and then the scene fades out. I feel like saying, "What the f---? Tell me the f---ing plan, you loser author! You poser! You suck! You suck!" Ire bubbles up in me whenever that device is used. I felt like throwing away the book every time Noon resorted it, which was pretty often... Ugh!!! Anyway, in terms of ideas it was a cross between Gibson's Neuromancer (which I thought was so-so) and Letham's Gun, With Occasional Music, which I enjoyed a bit more. Gun seemed the most sincere of all of them, the less purposefully mysterious. Vurt has some unique, cool ideas (tradebacks, being able to recall drugged/vurt states, in-dream menus) and it was easy enough to read. Seems like it was a short-story expanded into a novel.

Okay, in better news... Yesterday I bought Nick Hornby's High Fidelity because people on the Big Takeover list had been talking about it. It was a whim purchase, and I started reading it last night and couldn't put it down [so far I'm on like the 5th main chapter]! What a book! It's a very funny, EXTREMELY observant novel about a guy who runs a record store. Several times I laughed out loud, and several times I caught myself saying, "Hey, he's talking about me! He's talking about me!" as I suppose almost every other reader did too. A very clever author, that Hornby. I'm trying to figure out how he does it... It's like watching a magician. Anyway, if I say any more, I feel I'll be spoiling it. I suggest you go out and get this book! Very cool.

The Jam Boxed set arrived. Excellent! I like the liner notes because they are very un-dramatic, very music-oriented. None of the melodramatic gushy-legend-fate writing in the [otherwise brilliant] Police boxed set. [Wow, I'm being critical of writing for some reason!] The music is great, and makes me like the Jam more than when I just had the best-of. The non-singles songs seem to have a bit more of that classic early-80s UK post-punk sound, and remind me in places of the Buzzcocks, Saints [yeah I know, not UK], and Police. Anyway, for 50 bucks this was a great purchase.

I got the new Fall album, too: The Marshall Suite. Nothing has leapt out at me. It just seems to start, make a lot of noise, and then finish. Levitate was the same way. The noise isn't bad; it's just, well, low on hooks. Not catchy. Gimme time. Maybe my brain/head just needs to expand a bit first. :)

I'm still waiting for the new Big Takeover magazine. I'll let you guys know how it is when I finally get it [it's like 2.5 weeks late, but I'm not the only subscriber still waiting].

Trav

Trav-

actually picked up the new issue of Big Takeover at a local bookshop..a very entertaining read..with a GREAT interview/cover story with XTC..its the first issue I've ever bought after reading Jack Rabid's columns in various music mags over the years..good articles and a very nice review section..well worth it

On a slightly unrelated sidenote:who else out there had Trouser Press magazine as their music bible growing up??..I still have most of the old issues(pack rat),including one with a split article on TE/Echo..brings back a time when there seemed to be so much out there worth discovering..not saying music is a total wasteland now; its just that that thrill doesn't happen as often as it once did..ah well..the years move on and the kicks just keep getting harder to find....

On a lighter note..I finally found a copy of the Skellington Chronicles that wasn't obscenely priced..it should be winging its way to me now..I'll keep you posted..

oh..and another a-ok on Gemm...I've had good luck with/through them thusfar(though the price of SkChr there is ridiculous)

and oh again and lastly..

Jorgen..what was MC5's first single btw?..

and your comments were very intriguing..I've prattled on long enough though,but I am considering what you're saying..I think we're all big melting pots of our influences..and with Julian the 60's rama-lama has seeped into the NY art punk and krautrock and been filtered through who knows how many layers of musical ephemera...and errrrum..acid....to make him what he is and isn't today..our laughing boy and drude about town..

Hang in there,Andrew!!

..it's early in the morning of my life...

StEven

notice how I didn't rave on about Forever Changes?...oops

Well kids, I have some Teardrop Explodes and Cope cd's and records for sale please send your requests to the e-mail given here!

Steven.

A friend has forwarded a message about talks on Avebury, West Kennet and the area from the Stones Mailing list. Rather than post the entire message here, I've posted it at:

http://www.soton.ac.uk/~imjs/avebury.html

My appologies for some of the backdrops (ahem ... )

Andrew, thanks for the message. What an arse. I was hoping to use my research as an excuse for the trip to, since it is based in the same coast.

Izz

Doh, that link in the previous message doesn't work. Looks like I forgot a quote - sorry. You get the idea ...

Hi

You can now access The Complete Works Of Julian Cope &The Teardrop Explodes website using the following URL www.julian-cope.com

Russ

Sorry

here are my Tx and cope music for sale.

would any one want to buy in bulk? the singles are me favourite.

The Teardrop Explodes:

• ha ha I'm drowning/poppies 2x7"
• you dissapear from view/suffocate 2x7"
• you disappear from view/suffocate 1x7"
• tiny children/rachael built a stream boat 1x7"
• tiny children/rachael built a stream boat/sleeping gas 1x12"
• christ versus warhol 1x7"
• treason/use me 1x7"
• when I dream/kilimanjaro 1x7"
• bouncing babies/all I am is loving you 1x7"
• colours fly away/window shopping for a new crown of thorns 1x7"
• colours fly away/window shopping for a new crown thorns 1x7"Irish.
• kilimanjaro lp (band photo)
• kilimanjaro lp (zebra photo)
• wilder lp (flowers photo)
• wilder lp (usa cover)
• everybody wants to shag the teardrop explodes lp
• serious danger/sleeping gas/ 7 views of Jerusalem 12"
• world shut your mouth lp
• peggy suicide 2x12" lp
• my nation underground lp
• my nation underground programme book
• floored genius lp 2x 12"
• skellington lp
• droolian lp
• saint julian lp (with inrtview 12")
• bill drummond - the man lp

Julian Cope:

• sunspots/I went on a chourney/mik mak mok/land of fear 2x7"
• 5 o'clock world/spqr 1x7"
• trampolene/disater/mock turtle/warwick the kingmaker 1x7" 33rpm
• trampolene(warne out)trampolene/disater 1x12"
• eve's volcano/almost beautiful child 1x7"
• eve's volcano (vulcano lungo) spacehopper-annexe/almoat beautiful child 1&2 12"
• sunshine playroom/hey high class butcher 1x7"
• sunshine playroom/wreak my car/hey high class butcher/eat the poor 12"
• charlotte anne/books/a question of temperature/christmas mourning 12"
• china doll/crazy farm animal 1x7"
• try try try 4 track ep
• 7" floppy disc of WSYM
• propheteering/any country lane 1x7"
• rabbi joseph gorden- competition/belief in him 1x7"
• the greatness and perfection of love/24a velocity cresent/pussyface 12"
• world shut your mouth/levitation/umpteenth unnatural blues/non alignment pact:transporting 12"
• world shut your mouth(all ugly radio 12"

The Ur Pagan Mag

pure joy mags (a few numbers left)

CD's

• queen elizabeth
• queen elizabeth 2
• skellington
• skellington 2
• droolian
• rite
• rite 2
• jehovahkill
• interpreter (in box)
• twenty mothers
• the followers of julian cope
• piano
• floored genius
• floored genius 2
• peggy suicide
• world shut your mouth
• fried
• everybody wants to shag the teardrop explodes
• kilimanjaro
• wilder
• and a few other cd singles.

maybe would sale separate but it would be nice to sell in wholesum.

steven.

Is it just me or is Beck's "Devil's Haircut" a MASSIVE rip-off of JC's "Reynard the Fox"?? I looked in his liner notes for a credit, but none was found...

Derek

Derek Burgess - It must be just you.

Beck's is sampled from 'Them -I can only give you everthing' J C's is inspired by the same tune. :-)

Which is also the song the MC5 covered that Jorgen mentioned earlier

huh..full cycle

I can hear that as well now

StEven

btw:

Richard Hell does a version of that song as well

..it was a plastic bag..

To Andrew Johnstone and the rest who've commented on JC's borrowing from Morrision, Iggy Pop, whoever. Hasn't this always been the story of rock and roll? The beatles ripped off Chuck Berry and the Beach Boys. The Stones ripped off Robert Johnson, Muddy Waters, and the beatles.

What you have to ask yourself is, did they make something new out of it. Did they put the stamp of their own identity on the art? I think Julian Cope has done that. He's taken those bits from Sid Barrett, Jim Morrision, and Iggy Pop, used them as a starting point, a guide, then took off in his own direction.

Anyhow, what the fuck does an old Florida rocker know?

I apologize in advance for this post having nothing to do with Cope.

Back in May [archive #14] there was some discussion about a group called Miracle Legion...just wanted everyone in the UK [and in northeast US] to know frontman Mark Mulcahy will be playing some dates coming up in July... info follows

Mark Mulcahy

July 1999

• Fri. July 16-the Knitting Factory NYC w/Vic Chestnut 9PM
• Wed. July 21-the 12 Bar London w/Damian Jurado 9PM 171-916-6989
• Sat. July 24- the Point Oxford (backed by Unbelievable Truth) 1865-789-794
• Sun July 25- the Lift Brighton w/ Barbara Manning 01273-779-411
• Mon. July 26-Ronnie Scotts Birmingham w/ Paradise Motel 9PM 1902-570-449
• Tues. July 27-the Sausage Machine (aka Po Na Na) London 171-701-3410
• Weds. July 28-the Heavenly Social @ the Albany London w/Jeb Loy Nichols
• Thurs. July 29-the Rough Trade shop in Notting Hill 6PM 171-229-8541
• Fri. July 30- Whelans Dublin Ireland 10PM 014780766

The dates in the U.K. are in support of Mark's record 'Fathering' which was released there in May. It's on Loose(RYKO),has an extra song,and it's getting great reviews.

Most of the information here is accurate,but those funny phone numbers can be tricky.If you get stuck,you might try calling Tom or Mark at Loose,but only if you have to-0181-749-9330. Please spread the word and bring a friend.

Hello,

Don't know if anybody else has ever been to this site, but Megalithic mysteries have TMA as a recomended book at the moment.

Which is nice.

http://easyweb.easynet.co.uk/~aburnham/stones.htm

V

Derek- YES! The first time I heard "Devil's Haircut" my jaw hit the floor. The notes are strikingly similar, yet there is still a slight difference. I wonder what Cope thought when he heard it. I wonder if Beck listens to Cope, and if it was a rip-off or an accident.

Everyone- Which brings my next question: Everyone's been talking about Cope wearing his influences on his sleeve....at what point does it become "ripping off" as opposed to just evolution? Is "doing it with style" the difference?

In the fall of 1989 Tom Petty came out with a single (it was top 10 in the US) that had the lyrics "Just a rebel without a clue". Ironically, he had just finished a summer tour supported by the Replacements, who themselves had a tune called "I'll Be You" that was their big single at the time (and therefore probably played by them every night before Petty came on), and included the lyric "Just a rebel without a clue"...the line is undoubtably Westerberg's, but then again Tom Petty doesn't strike me as a thief. Was it unconscious on Petty's part, or it was it plagarism? How did Westerberg feel? I've never heard anyone in the press mention this connection. Anyone have a thought?

Kevin

What does an old Florida Rocker know?:

1. best t-shirt shop for pickin up girls during spring break
2. best place to get hushpuppies and beer batter catfish
3. that taping a black-n-white negative of your girl friend to your arm and then laying in the sun gives you a real cool tatoo
4. not to spit tobacco juice while facing the ocean

Someone posted here a comment about Tolkien hero-ifying a thief. I was once a fan of The Lord of the Rings, Hobbitt, etc, and I can't quite remember enough of the stories to understand the reference. Bilbo found the ring didn't he? Frodo was passed the ring by Bilbo. Gollum killed his relative to get the ring, but Gollum was never a hero. Hmmm. Help jog my memory cells, please. I havent thought about the Hobbitt for eons and it brought back pleasant memories.

St.Even:

Forever Changes is in my top five albums of all time. Do you play guitar? If so, check out OLGA, someone has tabbed about 25 or so Love tunes and did an excellent job. Yes, you too can play the into to Que Vida!

Steven @ faith fish. Can you describe what "Rachel Built" and "window shopping" songs sound like? I never, ever heard of them and they sound really interesting.

Trav: are there any more copies of Interpreters left?

..a night on fire, put out, all traces of feeling...

(Week 3 and feeling great, have been sleeping like a baby the past few nights, what a difference!)

Steven (faith fsish):

Wow! That is one hell of a list of stuff you are selling! It begs the question why? Are you selling off your complete collection due to disillusionment with the arch drude or are they duplicates in you collection or what? It just peaked my interest...

Jennifer:

Are you going to any of the Mark Mulcahy gigs? No Canada dates I see, but then that is no surprise!

Also, anyone out there going to Woodstock? I'm not but would be interested to hear how it goes.

Andrew

Hey guys! I'm back in my apartment now [the world erupts in wild cheers]...

Russ and Alex, I mailed your Interpreters CDs this morning, so you should be getting them in a few days. I make CDs upon demand [or a little ahead of demand - right now I have three or four partially assembled ones; I just need to get some new ink for my printer so I can print some sticky labels]... So yes, Frododelfuego, the Interpreters CD is still available.

Andrew - glad you're felling better!

In The Hobbit, Bilbo was hired to be a burglar; the dwarves were too noisy and direct [stubborn, head-string, bull-headed] to be very good at sneaking and tricking their way into the mountain to retrieve their ancestors' treasure from Smaug. There's been a bit of debate on whether Bilbo "stole" the ring from Gollum or whether he won it fairly through the riddle game; the stickiness comes from whether Bilbo's final question ["What have I got in my pocket?"] is actually a riddle, and whether Gollum's acceptance of the question [with the condition of getting three answers] is really sufficient justification. Regardless, Bilbo was a sneaky, conniving little fellow, much moreso than Frodo; Bilbo lied about the Ring to Gandalf, he tricked Smaug, he tricked the Spiders, he stole the key from the Elf warden, and other small, devious things. Frodo was almost never dishonest, and was much more innocent in his behavior than Bilbo. Frodo was a victim who kept having to be rescued; Bilbo was a rescuer who succeeded by "cheating": lying, stealing, sneaking... being anything but open. Tolkien definitely sympathized with Bilbo the Burglar, and because Tolkien's such an awesome communicator, so does the reader. But my point was, Bilbo isn't an angel my any means, yet we like the guy. We forgive his "cute" little thefts and deceptions, and I certainly forgive Tolkien his own.

If the hero of a story were to be an extremely honest, serious, indignant character, then my guess is that we'd be less forgiving if we discover the author "borrowing" ideas from other authors. That's just my hypothesis. When humor enters the picture, we tend to forgive repetition. I think maybe we forgive Cope's rip-offs because he, too, takes a humorous approach. If something sounds too similar, we can always call it satire.

Trav

Theo-

You are TOO cool!Thanks for pointing me at OLGA..I never knew about that site before..what a find!!I don't play geetar myself,but know someone that does..he can be my Brian MacLean~l~

For all the Copeys out there they do have the tabs for MadMax and Soul Desert,but I imagine most folks know that by now..

A really fun site..wow and wow again

changing,changing,changing / changing,changing,changing

StEven

yesssssssssss,my precioussssssssss

Hi

I'm working on the site at the moment so if you do go take a look it might not work out as planned, So sorry in advance. Well its gone quiet on the cope front again, I wonder how long we will have to wait for the next piece of work written or otherwise !!!!!

Russ

Oh yeah if you do take a look let me know what you think even if its not all ready at the moment

Russ

Don't call me Mark Chapman

Go away for a week...

Took in The Fleadh in Finsbury Park in London while I was off, and while hardly the cutting edge of music it was fun. The Pretenders played (never seen them before, but pretty good) and final encored with Elvis Costello on What's So Funny About Peace, Love And Understanding? What indeed? Call it hippy shit if you want, but there ain't enough.

I'm informed that there is a exhibition on standing stones in the Midland Arts Centre in Canon Hill Park, Birmingham, running until August. Not got to se it yet, but I thought I'd mention it in case anyone is in the vicinity.

As of last week Avid Records in Oxford had copies of QE and QE2 at £15.00 each. I seem to recall that someone on the list was asking recently.

Rachel Built A Steamboat is fabulous!

The Drude's never been particularly shy about his inspirations and influences, and show me someone working now who's absorbed as much as he has and produces a better result. We're all the product of our influences.

Steven - if you will split, I'd love to buy the Rabbi Joseph Gordon single from you (presuming it hasn't gone already).

And on the hugely unlikely chance that it was THE Van Morrison posting on July 13th - you were splendid at The Fleadh.

Just trying to drive the fucker out...

Vybik,

Ah yes, The Fleadh. I was there for the first three years it happened, and it was pretty impressive how it grew even in that short period of time. That must have been around 89/90 (old man) so I imagine it's huge now. The first year was tiny with a very limited (though great) line up, I think Van was headlining and also playing were The Pouges (though they might not have come till the second year). But in both instances it was very much a case of slumming it to show their support since it was the first "all Irish" festival in the UK, (don't forget this was pre River dance and the "all things Irish are cool" revival that it kicked off. On the upside it meant the musicians like Davy Spillane, Luca Bloom, the Wolfetones, etc, etc got their due respect from the crowd. There were (about) five beer stalls (not tents, just stalls), one burger van and that was it. About half way through the day, as Davy Spillane played, the skies opened. After trying to dance under a huge sheet of polythene for half an hour every one gave up took off whatever clothes were non-essential (this was London not Woodstock) and just "weathered" it. Ahhh memories. Anyway enough ramblings, what I was going to ask was, has it any semblance of still being an Irish music fest or is it just another rock fest these days. From the second year on there were generally one or two "non-irish but somehow connected" acts like Elvis Costello (of Irish stock, married to the Pouges former accordion player and living in Ireland), Kirsty MacColl (that song), etc, but it did stick pretty close to its roots. However, listening to the list of this years top bands I think the only Irish artist mentioned was that good only stalwart, Van the man. Not that there's anything wrong with that, but I was just wondering. It'd be a bit like if the Notting Hill Carnival, was no longer an Afro-Caribbean carnival, it'd just be a bit of a loss.

...should be more like Merlin.......

St.

Hello, st.

Yeah, I did the first few Fleadhs too. It's certainly bigger now, but it hasn't lost its roots. The majority of the acts were Irish (the stage 2 and 3 headliners were Shane MacGowan and Ardal O'Hanlon) and the cultural activities/stalls have remained and grown.

I suppose that elements of general festival life have appeared, but I guess that's somewhat inevitable after 10 successful years.

I could have done without Ronan Keating, but there you go. Verdict? The craic was good!

Old man? You're only as old as you feel.

Get out of my way, you senile get...

Hey!!

I was working on the bars at the Fleadhs. Barenaked Ladies were good they make me laugh!!. Van the man never liked him sorry. The Pretenders were OK, Lonnie D was ace the old ones are the best!!

Russ

the sites back up and working I have added frames!!!! OK not all at once it just makes it easy to get around. I will be adding more photo's to the followers pages next weekend and updating the discography. I wish I could update the news section but we will just have to wait

Russ

hey everybody,

des anybody know if 'fire escape in the sky' has linear notes and if so what are they ?

i was playing the amourous humphrey plug all weekend and i need the drudes angle

-db

....everythings tragic if its all that you know...

Anyone around?

Julian Cope is a complete god in my town and my house. 'Peggy Suicide' is my album of the millennuim.

Give me a shout!! (saw Barenaked Ladies at Glastonbury this year - fabulous, very very funny and extremely good!!)

nat x

Hi Nat,

we've had a few discussions in the past about how few and far between Cope fans are, so the question I have is where the hell is your town.

I'm working in Heidelberg, Germany. It's a very studenty, young town and I work for an international company, but in five years I've only met one other person who actively liked Cope prior to my bugging the hell out of them with it (Nb. I've probably created more Cope-phobes than Cope-heads but thats the risk you take).

Perhaps we should demand a home land for dissaffected Cope fans to retire to. Somewhere, where people don't constantly ask "what's that weird shit your listening to??". Maybe near a stone site.....

....I do understand....

St.

Hi Nat....guess who...

Hi people. I'm a partial cope fan. Went to the Modern Antiquarian thing at the start of this year and it blew my mind. Got into alot of the music through my mate here, plus I read the most amazing book called Head On.

Bit slow here for me....hmmm

Is this working?

Technology....hmm

Hello All,

I be from Yeovil in Somerset arrr, where the great Teardrop Explodes incident of the 'acid induced pinching of the carpet from the Mermaid Hotel' took place!!

Wasn't a very nice carpet either.

nat xx

St.

I totally agree with everything you have said. I dream of a world of Cope!!

Maybe we should all club together and buy a very small (I mean very small cause I'm skint!!) island, and spend the rest of our days living like the couple off 'The Good Life' - Barbara and Tom, just listening to The Arch Drude and discussing Stone Circles and exactly where have they come from!!!

Hello Carpediem, fancy meeting you here!! how on earth do i get these responses to my e.mail address can someone please tell me!!

Nat x

Good life...yeah!

I wanna grow cabbages and stuff in the back garden.

Maybe we could entice Julian and Dorian to come and live with us!

On second thoughts I'd be better growing rhubarb coming from Morley...

Yeovil, a bastion of Julian Cope followers! It figures. I went to Somerton (about 10 clicks away) for New Years Eve 91/92. The closest I've come to an acid trip while being totally straight (well except for the odd pint of scrumpy). Do they still do the fancy dress thing?

Which leads me to a question to try and waken you stiffs up. What's the average copite doing for Dec 31 1999. Going to Avesbury? Ignoring it cause it's not a "right on" era? Not me I'll be kicking my boots up in Barcelona, the spanish know how to party (but I will have Jehovah/Peggy in my walkman to listen to as the sun comes up).

Carpe diem, isn't that Latin for "my fish is dead".

St.

Blimey you survived a night in Somerton!! Braver person than me. They don't dress up in Somerton, thats their everyday dress.... only joking!! I love it down there, miss it like made (currently living in Southampton).

For New Year 1999, i will hopefully have my new house and will be partying the night away, in good old West Country fashion. Might go to Glastonbury, climb the old Tor, but imagine it may be a tad busy. (If the worst comes to the worst I shall sit in with a bottle of wine and Jools Holland, like I do every year!! Saddo)

nat xx

Sieze the Day as far as I'm aware St. Though I know it more as a great little bar in the centre of Leeds where I come from....

1999 12:00 midnight at the top of one of those towers on the Gaudi Cathedral in Bercelona. That sounds pretty cool. Been there before...mad view

During my wanderings in the Eastern Highlands of Scotland in search of stones and circles, I came across plenty of deserted houses. I ain't saying they wouldn't require work (such as a roof in one case), but they looked basically sound. Go and squat 'em, stick around a few years and there you go - Drudonia, Copington, whatever.

Hello Nat. Hello Carpediem.

By the way, Nat, do you know Izzy? She posts regularly on Rail On and has the same address as you - imjs@soton.ac.uk. Just wondered.

31/12? haven't a clue, st.

You don't ever take him seriously...

The message about the Highlands was from me. Sorry.

Sorry a bit busy,

I've just met Izzy! Small world isn't it. We are both at the University.

I know Carpediem too, even smaller world........

I'm up for squatting a highland cottage!!. Bagsy be Barbara and look after the goats..... Never ever take anything seriously,life is far far far too short...

nat x

Cool, maybe this could be the start of some new alternative community. I was sure that when I went to Glasto, I wouldn't come home again, but that fell through. Here's my chance!

Mark

How sad. I do believe that 'cuece's post is the first unsubscribe that I've seen in my time here. Still at least s/he is well outnumbered by the new subscribers. Tho' even then it's a bit sad that nearly every one of them (us) starts off by saying how few other Cope fans they know. (This includes myself - when I first met my mate Jeff, his very first words to me were "so, you're the Julian Cope fan", but even he pissed himself laughing at me paying £8 to go &see the man on the Modern Antiquarian tour)

I played St Julian for the first time in what must be two years last night. It's long been my least favourite of his 'proper' albums (ie readily available in the shops)but still stands up really quite well. St Julian itself is a great piece. All in all, both the lyrics and the songs structures are less interesting/complex than on other albums, but every time I play it I think that I've been unfair to it, leaving it in its sleeve for so long.

Skellington 2 and the ambient albums, however, need to be kept warmly wrapped up.

For New Year 1999 I will obviously be wandering the streets decrying all those who follow the judeo-christian-cryptofascist-bourgeois-subhuman-calendar-type-thing. On my own. Obviously.

belbin

Trav, if your there, what's the all time record for subscribers to the list. It must be close now at (approx) 32.... or 33 until ceuce said tatty-bye

I am so glad I found you all to be honest!!

You should come from Yeovil, you get laughed at if you are not a Cope fan!! The Butchers Arms in Yeovil - if anyone is ever passing, is a haven for Cope fans. There are an awful lot of us. Even my parents have met him and thought he was a very nice chap - my Dad did say that he could do with a hair cut mind you!!! But thats parents.

Anyway, see you all tomorrow, I'm off home.

Fav album - Peggy Suicide

Fav track - 'Shot Down'

Most prized Julian possession - plastic wrapped copy of 'Droolian'.

I would however like a vinyl copy of 'Piano' if anyone knows where I can get one can they let me know. Cheers my lovlies.

TTFN

nat xx

On December 31, 1999 I do believe I'm going to have to stage some sort of ridiculously large stunt here in Chicago that will once and for all convince all the tube-fed flatworms here in the U.S. that it is indeed not yet the end of the Millenium. I guess it's a pet peeve, but when all the "news" sources in town start saying millenium and then then year 2000, it drives me buggy. Maybe if I bungee jump nude off the Sears Tower with a huge banner with 2001 on it I could get some attention. Any other ideas?

On a Cope note--anyone know how many Modern Antiquarians were published? I have yet to mailorder a copy and I'm wondering if there's any danger of my getting one.

-Ben

Ben

Waterstones up here at Southampton Uni (the heart of Copeland oh yes) has a copy. I suspect there are plenty left. Are you ordering it from the HeadHeritage site?

I guess 31/12/1999 is the end of the millenium that began 01/01/1000. I can't really see any need to get our knickers in a twist about whether its the right millenium that we are celebrating. We all need an excuse to party after all. Personally I'm going to try to run with the theme and have an 'End of the world as we know it' party. Just got to convince the housies. Anyone fancy coming?

Jon

I'm well up for rebuilding a Scottish cottage. Hope to take a course in self-build at the Centre for Alternative Technology in Wales when I get my life back. So did you find any circles/stones? I confess that I found nothing myself last month, but its very hard without a car (Ain't no gettin' round gettin' round).

Going to check out the very west of Cornwall when we go down for the eclipse. Very very excited ...

Nat

Def meet up for beers at the Crown. Anyone alse fancy popping along? Ever been to the Dungeon (the height of entertainment in this fine town, ahem)? I think the ginger Goth plays Cope if you ask him sweetly. Me, I'm the one wearing colour ...

Currently there are hmmm. hold on...

Okay, had to check... Currently there are about 30 people on here who are subscribed to the email mirror. This basically means 30 people get mailed a notification each time someone posts something to Rail On.

The email-mirror subscribers are a subset of the people who actually post [since you have to post to subscribe], and posters are in turn a subset of the people who read. The only way to find out how many people regulary read Rail On is to check the httpD logs and count 'em.

I actually wrote some log-querying CGI scripts earlier this year but I think it queries copies of logs, and the last copy I made was back in February. One of these days I'll update the log copies...

Trav

[p.s. this was the most boring post in the history of this list! - sorry!]

Afternoon everyone,

Just a little note. As the eclipse is not too far away and many of you may be planning a little jaunt down to Cornwall arrrrr. Can I recommend a few little places of interest for you to stop off at on the way.

My parents!! Pop in and say Hi.

If travelling through Yeovil, I'd suggest a stop off at 'the Treacle Eater' a strange stone thing perched on the side of the road near Yeovil.....

The A39 is the most haunted road in Britain so I'd avoid that one and stick to the A303 ("Where you can find your way home" - according to Kula Shaker (I can!!))

After crossing the Tamar River can I please suggest that you stop off at Kit Hill, it really is the most beautiful place in Cornwall that I have ever been to. Truely georgeous. An old tin mine, and full of little baby toads!! Millions of them. Standing stones and water, fabulous place......

The rest of Cornwall is brilliant, I do intend to do the Michael and Mary line at some point. Anyone done it? I did see Julian once who claimed that the only reason he played Somerset so much was because of the amount of Lay lines that converged on the A37! Old Roman Road......

Anyway I waffle, so please tell me to shut it. Have a brilliant time in Cornwall those who are going. I shall just look out the window (with my cardboard sheet with a hole in).....

nat xx

I think the media representing the 31st Dec 99 as the start of the millenium is an excellent thing. By the 5th of January when all the fuss has died down and everyone is feeling anticlimatic, we can all turn round and say, "naw, next years the really big party....woo hoo". I just hope it doesn't interfere with the cataclysm!!

As for the eclipse it looks like I'll be in Stuttgart as it's the closest place to me to get the full effect. Pity really, as Cornwall sounds funksome. Oh well. The coolest idea I've heard so far is from a friend who's going to somewhere in Hungary (in the eclipse path obviously), where there are natural hot springs you can bathe in, which are chock full off water lillies at that time of year. Lucky bugger. Only an hour till the weekend. Roll on.

...take some time, drink some wine, looks real fine to me....

St.

Ps. Carpediem - the thing about the dead fish was only a joke. Honestly!!!

Forget the Nostradamus prophesies, the ancient Mayans (predecessors of the Incas) had a completely calendar based society. They were obsessed with the end of the world which their surviving calendars show as next year (I forget the day). Wot I'm saying is forget when the Millenium really is or is not and just party THIS year. No-one cares when the Millenium really is, everyone wants to celebrate the milestone change in date from 1999 to 2000 - that's wot it's about.

Oh, and for you guys thinking of squatting in some of the East Highland derelict cottages, they are what's left from the Highland clearances where the English landowners evicted their tennants and burned/destroyed these buildings to make way for sheep. Useless bit of info for anyone who's interested!

John.

Thanks for that interesting piece of info John. Being an animal lover, can I move in if I promise not to evict the sheep.

I'm just going to party, no excuses needed!! If by some remote and bizarre chance I have moved into my new house by then you are all welcome to join me. Bring your dogs, sheep, children and beer. More the merrier!!! hoorah....

natxx

I've always thought it a shame that someone doesn't use these cottages. Some are quite remote too, even in highland terms. Could have a superb party, no-one would know, and yeah, invite the sheep. - get the feeling there's some dodgy ground being approached here!

john.

Don't know what you are refering too there John!! :-)

I was thinking about how warm it would be in a little hut with some sheep (bit smelly mind!!). Aren't sheep constantly tripping? Read that somewhere.... hmmmmm

Maybe we should start up some kind of collective and club together, buy a hut &land do it up and use it for parties and let for holidays. (Just between the people who own it) Could work. So could a commune, but I think you'd need quite a big hut.....

Anyway I'm off home, see you all Monday... think about the hut!!

You know it makes sense.

nat xx

Steve wrote:

Is there a digest version of this list? I think that would be easier for me to deal with. Sign me up if possible please.

This seems to me to be a very strange request. I think of digests as limiting the number of emails you receive per day, while still not missing anything. A board like this accomplishes this by making the email read-only and optional. If you don't subscribe to the email list, you won't miss a thing! Everything people write [except the occasional HTML mistake which I delete] appears here on Rail On.

For those of you who have frequent WWW access, does this make sense? I am curious if I'm missing something here. Are there other people who want a digest of the email? What does that gain you, over checking Rail On every Friday [or whenever you feel like reading about Cope]?

Now, there might be people without weekly WWW access, who are relying soley on the mirrored email. For them, a digest option could be more convenient than receiving emails throughout the day. However, with all these free email accounts these days, can't y'all just set up a Rail On - dedicated email account, subscribe it to RailOn, and then check it once a week?

That way, you don't get flooded during the week, and it's up to YOU how often you read about Cope. Keeping control in the hands of the user has always been my philosophy.

Sorry for another boring post, guys! I'm in work-mode, trying to finish my research. I'll loosen up soon. ;)

Trav

Hey, I'm worried people are thinking a little small here. There are quite a few ruined castles up in Scotland which are not too difficult to get into and are well frequented as campsites and summer hangouts by walkers etc. There's a great one on an island accesible across a causeway at low tide near Acharacle on the Ardnamurchan Peninsular. Check it out nest time you are in the area!

Re: End of the world etc.

Actually the Mayans worked out the end of the world to 2012 which, oddly enough, is what Terrance McKenna also predicted. McKenna sees it more as the end of history as information is expanding at such an exponential rate that novelty is becoming somewhat of a rare commodity - see that Star Wars film for a good pointer ;-)

As regards the Millenium - don't we all just love labels? The armageddon cultists are swearing by the catastrophe that digit change will make; meanwhile, a couple shopping in London just *swear* by Tommy Hilfiger.

Go figure....

Paul B

Reporting in from the Screaming Secrets construction site

those "highland deserted cottages" are called 'bothies' and are protected for the use of highland walkers for shelter. There is a strict bothy code so I doubt if the HBA (Highland Bothy Association) would appreciate squatters. Don't mean to spoil your fun but a bunch of hairy arsed tired scotsmen would not be a welcome sight!

Everyone probobly already knows this, but I was just on Barnes &Noble's site and MA will be released in Sept in paperback. Also, there was a Syd Barrett book published in '91 with the forward by Julian himself. Does anyone out there have the text?

Brian

let sunshine, sunshine flow

Hello Campers....

Just re-reading the e.mails from the weekend. I was actually joking about moving to Scotland, I have no intention of living in a little run down shack (Want an album to buy I'd recommend Shack HMS Fable!! - rather splendid)or a castle. So you have no worries about me upsetting the locals!!!

On a more Julian note can anyone help me out with this. I have asked various people about the following and no-one can give me an answer as to why:-

I have 3 vinyl copies of 'Kilimanjaro' All of which have different sleeves. One of the zebras, and two of the group shot, which are different. One of these has a different track listing too. The pics are slightly different, the colours are different and the inner sleeve is different. Does anyone know why? Any one who can give me a plausible reason wins a 'chuppa chups' lolly!!

nat x

Haven't a clue Nat, but can I have a lolly anyway??

Please...

M

I recently finished reading the Syd Barrett book Brian was talking about (Crazy Diamond, I can't remember the authors names off-hand, Cope's introduction is pretty short, so I'll try and get it copied in tomorrow, tho' I must admit it wsn't particularly inspiring. The book itself is great however - not particularly great stylistically, but fascinating and quite moving. The last I'd seen of Barrett was a picture in the early eighties of him being returned some dry cleaning - &in which he looked deeply disturbed, and was really sad. The book seemed far more positive, whilst Syd (who has apparently reverted to being called Roger) is still not 100%, he is not the addled loon legend has it. It's well worth reading.

Nat, I've got two of the versions of Kilimanjaro (sadly not the one without Reward on), and always thought they changed the covers first to put Reward on, and then 'cos the first one was so awful.

A red one please.

Belbin,

Ahhh I am so sorry, you are just a little bit too late to win the Chuppa Chups Lolly. The winner was actually Brian!!

But you must be psychic, cause the lolly is a red one!!! Woooooo, spooky.

Better luck next time. :-)

nat

Jeezum H Crackers.

Just when I'd given up all hope of finding anyone interested in Cope in this fair city of Southampton, two pop up at once.

Hello there Izzy and Nat. Why have I never made the connection with the Soton address and southampton?

Anyway, do people really still go to the dungeon? is it still full of sixteen year olds? One time I was down there in good old bevois valley and i saw this, what can only be described as a tosser cutting up his arm with a knife whilst proclaiming loudly "it doesn't hurt at all!". Stupid nob ended up in the casualty department at the general.

Does Keith the Teeth still DJ there? or is he only at the nexus now? Does Tim Smyth still go there?

Anyway, seeing as you two are at the university I might as well reel of a list of names thet you may know, except I've just realised that I don't know many of my friends surnames. What about Dave Bryan (stupidly tall with long hair), Matt Grover (bit of a wet fella with long hair) Jim the metaller (had long hair now got an unfeasible quiff style thing happening).

Anyway, hello to other people from around the world also, although I imagine you've skipped to the next mailing by this point already.

The only final piece of advice I'll give anyone who is currently or soon to be in southampton is this...

Don't drink beer from the taps at the Rhino club. With as little as three pints you will be left with the most severe stomache ache and dry vomiting you have ever experienced. This is either due to them not cleaning the pipes properly or selling off old stock (I refer specifically to wednesday nights with Hammy). Stick to the bottles, at least you can guarantee your own saftey. I have no alterior motive here, i don't work for any other club, its just that I missed a holiday to Jersey last year because i was too "hung over" to drive. I didn't even get pissed the night before.

well i'm about through now so y'all have fun.

steve.

*quotey quotey quotey*

Hello there fellow Southamptonite.

Well I've only been linked on here for a few days which is probably why you've not heard from me.

I've only been in Southampton for a year so am still finding my feet. Unfortunatly, I have been to the Rhino!! (Hmmmm bad bad club)I've Been twice, glutton for punishment me. But not the Dungeon. Haven't had the pleasures yet. Izzy and me are both at the Uni (hence the same e.mail address). There is a possiblity that we may meet up at some point, if you fancy a beverage or 10, you'd be more than welcome.. Looks like the Southampton Branch of the Julian Cope is God Society, may have an extra member!!!

Nice to meet you!

nat x

Trav,

Here's my two cents on the digest vs. list:

One cent: I'm on the Chalkhills digest list, and I find the length of their posts makes it impossible to read. I much prefer getting trhem as a group of distinct emails.

Two cents: What would be cool, though, is if there was a way for the subject header to include an actual subject header submitted by the poster. That would enable us to sift through info we may not have the time or interest in reading. Is that possible? If so, does anyone else think it would help?

Mark

Hello Steve! I certainly did not expect for Southampton to reveal itself to have spawned/attracted (though I'm not sure if that is quite the right word) so many Copites. So were you at the Wedgewood Rooms in January? I probably saw you if so, there were max. 50 of us?

Steve, Nat lets drink beer somewhen. I can introduce you to more (greater?) Cope fans than me, ie ones that have no fear of talking Cope trivia. Although I think the whole episode could turn out a little alarming.

Not Rhinos, Not the Above Bar (similar after effects). You're right about the Dungeon, though I've not seen anything quite so grusome there. Is Keith the Ginger Goth? I'm becoming very aware that this Southampton thing is a little exclusive to much of the list. Don't want anymore unsubscriptions....I'll shut up.

Glad to hear MA is coming out in paper back, though not soon enough to save the Wiltshire section of my copy which has detached itself. Visited the Isle of Purbeck yesterday. I know there are some good sites, though we stayed in the sea until it was dark ...

Izz

Barnes &Noble does have the MA listed as paperback, but $36 is a bit pricey. A typical pb from B&N runs about 5 bucks. I'd be very interested in seeing this '36 dollar paperback'. On a lighter note they do show leper skin available for a 3-5 week delivery. On the millinial note: I've never gotten too excited about New Years eve. kinda regarded it as 'amatuer nite' lots of people out getting a load on that have no business being out. Although, the shindig they are having in France at the Palace of Versallis does sound too good to pass up, but I shall. Is it just me or does there seem to be a preoccupation with sheep on this list lately...put me down for $20 on the scottish hovel... I'm good for it. Keep up the good work Trav. Andrew where are you?s

$$$##subscribe##unsubscrib##prescribe##diatribe##shuck-n-jibe

...idiot son of donkey kong

fyi- someone is selling Droolian on CD on ebay...also up is Queen Eliz I cd, and skellington chronicles on cassette.

Hi

Greetings from the other side of the world (australia).

Thought a post was overdue so here I am. Good to see that people are using this forum to link up - it makes the world a hell of a lot smaller (and boy do we need that feeling down here).

MA coming out in paperback? Great news.

Way way back Trav mentioned "Picnic at Hanging Rock" a spooky film by Peter Weir made in about 1976. I mention this because people often forget the power of "natural" (ie. not constructed by humans) stones. That film was about such a place. The local Aboriginal people were scared shitless of the place and with good reason. The film is based on a true story and was filmed on location. We also tend to assume (maybe this is just me) that such powers tend to be positive. But they can also be negative/evil or whatever you want to call it. All part of the balance and shouldn't create fear as much as respect...

I must add Yeovil to my list of places to visit next time in the UK! Just trivia but didnt they beat Arsenal in the FA Cup back in the early 70s? By the way - what's Julian's views on sport does anyone know? I'm starting to be really bored by the saturation cover given to sport in this country and with the ugggh Olympics coming up its almost a sporting fascism happening except apparently Mussolini got the trains to run on time while the greedhead cryptofascists who run things here probably wont be able to do even that...

I've run out of things to say...so cheers all.

Malachy = mark

I think you are right about Yeovil, beating Arsenal!! I think that is probably the last time they won a football match!! They used to be famous for having a slopping football pitch, thats why they probably won! You will be made very welcome if you ever go to Yeovil, just avoid 'Take Away Ally'!!

"Picnic at Hanging Rock" is a brilliant film, very atmospheric, I loved it.

Julian and sport hmmmmmmm two words don't seem the go together, but I could be wrong. Has Julian ever left a message on here? I use to be on the seven seas - Echo &The Bunnymen Site and Will Sargeant used to pop in occassionally. (Bit of a boring chap, mind you - invited him to my house for sherry trifle and a game of Buckeroo, he declined, wonder why!!).

Anyway, cheerio,

Nat x

Hi!

First off..

Welcome to the Southampton collective...nice to see some new faces..and the enthusiasm!quite spiffy..If you haven't already taken a gander at the survey,you should give it a try.Might be fun to fill out over beers at the pub;and I'm sure Trav wouldn't mind a few extra results.

(hope you don't mind the plug Trav)

Second..a big thanks to whoever first mentioned ebay here.Was it you,Russ?I'll have to go back and check I suppose.But thanks{insert name here}!The Skellington Chronicles CD I got/won there just arrived yesterday(and at $23 bucks,not a shabby price:)).What a treat!I've only listened to about 3/4's of it,but I'm loving it.I think its so nice that Julian decided to share it with us.Sure,its no Jehovahkill or Fried or what have you,but his obvious love and enthusiasm for making music definately shines though.Just delightful.

Anyway,I would have listened to the whole thing,but we lost power last night.A big ole storm.But with this drought we've been having in the US midwest(Ohio,to be exact),we needed the rain.

Speaking of Ohio.in all this time on the list,I've never found another Copehead from these parts.If it wasn't for the brother I turned on to the Drude.I'd think I was the only one.

Hmmmm..wonder what airfare to Southampton is........

I will be inspired by love

StEven

From Crazy Diamond - Syd Barrett &the Dawn of the Pink Floyd, by Mike Atkinson &Pete Anderson in the Omnibus Press:

Syd Barrett was the first psychic rock writer to rival John Lennon. That he fell into an abyss of his own making hs never been disputed, but it is important to understand why and how this happened.

The cramping restrictions of being forced too soon into a narrow commercial mould caused unbearable pain to Barrett - it is almost impossible for an artist to limit himself to the attainable - but the attainable is just what the other members of Pink Floyd required. When he cam,e to this knowledge, I believe Syd's tenuous grasp on reality was lost - he fell down into the void. It was Artistic Death and a tragedy of legendary proportions.

With little creative input from his cohorts in Pink Floyd, Syd Barrett was running on intuition alone. True, without Waters, Mason and Wright he may never even have made a record. But with them, unfortunately, Barrett was destined to be sacrificed to the pressure of the outside world.

To claim, however, that Barrett's short-lived career was a failed quest would be to deny those blazing instants which he has left us with today. Twenty-four years after his first recording, Syd barrett's mythology is more intact than ever - a True Genius.

Julian Cope of Lambeth, July 1990.

The books discography also says that there's a cover of Interstellar Overdrive by Camper Van Beethoven, which sounds intriguing.

Just peeked at ebay after seeing Kevin's post..the seller of the SC cassette.....from Ohio*larf*..go figure

Seem to remember once hearing a Soft Boys cover of Intersteller Overdrive as well

I think the Soft Boys version would very probably be the more interesting. The book only mentions them doing Vegetable Man (the most popular cover version apparently), could they have recorded it since the book was released (1991)?

Camper Van Beethoven's cover of Interstellar Overdrive is very close to the original and was an absolute lysergic scorcher when perfomed live (or maybe it was me that was lysergically scorched) You can find it on the Third Album &Vampire Can Mating Oven CD.

The band Acetone also used to rip out a great version of the song live (only released on a 7" by their former incarnation, Spinout) at their early shows. They tended to rock it out a little louder and faster (as they did much of their material back then)

-Ben

Trav or anyone who has completed the survey already,

eventually I've stopped putting it off and started to do the survey and cor blimy it's a tough un. And a bit shaming to, too many dub Cass and never been to a concert. Anyway, what I wanted to ask you is what exactly are you looking at in the recom column? Let me put it this way, Droolian gets 8 out of 10 from me for enjoyment value, and I guess if I was recommending it to someone who liked lo-fi, quirky, inspired music, I'd say yes this is an album you'll like, 10 out of 10. However, if it was someone who was just getting into Cope, through say Floored Genius, I'd probably try (though it would be hard) to hold back on this one, say a 4 out of 10. Do you see what I mean. Are you asking, how likely are you to recommend Rite to someone that's into trance, Kilmanjaro to someone who's into late seventies/early eighties, in shich case how do you characterize Fried? Phychadelic? Or are you doig a more generic "I'd recommend that to anyone I thought had decent taste in music"?

Just reread the above and it's badly explained, but hopefully you'll understand.

Later,

St.

Survey

I completed it this morning and it was worse than doing my degree finals last year!! I've never answered so many difficult questions!

My fav EP is Sunspots - couldn't put that. Could I think of another 'like Julian' I couldn't.....

Do you really like Droolian? Blimey you are the first Cope fan I've met who does.... Don't shout at me all of you out there, I am speaking from personal experience only.....I don't know all of your likes and dislikes out there in Rail On World.

It's a good survey though. Are the results anywhere to hand? I'd like to know what the fav tracks are....

nat x

Yeah, I really like Droolian. In fact I f**kin (see how polite I am, I bet you all thought I'd write fuckin) love that album. I was into the Teardrops when they first came out, but being a young tike, I never followed the subsequent career of Cope, till a friend made me listen to Droolian..... which led to Skellington....and onto Peggy. I don't know, I just think that old "genius needs no remix" NME quote is so true of the first two (though I suppose Peggy shows that genius with a good remix is pretty damned incredible). So the big question is do you like it.

My two big hates (which are more like big dissapointments, but why be so mealy mouthed) are 20 mothers and MNU (yes I know china doll and charlotte ann are great, but you can get them on FG).

I know from the past the quite a few of the comrades think Autogeddon is kak (or only fit for a beer mat as i believe the quote went), which I totally disagree with. So there you go, we are a very tolerant group, even if I am right all the time.

Anyway Nat, how'd you answer the "Recomm" column? Or was my question just too unclear.

......a gentleman, not a geezer......

St.

Hope you don't think I was having a personal dig because that was not intended by any means.

I have always found 'Droolian' to be on the personal pet hate list of a fair few Cope fans. Personally I don't like it much, but then I rate MNU as a pretty good album. Been a fan since 1984 and have loved him pretty much since then. 'Peggy Suicide' is the best album ever for me. The rest I'll forward onto you if you mail me as I'm sure the rest of this list don't want to know.

nat x

Definitely no offence taken. Soz if I gave that impression, just being a gruff irish bugger. Truth be told I think it's more interesting when there are diverging opinions than concensus. Though if anybody says anything against Peggy Suicide.....

I'll give MNU another listen to tonight on your recommendation, but I can't see it happening. Definitely agree with the Peggy Suicide assesment though.

Friends just stopped by to go for a pint, so

Later, S.

Its a funny old world, innit.

After slagging of St Julian the other day I had an evening of 'the worst of JC' &listened to MNU &Rite - whilst Rite was surprisingly not too bad (it actually reminded me of those Jimi Hendrix 'At His Best' albums, ie just jamming around, some interesting snippets, but nothing actually fully 'worked out'), MNU was actually worse than I remebered - the vocals are just so weak, worst I'd ever heard him do. But then I put on Skellington 2....

Compare those with Droolian, rough &raw maybe, but blinding.

Nat, speaking as a lazy sod who checks his e-mail all the time meself rather than getting on with my oh so boring job, do you ever have any work to do?

Oh yeah

I meant to say question one was a real bear of a question...forgot that didn't I?

Anyway

St...I answered recommend in just the general sense of how I liked it and would share it with others;I didn't really take into consideration personal tastes or musical bias..heck,if I did that,the footnotes would never end!

I don't think there's any album by Julian that I would go so far as saying I hate,but the ones I listen to least are probably MNU and St Juklian...20Mothers could have used a good editor,but I still rather like it..though "Just Like Pooh Bear"*shiver*...don't get me started!!

I do have to say,that last time I listened to MNU while making a CornuCope-ia tape for my brother(phase two)I actually enjoyed it more then I had in the past,so *shrug* things change..maybe I was in a (for)giving mood.I found a similar respone to Autogeddon,which I was HUGELY disappointed in on the first(many)listens.

I must add,I quite enjoyed the Skellingtons;and Droolian I quite liked as well,but I rather enjoy the sounds that friends make when they get together to play.

oh how I wish that someone would ring

StEven

oh..and not wanting to speak for Trav,but I think he'd like the results so he could tabulate..you can try -e-mailing and asking,I guess

Hope that helps

..and on the Soft Boys doing Insteller....seeing as how they disbanded well before '91 when Robyn Hitchcock went solo,I doubt it was a case of them recording it later.

hmmm..seem to remember it on a dodgy collection called,"Two Halves For the Price of One"..or something of that nature

Ring a bell with anyone?

(might have to go hunting)

I have heard people on this list slag on 20 Mothers for 2 years, and I must say that I'm totally perplexed. I couldn't say which of Julian's records I like best (it would depend on what day you asked me) but I like them all, and 20 Mothers is near the top of my list. I think "Just Like Poohbear" is an AMAZING song!. That song has an incrediblely overt sexuality to it, and I love the techno beat. That, for me, reaffirms why I like Julian- he is willing to mix it up and take chances. If Julian put out an endless stream of jehovahkill's, I for one would grow bored....and it's why I haven't listened to Robyn Hitchcock since 1990. Of course we all have our opinions. I am not going list everything that makes Mothers so great in my mind, but I ask you all- go back and give 20 Mothers a listen, and try to lend it a fresh ear! Take care all.

Kevin

Hey Kevin

Sorry we disagree on "Pooh Bear",but you'll notice in past post that I'm also one of the defenders of 20 Mum's..and not just for "Highway to the Sun" or "Try,Try,Try"(try tre?)..great songs that they are...my only problem with "PB" is that I'm a big A.A.Milne head as well and after seeing the title and reading Julian's write up about the song,I was real disappointed in the final realization,just thought there was so much more to do with the idea.

I'll admit though it does get stuck in my head often..like now...

tut,tut

it looks like rain

StEven

Oooo you are a cheeky monkey aren't you!! Of course I have work to do, just not very much thats all. Boss is on holiday.

Having looked at last nights discussion, I still like MNU and put down the aforementioned title track as a track I humm along to on a reg. basis. I am a huge Pooh Bear fan too ('Just Like Pooh Bear is a classic, anyone else their that night at the Bier Keller in Bristol when he previewed that and Wheel Barrow man?' stunning). Most of Julians songs are about sex in one form or another. Don't want to tread on old ground here but you do know what Spacehopper is about? Hmmmmm say no more......saucey boy. :-)

Anyway back to doing nothing!!! Speak to someone later on I expect, if I'm not too busy knitting Leg Warmers......

natx

uh-oh, looks as though it's going to be a revisionist week at work. On the turn table (in the CD Rom actually) will be MNU and 20 mothers. I hope your not just pulling my leg. I actually reckon 20 Mothers has a better chance as my first impression of it way such a let down that I haven't really listened to it much, still.....

Thank god for emails, list serve or regular, the only thing that gets me through the day

Besides being an overtly raunchy, testosterone driven number with lots of double entendres, is there some particualar analogy in Spacehopper that I failed to spot? (perish the thought)

.....you've got to hold on baby to my special feature.....

St.

MNU is purely personal taste really, None of my other Cope friends rate is either!!! I'm just odd.... its not my fav album by any means but I just like it. (Much prefer Peggy Suicide). Don't want to force anyone to like something I do, you either do or you don't.

Hit the nail on the head so to speak with Spacehopper!! Not that difficult really if you read/listen to the lyrics... But onwards and back to work I go (not). Yawn... roll on 5.00.

nat x

Hi every one I thought I would tell you's that the album that has had the biggest effect on me was/is

"DROOLIAN"

why because it is the album that one can play to hundreds of people and each takes/gets something that one wouldn't expect to get.

Oh what a wonderful piece of art - even the cover with the dog picture.What do other's think of it. I really hope cope could put out another hundred like that. It really brought it all home to me and I am so happy for people like us to be able to have this.

Spontaneous Search-Party

Emboldened, I will admit that the "wallpaper" on my pc is none other than the droolian cover. Admittedly, I do get a few funny looks as most people just see a lil doggy, and I'm not really a pictures of lil doggys kind of person. Still it makes me happy.

Looks like I've stumbled upon a mad group of Droolian fans. I stand humbled in your presence. Can I just say that as an album it is a classic, that I cannot deny, but I'm glad not all of his work sounds like that..... And as for the cover, its quite possibly one of the best album covers ever.

My wallpaper on my computer is of Julian jumping over a little babbling brook wearing a pointy hat and fairy wings. Ahhhhhhhhh sweet....

nat

Yeah...that's the Julian I like. I might get some wings myself, although Courtney Love seems to have stolen the idea..

Mark

Courtney Love stealing ideas?*gasp!*

I lurve the Droolian cover as well,doesn't Smelvin look like a muppet?That was my first impression,even though I "knew" who it was...

On the acoustic tour last year I asked the Drude about Smelvin and he was still going, but not well. He's an old dog by now and I guess he might have gone, which is a sad thought. If he has, I hope he saw out his days running across The Downs.

If any of you who think Droolian is a hard listen haven't heard Queen Elizabeth, then you're in for a surprise. You'll come back thinking Droolian is pure pop!

Some reviewer said of Interpreter that the Drude lacked quality control, and the same could have been applied to 20 Mothers. However, I've always thought that Julians willingness to put out material that reflects where he is rather than looking to the money or repeating his past is what makes him so unique. This is a man forever saddled with the drugcrazedlunatic label who went and put out a huge book on the legacy of Mother worship. Love him for it. After all, it's why we're all on this list isn't it?

By the by, the subtitle to 20 Mothers often seems overlooked and it's cool. Better To Light A Candle Than To Curse The Darkness. Absolutely!

I'll come climbing up to your honey...

Just finished the survey and I'm a broken man. I'm posting it before have another chance to look at it.

Pooh Bear? New Order with a decent vocalist innit?

Steven- I never read the Drude's explanation of Poohbear. What did he say about the song?

-kevin

Forbidden fruit lies up ahead...

With all this talk about good and bad albums, I thought I'd put together another survey. So, this morning I wrote a simple survey script/page combo. It's pretty brainless right now, and I'll probably want to add on-the-fly results tabulation when I start up a real survey.

For now, if you are curious about how easy/hard it will be to use, see: [no longer exists -- Trav] This is a completely bogus test survey. I just would like to know if filling out something like it is easier than filling out something like the survey I started back in February [where you have to mail in your responses].

Okay, now for the fun part... What questions would you like to see asked on this next survey? Try to phrase them so that several people might give the same [exact] answer. If you have a set of answers in mind, please write them as well. For example, instead of a question like this:

Q : What do you think of Cope's [former] drug use?
  (no answer set specified)
        

...try to come up with questions like this:

Q : How do you think Cope's [former] drug use affected his music?
  a) Hurt it     - he would have been greater if he had stayed straight
  b) No effect   - drugs probably made little or no difference to his musical
                   output
  c) Helped it   - without drugs, Cope would probably be either boring or dead
Q : What is your personal/ethical view of psychedelic drug use?
  a) Hate it      - purposefully altering your perceptions is STUPID and/or
                    EVIL
  b) Not for me   - other people can go ahead and ruin their lives, but I'm
                    staying clean
  c) Don't know   - haven't had much exposure to drugs, or haven't made up my
                    mind
  d) Fine with me - as long as you don't hurt anyone [including your body],
                    what's the harm?
  e) YEEEEEEHAAAAWWWWWWWWWWWWWWW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
        

You get the picture... :)

If you want, you can email me your questions, or post them on here.

The february survey is still active, by the way. If you want to take a look at it and/or fill it out, by all means, go for it! I will be tabulating its results sometime. It might inspire you in terms of questions for the next one.

Trav

Does Cope need quality control? I would say his indulgences and constant experimentation is what makes him interesting to most of us. Julian is one of those few artists who can pull off these kinda preposterous gestures and still come out pretty cool; Nick Cave or iggy Pop (usually) have the same quality, methinks.

On the topic of Droolian, it's a fave; ditto 20 Mothers. MNU is a weak 'un, but the b-sides from the singles are gems: Christmas Mourning, Crazy Farm Animal... brilliant. Wilder and Jehovahkill are the untouchable masterpieces (so far). But, er... Interpreter?

Cope in turtle shell was my wallpaper at work until being recently replaced by Sun Ra. A conversation starter...

Yers in Hong Kong via Ottawa(and if you think Cope fans are thin on the ground in Ohio...!),

Daniel

Kevin-

make a feller get out his readin' specs,willya?!*larf*

This is from the CD booklet:

In 1964,I met Uncle Mac from BBC radio's Children's favorites programme.The show had bee going since the '50's and all the British chilren knew him well-I could not believe I could meet someone so legendary.Then is the summer of 1969,I met Christopher Robin,A.A.Milne's son,at his bookshop at Dartmouth,Dorset,England.And he was still only in his sixties.It blew my 11 year old mind.To meet a legend is one thing,but to meet a myth is a transcendental storybook affair.Uncle Mac?Huh!Paul McCartney?Pah!Little Richard?Snort!Christopher Robin?Right On!

Now I wasn't expecting him to do a song directly about the incident or anything;just thought he might have more to say about experiencing something so transcndentally mythical

I know I know

his stories don't have to relate to the songs and are enjoyable on there own..

geez

coming off like a real crumudgeon aren't I?

just wasn't what I was hoping for

nothing to blame,but my own expectations

St. Julian...Ugh. I've got it on vinyl only because I love the cover. MNU...I don't have it in any format. I know I should, and I will, but how do I fork out bucks for something I know I won't ever listen to?

As for interpreter, the first song any of my friends ever said a kind word about was Loveboat. I couldn't believe this! 'I've played 45 degrees for you! American Lite! The Great Dominions! And you say you like Loveboat?

Well I couldn't blame him, it's a fab tune. Everything on that disc is (except maybe Re-direct Male - grating)

Derek

Derek,

I have seen an Island re-issue cd that has both Saint Julian and MNU on it, I think its called Island Masters or something like that. Maybe pick up that and kill two birds etc. Its was less than the price of one cd the few times I have seen it.

Trav,

Cope's former drug use? I thought a big fatty was still his best friend! I've read so many references to him skinning up and then walking along the Ridgeway, or are we just talking psychedelic drugs?

Time to swing to the defense of EVERYTHING!

Funny thing. I was into Teardrop in college, but lost trasck after they disbanded. Then one day my brother plays St. Julian for me and it blew me away. Same for MNU. Only then did I really find out what Julian had been up to all this time. And I dug all that too. Peggy Suicide even got radio airplay here in Detroit (close to Ohio!) and Julian stopped by for a gig on the 4th of July, 1991. Of course, he hasn't been back since.

Now, I understand that some who's like MNU and St.J would find a Rite or Interpreter too weird or avant garde. Likewise, I can see how you fans of the "ArchDrude" would find MNU and St. too "pop." Consider me part of the clan that likes it all . . . the weird and the poppy. Except maybe "pooh bear." j/k Every time I see that insipid cartoon character on a porch flag (as I did tonight on my bike ride) I start singing that tune. Like it or not . . .

The other interesting thing is that Julian keeps managing to sneek in at least one incredibly slick pop tune on every record, at least of late. You can't help but sing along to "Try Try Try" or "Interplanetary Sit In."

Now, if oinly I could get my hands on the really freaked out stuff, like QE &QE2. Help!

"I can't get over you, though I try, try, try, try."

Crikey, I have an afternoon off and shit hits the fan, as they say. I can't believe that you really spend your time discussing all this stuff.... is it really that important an issue that I like MNU, it is still Julian Cope, thats why we are here. Surely what is important is that we all like him as an artist. I appreciate all his stuff whether its Droolian, MNU or 20 Mothers..... Its just that its my perogative to like what I like... personal taste. I sat down yesterday afternoon and played 'Kilimanjaro' for the first time in about 10 years. I did a tape (booo) copy of 'Droolian' yesterday afternoon for a friend.... still doesn't mean I have to have it as my fav album of all time.

I certainly don't find Interpreter, Rite avant guard because I like MNU. Chrikey...... I've liked Julian since 1984, seen him 9 times, met him twice and spoken to him on the telephone, whilst he was in the studio recording Jehovahkill. I don't think he'd really be that bothered that I didn't rate Droolian that highly....

Talk about something more constructive, like his ability to write varying types of music, not the fact the I like MNU... Who really cares.

Nat.

(Sorry bad mood, someone cheer me up).

Hi Nat,

Cheer up deary :), personally I'm really glad you've joined the list, you seem full of info, interesting, funny and an all round good chatter. Plus Southampton. Plus Yeovil. No ones slagging, honestly (well I don't think so anyway)! Sorry if it seems were going at this like a dog at a bone, I guess we just like nit picking. I thought MNU was getting pretty equal share of the votes for and against though. I suppose we like to talk about all aspects of JC so when a good old "fist fight" of a question comes up we all like to jump in.

Seriously though, (and NO i'm not starting this one again), I can't believe what a slagging Autigeddon got, I love that album, but a lorra, lorra folks thinks it a load of old pony. What came out of that spate was that a lot of folks main objection to it was that it wasn't right to finish off the Peggy/jehovah triology. I disagree, but ah well, there you go, ain't gonna lose no sleep*.

I'd agree with you that early/middle/late Cope makes no difference to me either (neither?), I don't really buy into that division. As I said in my mail, way back when, I don't really have JC albun hates, more just a couple of dissapointments. Looking over my survey response, none of his albums got worse than a couple of so-so's.

In fact, a man of my word, I've been listening to MNU and it's true absence does make the heart grow fonder. As I write this Charlotte Anne is playing, what a corker (I'll have to skip to China doll after though) but I'd forgotten "*I'm not losing sleep", nice one. Sure it's no seismic shift and it's not suddenly going to be one of my favourites, but as you say that's not the point. Thanks to your bringing it up, I dug out the CD for a listen, and I'm glad I did.

AS for the new questions Trav, what about doing an enjoyment rating of the books, the same as the album. Categories could be Enjoyment, Informative content, Written style or some such.

Don't be sad Nat.

St.

Autigeddon??? D'oh!!!

Thank you!!

Bit cheerier now.....

nat x

I haven't seen any mention this yet, so I'm going to present this as huge Drude news!!! I was checking out amazon.co.uk and saw a book title under Julian Cope called "Repossessed" with a "not yet published" next to it, with a publish date of Oct 18, 1999. It is listed as category "biograghy" so I'm hoping these are his words continued, where "Head On" left off. Pre-order anyone?

YES!!!!!!!

-kevin

Already pre-ordered!! Thank You!!

nat x

Weird one. Looked it up and it's title is given as Head On/Repossessed [352 pages (18 October, 1999)], so it looks as though your on the money, Kevin.

I wonder is it going to be bundled with the first half being "Head On" and the second half being the mysterious "Repossessed" or is it a seperate entity. Has anyone heard anything about this?? Checked out Head Heritage, but was greeted with the now annoying, "Hello and Happy New Year" so sod all info there, surprise, surprise.

Later, St.

Right, I've eaten lots of chocolate so am in a far better mood, this afternoon.

My friend Mark off of here (don't know where he is today mind you - has a thing for leg warmers!!) who goes under the alias of Carpendium. Works for a book publishing place and he has ordered our copies. The book initially ,apparently, is coming out as a joint edition with 'Head on', but will probably be issued seperately at a later date. Mark can fill you in wherever he may be.....little monkey, probably off being one of the Kids from Fame again. He'll kill me for that one!!!

Its about time Head Heritage was updated mind you. I'm sure it will nearer the book release date. Its def. part two though of 'Head on'.... Can't wait.

nat x :-) 'a smiley happy person' this afternoon....

I'm here.....bloody internet server....

Yeah. I assume you mean the new Cope book. Remind me what ir's called again and I'll find out....

Too hot for leg-warmers today I'm afraid..

M

yes, really annoying that "Hello and happy new year". Don't you think they're waiting until the next "new year..." so it'll make sense?

ummmm

Our buyer isn't in who gave me the original info on reposessed. He's back tomorrow if you can wait. Basically it looked like it was bundled with Head On to be honest, although sure it could be ordered seperately. Once I find out about it, it can be keyed into our system and I can susequently order some copies. If anyone wants one with a 25% discount, let me know.

There's also another great book by Bill Drummond. Probably more interesting to Bunnymen fans, though it does include Julian. It's called From the Shores of Lake Placid. Same applies to that, though I have been waiting for a reprint for a couple of months now. Sorry about that Nat, but it will come!

Mark

Merci for that Mark...I'm up for one as you know (BOOK)

Hmmm as for Bill Drummond (lovely man brought me a pint once!)I can't wait to read his book. His talent shows no bounds ahhhh!! Does it have large print and pictures?

Anyway, back to work....No rest for those with nothing to do allday.

ttfn

nat x

Kevin K - thankyou! Now that's the sort of Drude news I've been waiting for. I've pre-ordered.

Rail On is a good place to be with good people to share it with.

Love was only in your eyes...

For the american fans- I've ordered from amazon.uk before and the transaction was very quick...I've usually rec'd my books from them in about 4 days, if the book is in stock. Certainly this new Julian book will be, so don't be afraid to buy from them! Now if they would just start selling CDs....

-kevin

re: Pooh Bear; I don't like it. But secondly, this morning I turned on the TV to watch the news. There was Kenny Loggins ('DangerZone' from the movie Top Gun, Loggins &Messina, he's a "Nanceyboy") playing acoustic 'geektar' with a life size Pooh Bear dancing alongside him... It was horrific. Thank God no-one has screwed with Tigger! \

Brian

>> Ti, double G, ER!

Morning folks.

Well, I've just located a clipping from one of our book buyer magazines on the new Cope book. It doesn't say a hell of alot, but I'm gonna just scan it. So if anyone wants a scanned image of it, email me privately.

Cheers

Mark

hi everybody,

very busy list these days.

re:repossessed, if my memeory serves me correctly, when head on came out, the next installment (repossessed i poresume) was to cover the period from the end of the teardrops to present day, then the final part was set in the future (yeah !).

what about let me speak to the driver ? what about citizen caned ?

re: autogeddeon, i thinks its a corker, very moody, very mean.

20 mums and interpreter were kinda patchy though (imho) still worth it for the likes of leila b, highway, cheap new age fix and dust.

thats about it really

hugs and kisses

~db

....by drunken disorder more likely old prick.....

Interpreter is actually the only Cope record I have managed to get anyone else into (other than Passionate Friend which Keir loved, but he was only two at the time). If you fade Re-directed Male out half way thru' ( no great hardship there) it fits nicely onto one side of a c90. Battle for the Trees, Cheap New-Age Fix - bloody marvellous.

Looking thru on-line record shops, I came across one in Leeds (http://www.vinyltap.co.uk) which has loads of good Copey stuff - including Droolian &Skellington (the original - £30!), which I seem to recall a coupoe of people on here trying to find. No Rites or QE2 tho'.

if you were france, and i were germany

£30 is not bad for Skellington/Droolian.... my vinyl copy (of Droolian) was valued at £25 2 years ago. It is in good nick though (its still in plastic un-opened - (I have another copy which I play occasionally for those who wondered)), which is something you can't look at over the internet. You never know the quality of the goods until they arrive.... I'd recommend a record shop called 'The Herbgarden' on www.the-herbgarden.com a shop in Halifax. I brought some Echo &The Bunnymen 12" off them a few weeks ago and they arrived well packaged and in very good condition. The do post to countries outside Europe.

I really don't think that 'Repossessed' is going to be a futuristic book.. I think it will take off where the last one ended. If you want a good futuristic book try 'Bad Wisdom' by Bill Drummond, hmmm nasty.

TTFN

nat x

Wow, someone here who's heard of Leeds!!

Vinyl Tap is a pretty good shop for collectibles. Have to have a look myself actually, haven't been for a while

M

I come into work and check out the postings first thing in the morning, and I'm always surprised how many posts there are by 8:30AM...duh. You guys on the island are already having pints by then, aren't you?

rattle my chains, shoot my brains...

Which Island's that then?

Glancing back at the vinyltap list, they've got a record by Spirit/Julian Cope - a 7 track double sided split flexi called Music of Wonder &Excellence, released on Mercury in 1984. Never heard of it before, anyone out there know anything about it?

I cant get bloody Scud-U-Like out off my head at the moment, it's driving me nuts

whichever way that you choose

The question should be Pints of what? It does depend which area of this Island you're from!! Various people various habits, esp. that time of the morning!!! Strange things are drunk in Somerset.....

Just for the record I am currently singing '.....hey country boy' (Name that tune and you win a Chuppa Chups lolly!! - I have a stash under my desk and Frisbees if anyone wants one!!)

nat xx

'gargling pints of liquids'

belbin - the flexi was a double promo effort from Mercury for the release of WSYM and a Spirit album that I forget the title of. It comes in a pic sleeve, but neither that or the content are anything rare.

Whoever had the downer on Re-directed Male - I love that track! Ain't that why Rail On is so great? Each to her or his own.

Make yourself some enemies...

I've met some strange things in Somerset, Nat, and as it happens they were drunk.

She comes up to me...

Glad its not just me who sees strange 'things' in Somerset!!!

Usually people call them gnomes and fairies, but 'things' is cool... Never cross the path of a drunk gnome in Somerset, ooo you'll won't forget doing that in a hurry!!! Liable to swipe you with his rod. Nasty chaffing.

Just out of interest, do many of you have 'Paranormal in the West Country' how does that track rate in your Copeability Chart... Which version do you like the best?

nat x

-"Hey country boy" - North country boy - er..um....The Charlatans??

-Stupid question, but it's been buggin me, what does TTFN stand for??

-Cheers again for the info carpediem.

......dancing on the disco floor......

St.

You win a lolly, Hoorah.

TTFN means - ta ta for now (bye for now) Basically its what Tigger says in Winnie The Pooh!! (my fav cartoon apart from South Park - love Cartman).

nat x

Wow!

Miss a day and come back to some great news..Thanks Kevin!

I knew the Drude was going to do a followup,but this is quite out of the blue!

such a good place to come for a smile and to get at least a couple of Cope songs in my head

..now if only I could get a lolly

can't you see its not a party

its not a party

StEven

Steven - You can have a lolly if you like, do you want a frisbee aswell, they really are free, Marks had one haven't you!!?

As no-one has replied can I really assume that no-one apart from me has a copy of the 'Paranormal in the West Country' CD single, surely not!! I'm just curious guys.......

nat

Paranormal from the West Country

nat - most jealous of your ownership of the Paranormal single, I've always thought it was the highlight of Autogeddon, it even provided the title for my best of the year tape that year (Paranormal In Belbin Country) - what are the other versions like then, in your humble opinion?

Yeah, they really are great frisbees. Yellow with black writing. The phone number that's on mine doesn't seem to work though...

M

Ummmmm well, they are o.k!! There's a normal version with a string quartet which is my fav, one sung underground in a Barrow. Very interesting lots of tamborines and tin things. Ummm one is a psychedelic kinda theramin induced thing and the last one is him and an acoustic guitar. Interesting. Lovely cover. Different to the album version. Its a good EP. I'm sure you can still get them from Head Heritage.

Natx

nat - what a bloody good idea. Why didn't I think of it?

aah well, gone &done it, so I'll give you my humble soon

belbin

No problem, just call me a genius thats all I ask!!! :-)

I don't know if there are any left mind you on Head Heritage, you should be able to get one 2nd hand mind. Worth about £8 I think,at the last count they were anyway.

Anyway I'm off home.... if anyone wants a frisbee please let me know I have 250 under my desk looking for new homes!! If no-one takes them I'll have to let them all loose on the Common to fend for themselves.........

TTFN

nat x

'The Oracle has spoken'

Nat-

put me down or a lolly and a frisbee-Thankee!

Hate to see those frisbees lost and wandering the streets hungry...

Just taped the Skellingtons for my bro..such a tasty bit of stuff..really enjoying it

most excited I've been about the boy in quite a while..(think all these new faces helps as well) though after listening to the whole thing I still have "Don't Crash Here" stuck in my head

...which,actually..is fine by me

Drudes &Drudettes, it's about time some of you out there finally started getting back to talking about Julian's music, I used to check the postings every couple days but i got bored wading thru all the Phish and Elvis Costello banter--talk about unsexy (no wonder Vava never stops by anymore). Why doesn't anyone ever talk about the Mom or at least Roky Erickson? Get to it, and lay of the Paul Weller.

All the best for the weekend, y'all. Z

Oh, btw, LOVEBOAT is a great song, if you've ever been buoyed up by a feeling, you'd know that !

What type of frisbee's are they and why have you 250 under your desk did they fall off the back of a lorry!!!!. I've been away for a while and come back and wow all these postings whats going on.

Oh and Chuppa Chups are my faves!!!!!

Hey,I had a love as hard as stone, keep your nerve if you love me at all

Wow, this page is getting big! I'll archive it soon.

I've come up with a ton of questions for the upcoming survey. Did those of you who tried out the test prefer the forms version, or would you prefer to email your responses? From a tabulation point of view, the forms approach is much easier, and as a user I personally prefer it to email. But I'm still curious what you guys think.

Okay, guess what, I actually have some Cope Content (tm) today! :) I was watching VH1 (briefly, because I have not been enjoying this "women of rock and roll" week, although at least it's a mix of genres) and I heard a *very* familiar oboe(-ish) part. It sounded like the opening to one of the early Cope songs; the first song that popped into my head was "Elegant Chaos".

It actually was Marianne Faithfull, and I remember some of the lyrics were "...evening of the day..."

[Have we talked about this before? I hope not... I should know better! Maybe I need to add a search option for the archives. Would that be useful?]

In any case, here's the kicker... I couldn't find any song called "Evening of the Day" at CD-Now, and didn't see any similar titles among her Greatest Hits albums. Not only that, but when I listened to "Elegant Chaos" just now, it seems to resemble the Marianne Faithfull part, but is by no means a verbatim copy. Then again, a third of the songs on WSYM have that similar oboe sound, so it could be one of them I thought I heard. Or maybe something on Fried. The frustrating thing is that right now my head is swimming with oboe parts, so I can't remember exactly what the Marianne Faithfull one sounded like!

So, here are the questions:

1) Which Marianne Faithfull song has an extreme Cope-esque oboe(-ish) part? The only clue I have are the lyrics "...evening of the day..."

2) Which Cope song steals from the Marianne Faithfull song in #1? Of course, it's possible that they both stole from a common source, or came up with the part independent, but I seriously doubt it.

3) Has Cope every credited her?

Have we talked about this before? The similarity was so obvious, that someone on here must have noticed it too by now. Or is it all in my head?

Trav

Trav-

The Marianne Faithful song was,"As Tears Go By"..yeh..the Stones (ooh.a Cope tie-in there...wrong stones,drat!:)) wrote it for her when she was a young pretty thing

Playing the song in my head,I can note a slight similarity to Elegant Chaos,but I don't really hear any direct lift

..you're not giving out lollies for a right answer,are you~l~

I was happy for awhile but the joke is over

StEven

Everybody has one: Opinion post!

Nat: You think you felt slightly pounced upon for an opinion on a Cope LP, imagine how I felt when I mentioned that Autogeddon was briefly employed at my house as a beer mat! Heavens to Betsy, you'd think I had actually shot the man! I have to admit, the cover art for Autogeddon was killer, although the "Mike Hunt" sophomoric humor and exceedingly bad hair day photos added nothing.

Cope has been consistent in interviews stating that MNU is his least favorite album and once dismissed it as "uptight kaka." I think he's off the mark as Easter Everywhere, China Doll and Charlotte Ann alone make it an excellent spin. (Is Julian not paying massive homage to Scott Walker on China Doll?)

Personally, I think Cope's best efforts for my taste, is covered by Wilder, Fried, World, Rite1 and both Skellingtons. Would it not be mindblowing to actually be the person who makes music that damn good?

Re: Smelvin: I met Julian early March of this year and he mentioned that Smelvin had just died a few days before of old age. Also, in March, Julian mentioned that the follow up to Head-On was about to be delivered and that it focused on the Mercury Years. (He didn't refer to them as Mercury Years but you know what I mean.) I had just mentioned to him that "Search Party" was my all time favourite song of his.

"From the Shores of Lake Placid:" Can someone please tell me why that particular title keeps popping up? Wasn't it a compilation LP put out by ZOO featuring some Teardrops and Echo efforts? Why "Lake Placid?" Perhaps the Winter Olympics were going on then and Lake Placid, NY was the venue, I dont know.

Anyone who thinks Bill Drummond's "The Man" is brilliant please raise your hand.

Long post, my apologies,

J'ai ecri une chanson pour vous

Hiya,

Um, isn't the Kate St John oboe bit on Head Hang Low the piece you were thinking of when you heard As tears go by? I've always loved it on the Floored Genius album.

After the degree of knocking it has received recently I thought twice this morning when I found Autogeddon at a silly price in Virgin. I know it's not the greatest but as I spend so much time on the M4 it's great to have Autogeddon Blues to scream along to. I've only had a tape before. (I bet it's been covered here before if I could go through the archives but what was the incident with the car in London referred to in the notes to Autogeddon?)

While I'm at it I'll agree with all and sundry about the fairly dismal MNU. I really must get round to that survey.

It's godawful hot and sticky here in Reading. Give us a thundestorm please.

A

A night on fire, put out, all traces of feeing

Morning my Angels,

Glorious weather though like the Reading, Southampton could do with cooling down with a wonderful thunderstorm.....

Thanks for adopting my frisbees, the reason I have 250 is that they were promotional items from around 1988 and we have quite a few left. I can think of better things to steal than Frisbees mind you....chocolate for one!!! (Though if some of you want these frisbees I'll have to have addresses!!) No Chuppa Chup Lollies left now.

Anyway, I think Bill Drummond is a god. Met him, nice guy, I met him at a Julian Cope promotional Press Gig in about 1990 - Dave Balfe and Rooster were there too. Very interesting evening. Beer, Balfe and Drummond, one of the best evenings I have ever spent. Ever. Apart from meeting Kim Deal..... another story another time.

sign, those were the days my friend... :-)

nat xx

From the Shores of Lake Placid.

This is a book by Drummond generally accounting his version of events regarding Echo and the Bunnymen. As I understand it, he was asked to submit a piece of art work for an exhibition by various 'cool' people in Liverpool on an artist/musician/band that changed his/her life. He accepted and got to work on this book as something to go with his work in the exhibition. I think the actual piece of work he submitted took the form of all the pages of the book in poster form flyposted around Liverpool on the opening night of the exhibition......very Bill Drummond.

Anyway, this book is supposed to be limited to 500 copies, although I'm currently waiting for the re-print!

M

Hi from this lonely corner. Do you know that I've just found "Copeulation"? It appeared magically (and for a ridiculous price) on a shelf where I had already looked thousands of times: it's destiny. What about other Cope video material available? Once you start...

Zwonko - but who/what exactly do you think I am? No, no, ok: it's better if you don't answer. Thank you for mentioning that line in 'The Loveboat' as I had been wondering about the mumbled words: "bored"? "BOILED"!? (as for that, I'm sure I've been sometimes buoyed, AND boiled up by a feeling). And whenever you want to talk about the Mom, I'm with you.

Trav - yes, please, a SEARCH option would be welcome, if it's not big trouble for you to add it.

Bye you all (especially Modfather Rob and Steven "Jarman"), and duck quickly... if you don't want one of those damned frisbies to hit you in the head!

Your Vava

This is excellent. Lots of new faces and the return of an old one (no offence) - hello again, Vava. Now for the return of Spaceship Mark. (Is he 400 metres across and megalith powered?)

Other vids? There's a live one from the St. Julian tour (Live at Westminster I think), but it's only 3 or 4 tracks. There is also a Teardrops live one (from a Nottingham gig?) which is heartwarming and amusing in equal measures. Post Copeulation (good innit?) there area number of individual promo videos available that turn up reasonably regularly with dealers.

I promise never to mention E***s C**t***o ever again.

Run wild through heather...

Because I'm one of those people who likes to stir up trouble can I ask why you aren't allowed to mention Elvis Costello?!!! Saw on the tv this morning that he has just released a Best of Album - 42 tracks double CD or something. The guy is a genius a legend of 70/80's music, along with Terry Hall (Whos very tall!!) and Michael Stipe. (Bit more 90's but I'm sure you get my drift).....

Any way I'm going home now, hopefully you'll have a nice discussion about all this now. Phew its hot..... anyone seen the rain?

nat

The promise not to mention The Emotional Toothpaste was for Zvonko (and I only mentioned him once!)

Roky Erickson sexy? Many things, but I ain't sure about sexy.

Ba-ba-ba...

VAVA!

welcome back!You were missed

Drop me a note when you can and tell me about your trip!:)

nat-right you are about Terry Hall..Virgins and Philistines by the Colorfield was a great album!Has a bit of the sound Julian got on Soft Enough for You(one of my faves) and Chinma Doll.Kind of beatbop fingerpop.

I didn't much care for the follow up album(Deception?),seemed too slick,but I think I have it on an old tape somwhere,maybe I'll pull it out again..

Other things Cope-ian..in as I've been enjoying the Skellingtons muchly,I've found one song to be a great morning start me up, Great White Wonder.I've had others that have worked that magic in the past..Sunspots and FaFaFaFine come to mind right off.Anyone else out there have any along those lines..or just songs that are guaranteed to lift your spirits?

(they don't have to be strictly Julian,if you feel like going off....like I have to tell anyone here that!:) )

looks real fine to me

StEven

Morning,

No more frisbees!!

I did tell a little porkie pie - I actually only had 50 under my desk and not 250!! oh well, those that have asked will get. My boss is getting a bit suspicious at all the jiffy bags leaving our office with round objects in them!! Do I care - No I don't!!!

Bit more of a 'Specials' fan when it comes to Terry Hall than the 'Colourfield' though I do own the 'Fun Boy Three' back catalogue - sad aren't I!!

Songs that perk me up include - 'Drive she said' - our Julian. Anything by Ian Dury (except 'Hit me with your rhythm stick' which irritates me), 'Divine Hammer' by The Breeders and anything by ABBA. But this morning very bizarrely I am humming 'Hounds of Love' by Kate Bush!! Hmmmmmm oh well back to the funnyfarm!! hee hee hee.....

See you later....

nat x

'Oi Gerard wheres your jumper'

hmm

pick me up in the morning songs?

Gotta be Greatness &Perfection, or Bloody Assizes for me, big, breezy, life affirming tunes. (Hang on, how can the 'Bloody Assizes' be life affirming? Aah well)

Other than JC, Super Furry Animals' 'Man Dont Give A Fuck', or just about anything by Orbital

I also see that there's a programme about Syd Barrett on on Wednesday night, presented by Graham Coxon from Blur - at least there is if you dont live in Yorkshire (we get some football tosh I think, and the season hasn't even started yet)

If anyone in Yorkshire or surrounding areas wants the Syd Barrett thing taping let me know. I have some spare blank videos and can do it for you!! Whoever wants it can send me something interesting in return. I'll have a good think about it.... hmmmmmm.

'Out of my mind on Dope and Speed' by JC is another one which picks me up in the morning. Sigh you can but dream, roll on 5.00.

nat x

'Oi Gerard I've finished your mittens'

Are they tied together by a piece of string so I don't lose them? I'm a bugger for that...

I go away for a week then have to spend an hour catching up.

You people should really slow down!

Anyway, I feel compelled to tell you all about the strange day I had at Avebury yesterday.

Firstly, me and my friend Dave were riding bikes along the ridgeway when dave decided to chase a rabbit. I followed but was distracted by a yellow bird that chose to fly alongside me. I pondered what I had seen and decided to call dave back and we would see what it was.

It was a canarie. In the middle of the Marlboro downs! We proceeded to whistle like idiots for a while, and eventually decided there was nothing we could do to help the little bugger. So we left.

We carried on into avebury centre and an American woman who was passing commented to me how it's unbelievable that people destroyed the stones to build walls. I made a comment about gravel pathways and the 1700's and a conversation of sorts started (how easy is it to talk to a complete stranger when you're totally caned and it's a very hot day?)

Anyways, this woman advised us to visit maiden castle, we gave her directions to the longbarrow at West Kennet. She then told us that Avebury was confused. The energies dont understand what is happening with the busyness of the road etc. We made our excuses and left, next stop West Kennet.

This is where we realised that the two relatively strange things that had already happened were in fact warning signs.

We arrived and there were a few people there. We hung around untill they had gone and then went inside to build. Whilst the construction is underway it begins to rain. Very hard. Thunder and Lightning. We smoke and seek shelter inside the barrow unsure when we'd be able to leave (we were in T-shirts and it was very heavy rain) when about six wet people come inside.

They sit down with us in the largest chamber and one procedes to get out a little camera film case full of dark stuff. A candle is lit and the man explains that in the container is ash that has been burnt in fires all around the world, considered to be pure earth. He sprinkles it around the candle to represent the sacredness of the land. Then another, obviously this parties guru, an indian of somesort, dont know what type, but some tribe of American indian, has a drum. He explains that the drum symbolises the heartbeat and tells us he is going to sing a cosmic chant. It is cosmic in that it is of no national origin. We are told to feel free to join in.

The chant lasts for I dont know how long. Then a flint and bamboo peace pipe is smoked as an offering for the spirits within the tomb.

This whole ceremony was to create a symbolic death of us all and then we were reborn as we left the tomb.

We took their photo before they left and will be very scared if the picture just comes out as a picture of the wall they stood infront of.

We were then left at the barrow with a guy from prague who was spending the night there. On the floor our druid friends had left some oak, mistletoe and made a sickle shape by pouring wax into the floor.

the guy from pragues mate turned up after a few minutes and we told him about what he'd missed.

At the end of the day all I could think was, I've smoked a peace pipe with an indian!

As we left the barrow, our group of travelling friends were atop silbury dancing in a circle.

That was a very strange experience for us both, yet also eye opening. The chanting was truly cosmic and when we got back we realised that several houes had passed within the barrow.

Anyway enough of my story, MNU is alright but the HEY!'s do not have a positive effect on me.

Anyone who slates autogeddon should just listen with new ears as it was the perfect ending to the trilogy (you're meant to feel initially let down in my opinion). Has anyone else noticed that Julian pretty much asks for someone to come along and kill the queen on the album. If I offered do you think he'd work out a plan for me?

The Loveboat. Hmm Not too sure about the bulk of the piece, but that mumbed bit about boils and feeling is one of the top pop moments from Julian. The songs heart is in the right place at any rate.

Great to see a continuation of head-on in the pipeline, I often pick random chapters of the first book to re-read.

I'd love a frisbee, if you let them go up the common I'll pick them all up.

Anyways, I'll leave you all to the next post now.

Steve

Southampton

I left the city just to breath some air, Just to keep my own brain from bustin'

Steve,

Blimey you don't half go on!! bet your phone bill is huge.

Def go to Maiden Castle its lovely, and Cadbury Castle - its made of chocolate!!

What happened to the canary?

nat x

Vava and others...

I have about 12 hours of Cope/teardrops stuff on video, including several bootlegs (Turin 86, Westminster central halls 87, Glasgow 88, Bristol 91, Pheonix festival 93), plus tons of tv appearances and videos etc.

Check out the following for a complete list of what I have available:

http://www.trampolene.ca/copelist.html

Andrew

Great story Steve. I've recently spent a wonderful summer evening cycling around the tracks surrounding Avebury but never had any encounters like that. Got some wonderful new views of the stones and new perspectives on the surroundin landscape though.

Maiden Castle. Strange how repeated school trips can put you off a place. Going back now it's far more impressive than when I went as a kid

And

The NME reports Spiritualized are playing the Edinburgh Flux Festival on August 28, with Thighpaulsandra - as special guests of Ken Kesey &the Merry Pranksters. Jimmy Cauty also appears, with a set that "includes making very loud noises". Sounds intriguing.

They also have a small footnote thing that some bloke is "writing a book on music", &wants peoples top 20 songs of all time (can be anything but include artist/title). Lists should be sent to Nigel Skelton, 55 Lindale, Brownsover, Rugby, CV21 1PH.

Are there enough of us to convince him Julian Cope is the mightiest star of the century? And would this blatantly ruin his research methodology?

Hello my little munchkins.....

a) Russ have you had your parcel?

b) Belbin we have got that Syd thing on the TV but on a different night to everyone else, but can tape it if you still want it.... My other half was going to watch it anyway he's a big Syd Barrett fan. c) Izzy see you later on.....

Thighpaulsandra has been with Spiritualized for yonks, used to guest star with them occassionally, I think hes credited on the 'Ladies and Gentlemen....' album. Wonder if he'll wear his fur. Anyone off hand know what his real name is? 'Paul'?

No chance of a Bill Drummond appearance with Jimmy? That would be a corker of an evening.

Anyway better dash, I'm in the process of buying a house, if we get it then you are all invited to a party!!! Yipppeeeee. The House does have a ghosty mind so those particularly sensitive better be cautious!! wooooooooooo

nat xx

'Oi Gerard wheres your ghostbusters outfit'

'Light is green trap is clean!'

nat-

funny you should ask about thighpaulsandra..I was just reading a review of Coil's new disc yesterday in which he gets very high marks as their newest member..they also mention what I assume is his real name..."Tim Lewis"..I would have guessed Paul as well...wondering if his name came out of some dadaist game..."body part/male name/female name"...

the review if'n you're interested:

http://www2.southwind.net/~markw/cdreviews/musick.html

Shinandrewclaire

(ooh..that's fun!)

Interesting idea!! Tim Lewis, Why not, Paul does seem abit obvious.

Your idea is abit like that 'Pornstar name' thing - mothers maiden &name first pet name. Doesn't work with me...

elbowdavenatalie!! Hmmmmm, maybe you have to be a man. Never heard of Coil. Have to look them up sometime.

natx

This has absolutley nothing to do with Cope, but I saw the movie "The Blair Witch Project" last night and had to share. If you see no other movie this year, then see this one. Unbelievable. It may not be out in the UK yet. I heard it only cost $75,000 to make and made over $30million last weekend. You won't be disappointed...it ain't hollywood.

Andrew

Just a quickie (partly because I don't have a lot of detail!)

The current issue of Record Collector (who said I'm sad?) mentions the planned reissue of Bam Caruso recordings on CD at some time in the none too distant future. This will hopefully mean that Competition and Belief In Him by our favourite Rabbi will be freely available. About time too.

Count to 10 and run for cover...

The Blair Witch Project is getting some good hype in the UK, the web-site is very very well worth checking out (blairwitch.com - tho' it's an absolute bugger for not loading. The film-makers apparently convinced the imdb film database people to list the actors in it as 'missing-presumed dead' in order to convince people it actually was a documentary.

On a Cope front - the first of the stuff I ordered while extremely bored at work last week has arrived (I wonder how long it takes Head Heritage to pick up their phone messages), so I finally have a copy of Head ep - what a great cover. And Greatness + Perfection ep - my god Jules looks so young, and his hair is sooo strawlike. A record list came with my order, listing the Reward/Treason remix 12" at a tenner - the question is, is this worth having, other than for the sake of completeness (which is a good enough reason in itself)

Can't see how anyone could make am interesting film about the Prime Ministers' wife, but as a number of you seem to think it's a goer I'm open to be convinced otherwise.

Aim for the head(man)...

If Thighpaulsandra's real name is Tim Lewis, then it was he who produced the live tracks from the Westminster Hall, that are on the B-side of Eve's Volcano 12" single

Anal retentive or what?

Tim

Blimey, it's busy in here. *grin* I should look in much more often.

Y'know - angel wings must be really popular. I was busy buying a pair of shoes in a local dance shop when a girl came in asking for some. They'd sold out, though. *sad*

Nat - I was at the bierkeller gig you mentioned.

Being a Cope fan can have a dramatic effect on your life. A pal of mine set me up with her ex-husband, saying, "You'll get on, you both like Julian Cope". almost 2 years later it goes to show that strangely enough she was right...

I whitter too much... L-x-

Morning campers,

Hello, Louise. I was actually talking about The Bierkeller Gig last night with Izzy.... about how I managed to talk all the way through it (almost) before we realised that Julian had started. Did you manage to see, hear anything that night? Very strange evening indeed.....

I think all the fairy wings in the whole country were brought and taken to Glastonbury this year. I have never seen so many fairies in my life. I blame Courtney Love myself.

nat x

Railing Off for a week. Looking forward to a deluge of entries on my return. Eclipse here I come!

Take care all.

Stone circles 'n' you...

yoo-hoo i'm back!!!!

The French post ofice have been foresighted enough to but web-stations in lots of post offices so dispatches from Carnqc are now possible (if a little difficult with this crazy french keybard layout)

Alls cool and lovely here in Carnac (althouh the past few days have benn a bit rainy). I've seen loads of sites and am now involved in the canpaign to remove the fences from the alignements.

I've had a quick read through some the last months goings on. I don't know if anyoe,s mentioned it but julian calls MNU ''The Scottish Album''(like actors do with Hamlet) because he hates it so much...

As for Devil's Haircut it's just the lowest three strings of a guitar played open. Did QE3 ever materialize (this iMac thing doen,t seem to posess a questionmark!)

anyway a tout a l'heure

kenavo

spma

Hello???? Hello???? Has everyone gone to Cornwall?

Ta for the bits and bobs Russ. Much appreciated large black and white newspaper pic going in frame in my new house....... having a 70/80's disco back bedroom. Hoorah!! Anyone know where I can get 4 life size Abba Cutouts? :-)

Yawn, quiet around here isn't it......

nat

'Oi Gerard where's yer eclipse glasses'

Is everybody that down on MNU ? I dig "charlotte ann", and all of side two; admittedly the title cut is pretty weak though even that has some okay parts.."vegetation" (uhh) though I always thought sounded like one of those songs Prince wrote for Sheena Easton (speaking of Scottish). Maybe she should recut it.

Happy eclipse...

On page 55 of today's NME: Mick Head from Shack on the tunes that made him a man...

Record that inspired you to form a band:

"Camera Camera" - The Teardrop Explodes

"Tony Wilson, who did Factory Records, had a show - which might have been a regional thing, I'm not sure - called So It Goes. It opened with "Shot By Both Sides" by Magazine, so that grabbed you straight away and you found yourself watching the program whether you wanted to or not. I had just seen The Teardrop Explodes' first ever gig, and for us in Liverpool, So It Goes was really important because we got to see, like, Echo &The Bunnymen before they had their drummer, and The Teardrop Explodes in their full glory."

Nat: I thought I did - but it's sooooo long ago my brain is hazy...

I don't think MNU is that bad. It's the most commercial and pop period of J.C., and maybe the least interesting, but by far more than most of other bands.

remember...

the sun ain't gonna shine anymore.

Can anybody tell me how to get Julian's lyrics ?

Starsonic

I would like to say that for all those folk talking about MNU that when It came out we all would play it over and over so how could it be so bad?

It was better than if it had been anything else. bye. SS-P

Morning!

Nice to see that Shack are finally getting some recognition at last (though the NME have always been good supporters wonder when they'll start knocking them down, now they've built them up). Shack have been around long enough. If I have to make one recommendation ever then GO AND BUY 'HMS FABLE' by SHACK it is a wonderful brilliant album. (For those of you who haven't twigged Shack used to be the Pale Fountains - that might jiggy you up a wee bit to go and buy it. Also go and see them live, they are great.

Can't believe everyone is still bantering on about MNU can't you moan about something else now, How about hmmmmm 'World shut your mouth' being the worst single Julian has every written, its terrible and annoying.

'Playing Devils Advocat is my forte'

Nat.

'Oi Gerard you getting Jiggy with it'

Hello folks,

Just discovered this discussion list and all the related websites. fantastic stuff.

I have a quick newbie question: is anything known about the unreleased Cope albums such as Julian H. Cope (which the record company rejected? and which turned into Jehovahkill?) and Propheteering (which produced the 7inch. Now sold out, damn it!)Track listings? Bootlegs? Anything would be a help.

And did the old record company ever get around to releasing any more collections of B-sides. I read a long time ago in some crappy music mag that they had planned a trilogy of albums with 'Followers of Saint Julian' - which I never did buy.

Jonathan

Know what you mean about buying Island Records stuff. Julian always says don't buy it, but what the heck, sometimes you find a small gem on there that you haven't heard before.

They recently released 'Leper Skin' selection of album tracks that Island still own, so I think they are still on for their trilogy. Didn't realise that Julian was still commercially viable. Must be I suppose. Can't ever see him doing TOTP again...... Oooo that dress and no pants - only Jules could get a way with flashing his bits on TV. Anyway I digress a tad...

Can I just say BOOOOOOOO TO BOOTLEGS..... evil things.

Anyway, thats me done.. Welcome Jonathan.

(Quick tip, don't talk about Pooh Bear!!)

TTFN

natx

Thought this might be interesting

M

Former KLF/K Foundation man BILL DRUMMOND has broken his lengthy musical silence to appear on the new Skyray album 'Mind Lagoons', released by Ochre records on August 30.

Going under the name Tenzing Scott-Brown, Drummond - ex manager of The Teardrop Explodes and Echo and the Bunnymen - narrates lyrics over the album's title track.

The album is the third release from ex-Teardrop Explodes keyboardist and Wild Swans singer Paul Simpson, who is now known as Skyray, and will also feature John Lawrence of Gorky's Zygotic Mynci and Alan Holmes of Ectogram and, most recently, The Serpents.

Skyray will play UK dates soon.

Meanwhile, occasional Drummond collaborator Mark Manning aka Zodiac Mindwarp's as yet untitled new novel (described as "a psychotically rock'n'roll novel for the criminally insane") will be published in early 2000 by Attack Books.

Hoorah for Bill, I shall purchase as soon as its released. I bow down in his glory!!

Where's my Book?!!! :-)

Was Paul the Teardrop with the dodgy Moustache?

nat xx

'Oi Gerard want a lemsip?'

Don't talk about Pooh bear...

hmm.. Wouldn't have anything to do with THAT track on 20M would it? The one you edit out when making a tape for the car, but play to friends for the sheer pleasure of it...

Hi

Long time since I last joined in the list. So whats been happening well i'm working on the site at the moment (well when I get chance!) and i've just finished converting the mainstream cd's into mp3 (Kilimanjaro-Interpreter) and i'm now doing all the others Skellington-QE2 all the singles (extra tracks) and all the other little bits that have turned up!!. I'm placing them on my hard drive so I can listen to a tracks while i'm working. I'm also going to put lyrics on the site in the near future I've got loads done already in rough but if anyone can help please e-mail me with any just to make my job a little easier its a big task and one i'm sure will bring alot of discussion on what the correct lyrics are.

Well thats it for now back to work. glad you found a use for the stuff Nat.

Russ

Bonjour!!

Ta for the stuff Russ. Many uses to be had with the bits and bobs. My other half has swipped the badge though, little bugger. He shall pay, oh yes he shall pay...... Glad the frisbee finally has a good home.

I'd like the lyrics to Mik Mak Mok - how do you spell the word before zing zang?

Anyway back to the world of the dead......work, yawn roll on 5.00.

Nat xx

'Oi Gerard where's your pickled egg'

Pickled gurkins for me my dear...

Hey Russ I just got to and bookmarked your site.anything you need help with ,..please email me. I can encode MP3's and have some HTML experience. I already am stoked over this site!. I have no Jullian past Interperter ..but I have lots of his stuff b4 that.

Well

The mp3's are nearly finished they are all recorded to my hard drive, I've just got to encode them for general mp3 players. I used real jukeboxplus to record them. I had a few e-mails saying it against the law to bootleg and giving me a hard time but i'm not going to sell them its for me only, i've shelled out the cash for the original's so back off. I must admit though one guy who will remain nameless gave me a hard time and then asked for a copy. The site is taking shape and i will start on the lyrics in about a weeks time. Its about time we had a card from Julian or HH updated the website its been a while now since the drudes been active.

Russ

Bonjour ma petit pois!!

How are we all today.

This is totally unrelated to anything at all but can someone please translate this for me!! There a bag of Fruit Pastil Body Parts for the first translator!!

'No cuelgue para arriba su chaleco Bruce'

It is about time Julian updated us as to his where abouts. Maybe we should bombard him with e.mails!!

I have nothing against People doing tapes for other people. How would we spread the word of Julian if we could not introduce them via the gift of tape. But I hate Bootleggers who have no interest in the artist what so ever and do it purely for profit. (I was 'given' a bootlegged Julian Concert tape and the 'taper' had every song wrong on the track listing).

Anyway I waffle. Speak to some of you later.

Au Revoir mes Oranges....

nat x

Ps. Its hard to believe, but I failed my French CSE!!

*grins*

Well, Nat - according to BabelFish http://babelfish.yahoo.com it means: "It does not hang above for its vest Brushes" (which is very worrying...)

http://www.FreeTranslation.com/ says: "Do not hang for up its vest Bruce" (forms such an interesting picture in my imagination...)

....hmmm... no fruit pastils for me! (Or should I say Ninguna fruta Pastiles para mí!?)

My favourite translation site? http://www.rinkworks.com/dialect/

For example... ('tis too easy to offer a packet of fruit pastiles....) first person to spot the song...

Easy, when life's some bitta' pill ya' swallow waaay down wid yo' last bread. And find me alone, and trapped bediggin' hoth supuh'latives and greed dat shines underdiggin' hoth. Lop some boogie. I wuz drown out uh de crib into de snow, so cut me some slack, Jack. I wuz bo'n t'entertain so's here ah' go. 'S coo', bro.

Not easy, but youse hands around mah' neck could be construed as yo' bein' rude. Hear de dinna' gong, put waaay down mah' fo'k, start mah' beat, 'cos ah' could be nuthin ya' wants' me t'be. Top o' bottom, face da damn monster, let him know, so cut me some slack, Jack. I wuz bo'n t'entertain, so's ha' I go. 'S coo', bro. Top o' bottom, face da damn monster, let him know, so cut me some slack, Jack. I wuz bo'n t'entertain, so's here ah' go. 'S coo', bro. I wuz shown de doo' befo'e ah' gots'ta rap. Only t'be now fo'gotsten. 'S coo', bro......

Merci for that Louise, it is actually suppose to read:-

"Don't hang up your vest Bruce" But that was close enough.

Its a campaign to keep Bruce Willis in a white vest, rumour has it he's hanging up the vest to persue less violent roles. This will of course be a travesty.......

But nevermind eh!! New single out for Holly Johnson in a few weeks Hoorah and a best of Yazoo if anyone is interested....... Good old Holly.

No fruit Pastille bits left actually, I ate them. But you can have a lolly if you like. (Trying to give up smoking hence the influx of Chuppa Chup lollies!!)

nat x

Got to work on Monday after my leave and I was unable to connect to Rail On. The horror! The despair! Mr. IT from upstairs says I'll be back on tomorrow, so this is from a friends PC. 11 days without it means I've gotta have my fix.

The eclipse was awesome. Well, the sun/moon bit wasn't as I couldn't see much of it. But the totality darkness was breathtakingly eerie.I want some more and may save up for Zimbabwe in 2001 ce.

(I hit 'POST' by mistake).

Good to read that many posts in one go and more new faces - welcome!

To follow Nats'lead - can I have the rest of the lyrics for Transporting? Leper Skin was disappointing in it's efforts on deciphering.

An extra length I did not understand...

Louise,

Name that tune? Las Vegas Basement. Too easy, indeed.

Mark

Morning,

There's not just Africa in 2001 you can go to for an eclipse..... How about The UK Dec 4th 2002 not so far to travel!! That one also tracks through Africa, but is also in Australia!! Only 2mins 4 sec though rather than 4 mins 57 secs in 2001.... Then again, Turkey, Mar 29th 2006 ( 4mins 7 sec )......

Plenty to choose from there!! Hoorah for eclipses.

nat x

Don't know if any one out there is interested in this, I certainly was: Something off of the local news this morning.

The Newbury By-pass has had to be closed this morning for an indefinate length of time, this is due to the road surface coming off the road. Apparently when tarmacing the road they used a cheaper new alternative porous material, which due to the amount of recent rain has soaked up the water and lifted off the road.....

just goes to prove what a waste of money, time and shoddy workman ship that bastard road has been....

Thats my say for the day.

nat x

Shoddy workmanship may well be a factor, but could it be that the Mother is showing her hand? Some recognition of the efforts of her children to protect her? Probably not, but it's a nice thought.

Drive she said...

That is a lovely thought Jon..... made me feel all warm and glowing.

Poor old Mother Earth needs to do something to repair those scars on her. Fences should be the next thing to go.... bring back the hedgerow, thats what I say.

Before I go, on a cherrier note, say HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO STEVE, FROM THE USA, (Off the list - pressie in the post today, hopefully right address this time)He's 106 today you old man you!! ho ho ho...

Cheerio.

nat xx

That's senile git to you,missy~laff~

thanks

though from the sounds of it,what with the by-pass problem etc,it's more of a Bah-Earth day

beam me up..

Hi all. Back from Penwith. A wonderful experience in spite of the cloud. Had a great four days down there exploring some of the sites. Those fogous are something else. Especially the one at Capel Euny with the phlourescent green moss in the cracks of the walls. Did anyone else who went down see the Angus Watts flag installation on the moor to the north of Penznce near Mulvra (?) Quoit. Wonderful.

Driving through Penzance one evening (the kids had put the tape in not me, so we are obviously making progress) listening to Wilder and my wife points out that the end of Passionate Friend is a musical quote from As Tears Go By - Marrianne Faithful. So that's where it was!

Bless my cotton socks

I've been meaning to ask this for some time and I hope I'm not embarrassed by a answer I knew all along;

>Who is that pictured on the back of the 'Saint Julian' sleeve?

Hi

Well the revamp of the site is nearly finished. I will start to add lyrics from today (Thanks Verian!!). Let me know what you think its a big help in getting it right. Some pages still show the old background but i'm trying to find the rouge image thats left...... Trav should be going into the studio next week if we can find the time the tracks should be Christ V's Warhol/ Las Vegas Basement/ Kilimanjaro/ Fear Loves/ Seven Views/Head Hang Low/ When I Dream and Laughing Boy again thats if we can find time I'm working at Leeds Festival at the weekend so it may have to be put on hold for a couple of weeks. Its hard getting eveyone in the right place at the right time

Russ

There were big thunderstorms a couple days ago, so that might have been causing problems.

I'm going on vacation this weekend, but when I come back I can archive this page (which is now HUGE!!!), finish the new survey, and all that good stuff.

I moved apartments and got my degree, guys [hence the vacation]! I am now officially a Master. :) Anyway, this means I can devote substantial time to web stuff, which'll be really cool. I have a house-guest for another week or so, so I've been feeling like I have to entertain him, but after he's gone I'll be able to be productive again. Not that I'm eager to duck back into my cave of isolation but, well, you know how it is.

Have a good weekend, folks!

Trav

Where is everyone?

Lonely guy...

When will a new album be issued - it's been a long while?

Are their any plans for live dates?

Does anyone know where I can get hold of a copy of the first Rite CD as its no longer available?

Hello Angels!!

Yawn, what a boring life I lead......someone entertain me!!

You can probably get Rite by having a look at all the 2nd hand record shops that are available on the net (Try Herbgarden Records- www.the-herbgarden.com) You are in the same boat as everyone else as to a Tour/album. We'd like to know aswell!

Or there are some other shops listed if you go down this post list.

Nat xx

'Oi Gerard where's your Heather'

I hope I've got it right this time - thanks again to Natalie!

I'm off to Avebury this weekend armed with a copy of the Modern Antiquarian - I gather that there are some large stones there!!

I'll post you something next week to let you know if I find them.

I/m new to this site and it's going to take weeks to read all the archives - keep it going.

Whats all this about using a URL in sending this? Sorry I ain't got a clue!!!!

Is natalie an incredibly ugly girl or wot!

Oi you bugger

I hope you are not refering to me!! I'm absolutely georgeous I'll have you know!!

I didn't think those photos of me were on the Web yet....

Natxx

'Oi Gerard go beat him up for me!!'

Go Shrimp! Go Shrimp!

Only Joking Nat!

What a horrible thing to say...

Here's the URL...

[he posted the URL of Rail On -- Trav]

G

RIGHT, YOU OUTSIDE NOW...... I'LL TAKE YOU BOTH ON...

Only kidding....

See you all tomorrow...!

:-( I'll put a bag on my head tomorrow.

nat x

Don't hit me Nat. Didn't mean it.

She's quite a catch actually...gets stalkers and everything!

G

Sorry Nat I was only kidding!

I was listening to Skellington and I wrote that song for you!!

>> Is this a message board or a personnal chit chat board? <<

Broadcast on Radio 3 a year before Cook's death in January 9th, 1995, the following are extracts from five rare conversations recorded by the confused, rambling and, best of all, hugely offensive Sir Arthur Streeb-Greebling (who made his first appearance in Not Only But Also in 1965, where he spoke about teaching ravens to fly underwater). This is the final appearance of Sir Arthur; and the interviewer is Chris Morris

Sir Arthur Streeb-Greebling is known - home and abroad - as an entrepreneur, politician, humanist and explorer. His controversial projects - such as testing designer drugs on imported orphans - have led to strained relations with the media. In 1968, he broke Malcolm Muggeridge's arm in two. Sir Arthur has refused to be interviewed for more than ten years, so what follows is a unique chance to hear the reflections and opinions of Sir Arthur Streeb-Greebling in conversation with the broadcaster, Christopher Morris.

Morris: Sir Arthur - it does interest me - why did you agree to these interviews?

Sir Arthur: It's really very simple. I've lived a long time, I've been distorted, I've been misrepresented, and I've been quoted accurately - which is perhaps the most appalling. And I thought that, in simple conversation with another human being, I would get some things off my chest and on to other peoples'.

"Eels"

Morris: Right, we're almost ready to go. Have you done this kind of thing before?

Sir Arthur: Erm, I... a long, long time ago, in the Sixties, with John Freeman, I did a face-to face thing, but he was a hopeless amateur..broke down and wept halfway through the interview.

Morris: How did it resolve - that particular encounter?

Sir Arthur: I gave him a hanky and told him to pull himself together. I also did a bit of an appearance on The Tube with Paula Yates and Jools Holland...played a bit of boogie on that. But, I've never done radio before - so this is all a whole new world to me.

Morris: Sorry, I wasn't listening to that. Are you ready to go?

Sir Arthur: Yes, I'm off any minute,

Morris: Sir Arthur - your work with eels is very well documented. It's perhaps less well known that, during one experiment you came very close to death. How did that happen?

Sir Arthur: I was trying to test the strength of the eel, and whether its strength would be enhanced by.. an injection of thyabizalime; which, as you probably know, is a steroid much used by Betty Grable in the early days of Hollywood, which gave her those wonderful legs, because she was born with legs only three inches long and her parents were determined to have a world-class film star-style daughter, and through the administration of this drug, and what is called 'tugging' - pulling by the ankles - they managed to get Grable's legs up to the required film star length.

Morris: Wasn't there also a functional problem in this process - sometimes things got horribly out of hand?

Sir Arthur: Yes. There was one occasion - I don't know if you've seen the sequence - but there are out-takes in the British War Museum which show Grable starting off a dance routine with the very long legs and winding up basically looking like a tea cosy. And the effects were variable; there were many days she couldn't shoot because her legs got, frankly, too long for comfort.

Morris: But they weren't just long, were they? They flexed backwards.

Sir Arthur: She could walk both ways, yes which was an effect which startled Louis B. Meyer one time. Louis was on his casting couch, casting himself, and suddenly he thought he saw Betty Grable walking in - but, in fact, she was walking out. And that got up his nose. He was easily slighted.

Morris: Let's get back to you, fighting the eel on the table. I believe, during the course of that encounter, you did, very nearly, die. Did you ever think: 'I don't care if it kills me?'

Sir Arthur: Well, there were moments when I thought - well, I've had a long life, and I've had a varied life, and I've had just about enough of it really - all these bloody eels. Bloody, bloody eels. As soon as you get hold of one, it starts slithering all over the table, and you ask it the secret of its jaw movement and it doesn't say a bloody thing. So, I was tempted. But there was work to be done, and it will be done, and I will be done.

Morris: It makes one sorry to hear you talk like this. Many would say that, before the eels, you were a different man.

Sir Arthur: Well, before the eels, of course - I was caught up in my love life. I don't know if you remember the cha-cha boogies of Hamundo Ross... but Lita Rose was a magnificent singer - rather similar, in a way, to Jama Cogan ,without the bounce. And, we had not an affair, more of a correspondence. I sent her a postcard from - I think it was Tibet - and never got a reply, because she was a married woman. So it all petered out.

Morris: But you still haven't recovered . There's something unresolved about that relationship.

Sir Arthur: I'm not easily given to tears, but not hearing back from Lita was a bit of a body blow.

Morris: What was it about her that moved you?

Sir Arthur: Her name, I think. Lita, Lita, Lita, Lita. Rosa, Rosa, Rosa,

Morris: And, as a result of this disappointment, I believe you dived headlong into a life of ill advised abandon.

Sir Arthur: Yes, to try and forget her, I embarked on a series of meaningless affairs. They weren't even flings, they were...night-caps.

Morris: Did you ever meet Eric Clapton when you were there?

Sir Arthur: Several times. He was frightfully nice a great comfort to me, Eric. Because he's been through so much, hasn't he? I meanhaving to play the guitar all the time - must be absolutely awful for him. Yes. Eric is a pathetic individual, really. Give me GingerRogers, or Ginger Baker - whatever the one is. The one who went to Africa and taught the natives how to play the drums.

Morris: You were... arrested with a gun, in the vicinity of Eric Clapton's apartment In L.A.

Sir Arthur: Not arrested. I was, erm, taking part in the racial violence in Los Angeles after the Rodney King incident.

Morris: Which side were you on?

Sir Arthur: I was trying to mediate, between the police and Rodders. I got to know him very well - a very nice chap. We were having a Big Mac together, and the police blundered in to finish off a job that - y'know - they hadn't completed. So I tried to mediate, by saying, 'There he is, officer!" - to try and calm things down, because, you know, one hates to see Los Angeles go up in flames unless one's got a camera running.

Morris: That was reported in one of the Sunday papers at the time, as: 'The Dark Soul Of Sir Arthur Streeb- Greebling'. That night was a trail of wanton destruction, which many ascribed to your near-death experience leaving you bereft of any hope.

Sir Arthur: I like to think I mowed down as many whites as I did blacks. I mean, the Koreans did very badly out of the whole deal.

Morris: Do you feel any pride now

Sir Arthur: I feel nothing but pride. That's all I do feel. An empty pride. A hopeless vanity. A dreadful arrogance. A stupefyingly futile conceit. But at least it's something to hang on to.

Morris: And the fact that you got away..

Sir Arthur: With murder, yes. Let's not mince words.

Morris: and had to pay a menial fine...

Sir Arthur: Well, I don't know what you call a "menial fine". I had to do community work. I had to go and teach Tatum O'Neal to play tennis.

Morris: Is there anything left for you to do, once you've finished with the eels?

Sir Arthur: I've still got to work on her backhand.

'Fossils'

Morris: In your address to the Royal Society tomorrow, you intend to reveal the fossilised remains of the Infant Christ. How do you feel that will go down?

Sir Arthur: Well, it is a remarkable discovery. A group of us were up in The Promised Land - as I believe it's called - and we were just rooting around for some sticks to start a fire with, and, by some accident, this tiny little form had been preserved perfectly. So I picked it up, put it in my knapsack, brought it home and had it Scientifically examined at my institute..it's Christ at the age of about nine months - just beginning to walk. Well, more crawling than walking... crawling across the desert in search of, um, followers, really. And then, of course, he died.

Morris: So, what are the implications, then? Christ was fossilised when he was that small...

Sir Arthur: He was practising resurrection. Because, if you're going to resurrect yourself in front of thousands of people, and found a religion on it, you don't want to make a cock-up, do you? So, from a very early age, he was dropping dead and resurrecting himself. There are probably thousands of bodies of Jesus, and this is just the youngest one

Morris: A series of larvae.

Sir Arthur: Almost. Yes. Pupae. In fact, he never really got it right at the end. It's not as If he was pronounced dead on the cross, and then flew up and flapped his wings and said, 'Hello, boys!' He chose a rather complicated way..had to be put in a cave, with a boulder put in front of it..Paul Denials could do that. So he never really got the hang of it.

Morris: Could you tell how quickly these practised resurrections happened?

Sir Arthur: He took about six months. He died - as planned - then, just as he was passing away, he suddenly forgot how to do it. Instincts carried him through, and gradually, he resurrected himself by which time he was under the sand, so he also had to fight his way to the surface. And, of course, he died whilst doing that.

Morris: Suffocation.

Sir Arthur: Suffocation. yes. He was smothered by sand. So, he died again, and there's some controversy over whether my tiny Christ is in fact the nine-month-old or the nine-and-a-half month-old one.

Morris: This fits in with your theory that, as Christ practised resurrection throughout his life, he didn't do it flawlessly, did he? He produced several of himself at once.

Sir Arthur: There was a time when he overdid it, and produced 18 other Christs. So he had to wipe out 17 of them.

Morris: But he had to stop them resurrecting themselves once they'd done it.

Sir Arthur: Yes, he had to keep them underwater. I think St. Paul mentions it in passing.

Morris: Have you spoken to the Vatican about this?

Sir Arthur: I've had words with their envoy over here, and he's absolutely thrilled to bits and has suggested a venue where we could put it up and where it could start earning its keep.

Morris: But does he know that you intend to clone from its tissue?

Sir Arthur: No, I haven't gone into that with him because, frankly, it's none of his business. And it is a business.

Morris: Who's putting up the money for this?

Sir Arthur: Honda.

Morris: Now when, or if, this is successful, what do you feel the result of it will be?

Sir Arthur: Well, I am very much hoping to be the first to shake Jesus by the hand, and say, 'Well done!'

Morris: How far are you prepared to take this? Say the experiment is four-fifths successful, and you end up with some animated tissue which is not particularly man-like, would you allow that to carry on living?

Sir Arthur: I would go on gut reaction. I think if one had three-quarters of Jesus, you'd know that it was Jesus, and I would settle for that.

Morris: What diagnostic signs are you going to go for? Breathing? A voice?

Sir Arthur: A voice, yes. But he could sign his message, you know - wave his hands about like they do on Channel 4.

Morris: Who would provide the words in that case?

Sir Arthur: Well, then we'd pre-record something with Martin Jarvis or John Hurt... somebody suitable could do the voice-under.

Morris: Project a little moving shape over his mouth...

Sir Arthur: Yes. Probably just with an elastic band, we'd get some movement.

Morris: And where would the words come from?

Sir Arthur: Oh, we'd just do what he said in the Bible. You know - the same stuff. What he said was perfectly good.

Morris: I think you know what I'm getting at. I'm trying to find out whether you will be using Him as some sort of conduit for your own warped ideas.

Sir Arthur: No, no. It all be his warped ideas, not mine.

Morris: And what role do BMW play?

Sir Arthur: They'll be furnishing the vehicles,

Morris: Will He not be frightened by modern transport.?

Sir Arthur: Yes. The Sony Corporation are interested in a sort of hover-donkey. That could move at about a hundred-and-ten miles an hour.

Morris: Now, I'm told that the Japanese are more seriously involved than that.

Sir Arthur: Er, in the militarisation of Jesus, yes. Given His consent, of course.

Morris: And what will the Japanese do with these miniature Christs?

Sir Arthur: They will market them in the normal way, because there are a lot of people out there who are yearning to find Christ and who don't have the time to go out and look for him in person... who would like to have Christ through the letterbox.

Morris: How will the Christs eat?

Sir Arthur: Through a tiny little tube that will be supplied.

Morris: And how will you guarantee their safety against...

Sir Arthur:... theft?

Morris: And dogs?

Sir Arthur: Well, showing a tiny Christ to an alsatian is like showing a red rag to a whatever they're called. Big things with horns.

Morris: Bishops.

Sir Arthur: Yes. But, there are no guarantees. You've got a tiny Christ, he's six inches high, he's about - ooh - three centimetres deep, and he has all the organs.

Morris: Where do they come in?

Sir Arthur: Look, I don't want to... I mean, you're rather pre-empting my address tomorrow.

Morris: All right, well let me put it to you like this. Don't you think, that if you clone Christ, He will in some way want to remonstrate with You as soon as he can?

Sir Arthur: Well, that's up to him. But he'll be pretty lost without the batteries.

@ BBC Radio 3. First broadcast January, 1994.

I've no idea what that last mail had to do with anything Jubbo, but as a Peter Cook fan it was a very welcome distraction on a rainy afternoon in Heidelberg.

With the lack of news on anything Cope related, I was wondering what was happening with the survey?

Still no updates on the Head Heritage site, surprise, surprise. I think it's about time JC got a web savey fan to keep it updated, I'm sure that there would be no shortage of volunteers to call him up once a week/month and update it with his musings, news about potential releases, comment on the new book etc. Oh well, I guess genius has never had a big reputation for relaibility.

Powering up my new work ISDN line at home today. So no more waiting for Monday morning for my Rail On fix.

Later, St.

I'm sorry, but was that prompted? it seemed to appear out of nowhere. was it suppossed to arrive here? seeing as it did, tell me, was that the same chris morris from brass eye etc?

did anyone read it start to finish?

hmmm

Kind of interesting, if kind of weird - I read it start to finish thinking there MUST be something Cope related here - but no. It must be the same Chris Morris, who has a very funny homepage at: http://www.koekie.org.uk/funnel/

On a Head Heritage note - I finally got the stuff I ordered from them 4 or 5 weeks ago, all in lovely condition, and including Rite 2 which I'd thought was out of stock, but no. Only played a track and a half so far (a strangely unacceptable excuse for being late for work, I was told), but it sounded better than the first one, or Queen Elizabeth, to me. The HH bods don't exactly seem to be too concerned about rushing about things - which I can dig.

And finally, a quick question: who supported the teardrops on their 81/2 UK tours? And is there a good reason why they get no mention in Head On?

belbin

the wall is the thing

Who is this annoying annonymous person who keeps mailing. Are you the same person who dared to moan at me for wasting space and said 'What is this a personal chit chat board'..... Well my chum, you are a waste of space...

Thank you....

N

The last one was me sorry, I meant to copy and ended up sending. Anyway, you've got to admit Peter Cook was funny. Any one heard Queen Elizabeth 3 yet?

Hello,

I had a great long weekend in Avebury and area recently, met The Drude on Monday morning, he was wearing cammoflage waistecoat, black lycra vest &trousers, straw hat &sun shades, not bad for 8am I thought. There may be the possibility of a tour next year, and the sequal of Head On, should be ote before the end of the year.

Has anybody heard "Electric Putty" by Nutmeg? It's just getting rereleased on cd and I was wondering if its worth getting.

Nice to know Peter Cook's not forgotten, I liked the one about John Stitch from the Dereck &Clive album, it goes something like this:-

John Stitch:"Hello, my names John Stitch and I do non stop dancing."

Dereck:"Your name's John Stitch and you do non stop dancing, well why arn't you dancing now then?

John Stitch:"It's my day off."

All the best,

Andrew

Can anybody tell me what the Ambulence CD is like - Is it just a 33min extravaganza of indulgence or does it delve into true Krautrock Kosmos and is therefore worth laying my hands on? If I could find it!

Cheers Shrimp