Julian Cope

I was recently working on a "Musical Geniuses" list but then decided to abandon it due to it's redundancy. After all, do we really need yet another reminder of Stevie Wonder's or Brian Wilson's brilliance? But one name stood out on my list for it's relative obscurity: Julian Cope. Though Cope has an ardently devoted cult following, he rarely gets the recognition he deserves when the critics are putting together their GOAT lists. For example, he only has one album in AcclaimedMusic.net's Top 3000 (Fried at a lowly #2,623). And everyone from Rolling Stone to Pitchfork barely seems to know he exists.

What's always impressed me about Cope's work is how wildly creative, diverse, and interesting his music and career have been. And how little anyone has noticed. Remember how acts like Beck and Blur received both critical acclaim and popular success for their eclectic/experimental mix of styles and genres. Well, Cope was doing the same kind of thing years before either of them. And he did it just as good, if not better, and with an added layer of psychedelic mysticism. Cope is also an acclaimed author, writing three books on music, two autobiographies, a novel, and two mammoth books on archeology that have made him a recognized authority on Neolithic culture (www.TheModernAntiquarian.com/the_books/).

If all you know of Cope is his handful of minor UK Top 40 singles like "World Shut Your Mouth" or "Beautiful Love", or his brief early-80's stint as leader of The Teardrop Explodes, then you can be forgiven for seeing him as just another second-tier New Wave/Indie Rock act. To get an accurate picture of Cope's musical genius, you have to dig deeper into his albums. I'd start with the masterpieces Peggy Suicide or Jehovahkill. But all of his albums have a wealth of uniquely interesting Copeisms.

From Norman Bates 08/11/2010 16:11 | #14226

Fascinating artist. Try "Fried".