“Bless my cotton socks I’m in the news” 
 
It’s often stated that Julian Cope is an English music artist, but he was actually born in Wales, and was staying near Aberfan with his gran on his ninth birthday, on the day of the Aberfan disaster. He states this tragedy was a key event in his childhood, which I can connect with as I remember the effect that news had on my own parents, upset at the huge loss of 116 children, many of my age, and 28 adults.
 
However, Cope is more than a musician, he is also is a noted writer on diverse topics as Neolothic culture, the occult and paganism, and German and Japanese music.
 
But his musical output will be described briefly here.
 
Cope’s first band in 1977, The Crucial Three, involved him Pete Wylie (Mighty Wah) and Ian McCulloch (Echo and the Bunnymen). The following year he formed The Teardrop Explodes, 




where his first well recognised ‘hit’ was Treason (It's Just A Story)




Following a bigger seller in Reward, and another few years, Julian Cope set out as a solo artist, and he since released an album at around one per year to the present, while indulging in his various complimentary projects. In short, he is prolific in output.  
 
Nonetheless, he has not surpassed the success of Reward, but to my mind some of the tracks he has put out over the last 30 years have been outstanding.
 
World Shut Your Mouth is from 1987:





One of my personal favourites from 1995, Try, Try Try:





2005’s Zoroaster:





Not to everyone’s taste, Cope is seen as an eccentric, and has a reputation for overuse of various drugs (his current tour is named Trip Advizer), yet he is a family man who always emphasises how lucky he is to be married and have children of whom he is proud, and fortunate to have any sort of career in music and other areas.



Just under a year ago, Cope published his first novel, One Three One, subtitled "A Time-Shifting Gnostic Hooligan Road Novel" which is named after a Sardinian motorway. The book is about fictional bands and musicians, and Cope has recorded music in the styles and guises described in the novel: as I’ve said, he’s a prolific chap.

Presently he is touring (Trip Advizer Spring Tour) in Scotland, tomorrow night appearing at the Aberdeen Lemon Tree, Tuesday the Inverness Ironworks and Wednesday the Edinburgh Liquid Rooms.