Customer Reviews

Fried

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Ignored on its release, this 1985 solo release for ex-Teardrop Explodes leader Julian Cope pre-dated any return to the mainstream. As an album, it does seem to be intentionally obscure, but for fans, its all the better for it. This is Cope with 2 fingers up to his opponents and critics, making an album that seems to burn with a strange, bleak but wonderous atmosphere. Although eclectic, this unusual ambience holds the album together, even when it seems to be collapsing. Highlights include the rocky REYNARD THE FOX, the psychedelic HOLY LOVE and the singles SUNSPOTS and BILL DRUMMOND SAID. The prize cuts, though, are the 3 acoustic songs, LAUGHING BOY, ME SINGING and SEARCH PARTY, all of which glow with space and melancholy. These wonderful tracks make up for the disposable TORPEDO, BLOODY ASSIZES and the uneven extra songs. Unlikely ever to go beyond its status as a forgotten cult classic, FRIED holds a special place in my collection- perhaps not as an easy listen, but as a truly adventurous psychedelic album.

"Fried" was Julian Cope's second solo offering after desmantling the neo-psychedelic band the Teardrop Explodes and was by then the most reflective of both his electric and acoustic songwriting skills.

His psychedelic rock is here complemented by some slower acoustic numbers,somewhat reminiscent of Syd Barret's solo work.

Being less focused than"World Shut your Mouth" the album is nonetheless more varied and rewarding.

The album boasts over ten sparkling songs and is a must for anyone intrigued by Cope's music("Peggy Suicide" is the more comprehensive demonstration of his ability though).

REYNARD THE FOX-It's one of his all time best;everyone I know finds the track's chorus incredible and rightly so.The final freak out and the spoken word bit make it even better.And who besides Cope would write a song about a fox hunt focusing the fox's point of view:"The red men come again,they kill my children and they kill my wife(...)and then they leave me bleeding..." Talking about lyrical originality...

BILL DRUMMOND SAID-About the Teardrop Explodes' manager Bill Drummond,this one has some fantastic melodic twists.

LAUGHING BOY-A heart beat gives it its pulse and the track is conducted in a way that wouldn't be strange to Syd Barret.

ME SINGING-Not as slow as the previous,has some great pre-chorus action(isn't Radiohead's "Pyramid Song"riff similar?).

SUNSPOTS-The single.It didn't chart as it should have but its power is undeniable.All kinds of strange noises and instruments(an oboe?)coalesce in this unforgettable love song.

BLOODY ASSIZES-This anti death penalty song is the album's most uptempo cut and a great rocker anywhere in the world.

SEARCH PARTY-Is gentler and resembles XTC circa "English Settlement".

O KING OF CHAOS-A dramatic tune,it always makes me think of a biblical or greek tragedy setting.

HOLY LOVE-A sweet love song filled with colourful touches.

TORPEDO-An entrancing track featuring only Julian and a keyboard.

I WENT ON A CHOURNEY-A short instrumental ditty.

MIC MAK MOK-A grooving and driving tune(are the Zig Zags of the chorus a reference to the Zig Zag Wanderer known as Captain Beefheart?).

LAND OF FEAR-Reminds me"Head Hang Low" from his solo debut and is like the latter a superb Scott Walker-esque song.

Definitely worth checking out.

Beautiful songs. Julian boldly went where Syd Barrett had gone, but is back to talk about it.

This 1984 disk is Copey second post-Teardrop effort. Introspective comes to mind. With great tracks like Reynard The Fox and Sunspot it's a sure take. Some thinks he's weird, I think it's a Classic Cope record...

It has always confused me why this album was slagged off so much when it came out. Descriptions I read of this record many times point to how strange it is as if his, then personal behaviour and music were one and the same. Truth be told it is a solid album of great straight ahead tracks that showcase Julian's incredible gift for wrapping something complicated up into beautiful melodies. This being his second solo outing it seems fitting that it is titled Fried. By this time he had experienced quite a few nights of tripping the lights fantastic so the cover art might be reflecting more truth than be known.

But the music what you want to know about and many reviewers here hit it on the nail with several observations. I'll just add that the songs flow incredibly well and have a way of digging into you further with repeated listens. Sunspots really hit me instantly and made me want to dive into the remaining tracks. Aside from Sunspots, Bill Drummond Said, Search Party and Holy Love are other standouts. The only reason I give it four stars is due to my opinion that some of the tracks seem to meander a bit and don't seem quite as focused as the others. Cases in point would be Reynard The Fox and O King Of Chaos. The bonus tracks on this edition are very much worth the price of admission.

I would recommend getting this while you can. His catalog on CD is going out of print pretty fast at this point. If you are just getting into his solo works (hopefully having already discovered awesomeness that is The Teardrop Explodes) this is a perfect album to cut your teeth on. The man has never trully made bad music in my view but this is a highlight in his career for me.

Ah Julian Cope...

The naysayers have had their say of the LSD king of the 80's and perhaps they were fair in their assessment that he is pretentious as all get out. But it's such a compelling pretention that is filled with such disparate imagery and hummable songs that all is immediately forgiven. This album in particular was one of the stalwarts of my teen years as I discovered my own weirdness. Julian was my benchmark for that weirdness and from the get go, this album introduces you to the sonic freak Out. Reynard The Fox exudes the unhinging of Julian's mind in the most deligtful way. Then Julian goes on to talk about what Bill Drummond Said (Bill's response to this song was to pen his own masterpiece called Julina Cope Is Dead- were they the greatest of frieds or what?)

This version includes the wonderful Sunspots EP at the end which is a treat to have in digital format.

I discovered the music of Julian Cope in the spring of 2006, and I spent the next 12 months immersing myself in anything Cope that I could get my hands on. Like most of his albums, this one has a few brilliant pop tunes set amidst a bunch of quirky, esoteric and inscrutable songs. As such, its difficult to say that you would find this album as a whole instantly accessible. It took me a little while to find the groove in "Reynard the Fox", for instance, which shifts gears through a number of rhythmic, melodic and lyrical point-of-view changes. The 60s inspired "Bill Drummond Said", however, was an instant hit in my mind, and up there with the best of 1980s top 40 music. I think the song that really grabbed ahold of me was "Land of Fear", which sounds kind of like "96 Tears" as rendered by George Clinton to my ears. Its the kind of blissfully simple pop that makes me think to myself, y'know maybe even I could write a song that simple, which is a feeling that goes to the core of what's enticing about 80s new wave music in general. Add to this the fact that the cover photo by itself is one of the most idiosyncratic album covers ever devised, and you have yourself a keeper.

If you end up buying this album and find yourself enjoying it, then go and find a copy of Cope's autobiography, "Head On/Repossessed", which documents precisely this fascinating period of his musical career, and is a pretty good read to boot.

Julian's best. Forget the new stuff. This is where he got the farthest

This is one of my favourite albums all time. Julian Cope has created something almost surreal on this recording. Tracks like
"Reynard the Fox" and "Sunspots" (which is one of my favourite love songs) are sublime pastiches on a landscape of earthly joy.

The cover depicts Julian under a tortoise shell looking well spaced out!