Skellington (album)

Skellington is the fifth solo album by Julian Cope, released in November 1989[3] as a semi-official bootleg for fan club members only. Originally released on Cope's own CopeCo label, it was later reissued in March 1990 through Zippo Records.[4]

For the band of the same name, see Skellington (band). For the character in The Nightmare Before Christmas, see Jack Skellington.
Skellington
Studio album by
Julian Cope
ReleasedNovember 1989
RecordedApril 1989
StudioTownhouse 3, London[1]
GenreNeo-psychedelia
Length28:06
Label
  • CopeCo
  • Zippo
ProducerJulian Cope
Julian Cope chronology
My Nation Underground
(1988)		 Skellington
(1989)		 Droolian
(1990)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[2]

Skellington was expanded with the addition of a sequel Skellington 2: He's Back ... and this time it's personal and released in 1993 as The Skellington Chronicles.

In 2018, Cope released a third installment, Skellington 3.[5]

Background

Skellington was recorded in just two days in April 1989. It was inspired by Cope's frustration with the work on his 1988 album My Nation Underground, which he had lost faith in even as he completed it. The two-day session used the same studio setup as the prior album but an entirely different approach. In contrast to the multiple overdubs, 1980s pop stylings and army of backing singers used on My Nation Underground, Skellington’s sound was extremely skeletal, mainly acoustic, and sparsely orchestrated by Cope in association with his two main collaborators – Donald Ross Skinner (guitar, piano, organ) and Rooster Cosby (percussion, brass).

At the time, Cope was signed to Island Records, who were not interested in releasing Skellington. This led to Cope releasing it via his own label Copeco, and later expanding the release via a deal with the independent Zippo Records label. When Island insisted that Skellington was illegal and should be withdrawn due to their contract with Cope, the artist refused and defiantly released yet another similar album (Droolian) just two months later. Eventually, the Island directors relented, and both records were allowed to continue in production.

Track listing

All tracks are written by Julian Cope, except where noted.

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Doomed" 3:38
2."Beaver" 2:27
3."Me and Jimmy Jones" 1:27
4."Robert Mitchum"Cope, Ian McCulloch2:39
5."Out of My Mind on Dope and Speed" 3:26
6."Don't Crash Here" 0:56
7."Everything Playing at Once" 1:29
8."Little Donkey" 2:41
9."Great White Wonder" 2:10
10."Incredibly Ugly Girl" 3:01
11."No How, No Why, No Way, No Where, No When" 1:56
12."Commin' Soon" 2:16
Total length:28:06

Personnel

Credits adapted from the album's liner notes.[6]

  • Julian Cope - vocals, acoustic guitar, producer (also performed pseudonymously as "Double DeHarrison" playing piano and "surf organ")
  • Donald Ross Skinner - electric guitar, piano, organ
  • Mark "Rooster" Cosby - drums, percussion, horns
  • Hugo Nicolson - engineer, mixing, horns
  • Donato Cinicolo - photography
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References
  1. Cope, Julian (1999). Head-On/Repossessed. Thorsons Publishers. p. 173. ISBN 0-7225-3882-0.
  2. Raggett, Ned. "Skellington". Allmusic. Retrieved 7 October 2012.
  3. Binnie, Steve (2014). "The Sound Of The Crowd - a Discography of the '80s (Third Edition)". Lulu.com. Retrieved 19 March 2018.
  4. "Story of the Drude". Julian Cope presents Head Heritage. Retrieved 19 March 2018.
  5. "Julian Cope - Skellington 3". Julian Cope presents Head Heritage. Retrieved 6 May 2018.
  6. Skellington (CD liner notes). Julian Cope. CopeCo. 1989.CS1 maint: others (link)
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