Julian Cope presents Head Heritage

I really got into The Moody Blues a couple of years ago. Love 'em. For me their uncoolness is perversely part of the appeal- I love their look, the fact that these guys all look like Peter Wyngarde and Leslie Thomas are making these slightly wrong overblown orchestral psych records. I'm tempted to start rocking a 1968 Mike Pinder look myself- pencil 'tache, paisley cravat, sideburns, what's not to love?

It's the same as with the Beach Boys- the guys were uncool. Except of course it's very cool to like The Beach Boys, now, if you get me.

In Search of the Lost Chord is their best album for me. House of Four Doors and the spooky Legend of A Mind with the 'Timothy Leary's dead' refrain. What was that all about? After that they do get increasingly middle of the road, but all that run up to and including Seventh Sojourn can be enjoyed muchly in the right frame of mind. Actually I think much of the acid effect is embracing the uncoolness- that point where cool and uncool meet in the great cosmic circle and profound genius is the same thing as a ridiculous joke which is like the meaning of the universe man... maybe the Moodies knew...