Fred Records

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Fred Records
FredRecords logo t.png
Parent company Recommended Records
Founded2002
Founder Fred Frith
Distributor(s)RēR Megacorp (UK)
RēR USA (USA)
Locus Solus (Japan)
Genre Rock in Opposition
Avant-rock
Experimental music
Country of origin England
Location Thornton Heath, Surrey
Official website Fred Records

Fred Records is a British independent record label created in 2002 by the English guitarist, composer and improvisor Fred Frith to re-release his own back catalogue of recordings and previously unreleased material. It is an independent company working in co-operation with Chris Cutler and Recommended Records, utilising Recommended Records' distribution network.

Contents

Background

From the mid-1980s, Frith released much of his music (solo and in collaboration with other musicians) on the Swiss independent record label RecRec Music. However, the label went bankrupt in 1997 after its founder, Daniel Waldner died in a mountaineering accident in 1995. [1] Under Swiss copyright law all the rights to Frith's music released by RecRec reverted to him, totalling 13 different titles. Having lost money in unpaid royalties, Frith wanted to re-release all the titles on a single label. In the early 2000s, and with the help of Chris Cutler of Recommended Records, Frith set up his own label, Fred Records as an imprint of Recommended Records. [2] [3]

The new label gave Frith an opportunity to re-issue material from his archives that would have been difficult to release elsewhere. Advances in technology also enabled him to remaster the original recordings and to produce a sound much closer to what was originally intended. In addition, Frith has released previously unreleased material by himself and in collaboration with other musicians. To create a consistent image for the label as a whole, Frith has used the artist, Tomas Kurth  [ de ] to illustrate the CD covers, often incorporating elements of the original LP covers in the design. [2]

Tributaries

Currently, the Fred Records catalogue is divided into three tributaries:

The catalogue numbers of each release include one of these tributary codes. For example, "RēR/FRA 02" reads "Recommended Records / Fred Records Archive #2".

Releases

These are all the titles currently released on the Fred Records label. [4]

Year releasedCatalogue no.ArtistTitle
2002RēR/FRO 01 Fred Frith Gravity
2002RēR/FRA 01Fred Frith Accidental
2002RēR/FRO 02Fred Frith Guitar Solos
2002RēR/FRA 02Fred Frith Prints
2003RēR/FRA 03 Keep the Dog That House We Lived In
2003RēR/FRO 03Fred Frith Step Across the Border
2003RēR/FRO 04Fred Frith Speechless
2004RēR/FRO 05Fred Frith Middle of the Moment
2004RēR/FRO 06Fred Frith Cheap at Half the Price
2004RēR/FRO 07Fred Frith Allies
2005RēR/FRO 8/9 Skeleton Crew Learn to Talk / Country of Blinds
2005RēR/FRO 10 Massacre Killing Time
2006RēR/FRFC 01Fred Frith Impur
2006RēR/FRA 05Fred Frith The Happy End Problem
2008RēR/FRO 11Fred Frith The Technology of Tears
2008RēR/FRA 06Fred Frith & John Zorn The Art of Memory II
2009RēR/FRFC 02Fred Frith Impur II [5]
2009RēR/FRA 07Fred Frith Nowhere, Sideshow, Thin Air [6]
2010RēR/FRO 12Fred Frith Live in Japan [7]
2015RēR/FRA 08Fred Frith Field Days (The Amanda Loops)
2015RēR/FRO 13Fred Frith Propaganda
2021RēR/FRSB1Fred FrithThe Fred Records Story 2001–2020 Volume 1: Rocking the Boat
2021RēR/FRSB2Fred FrithThe Fred Records Story 2001–2020 Volume 2: Crossing Borders
2021RēR/FRSB3Fred FrithThe Fred Records Story 2001–2020 Volume 3: Stepping Out
2021RēR/TCCCFF Tom Cora, Chris Cutler, Fred FrithLive in Tel Aviv and Aubervilliers [lower-alpha 1]

See also

Notes

  1. A limited edition bonus CD included in the Fred Records Story box set.

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References

  1. "Recommended Records, Zürich (RecRec)". Border Music. Retrieved 30 January 2007.[ permanent dead link ]
  2. 1 2 Frith, Fred. "Fred Records". Fred Frith's homepage. Archived from the original on 4 February 2012. Retrieved 25 January 2007.
  3. "Interview with Fred Frith". BBC Music. Archived from the original on 15 February 2006. Retrieved 25 January 2007.
  4. Frith, Fred. "Fred Records releases". Fred Frith's homepage. Archived from the original on 6 July 2007. Retrieved 25 January 2007.
  5. "FRITH, FRED: Impur part II". ReR Megacorp. Archived from the original on 15 July 2011. Retrieved 11 September 2009.
  6. "FRITH, FRED: Nowhere . Sideshow . Thin Air". ReR Megacorp. Archived from the original on 15 July 2011. Retrieved 11 September 2009.
  7. "FRITH, FRED: Live in Japan". ReR Megacorp. Archived from the original on 15 July 2011. Retrieved 13 October 2010.