ENDEIT
Fred Frith
Photo: Antonio Jose Silva (fixwhatusee) ,, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Musicians · b. 1949

Fred Frith

English musician, composer and improvisor (born 1949)

Born
17 February 1949
Heathfield
Country
United Kingdom
Active
1968–
Record labels
Tzadik Records
Discography
86 albums

Biography

Fred Frith is a jazz musician who plays bass instrument, bass guitar and violin. Fred Frith was born on 17 February 1949 in Heathfield. The music is usually filed under jazz fusion and rock music. Record labels: Tzadik Records. The discography here lists 86 albums, from “Guitar Solos” (1974) to “Nature” (2026). Honours include Echo Klassik – Classical Music without Borders (2001).

Jeremy Webster "Fred" Frith (born 17 February 1949) is an English multi-instrumentalist, composer, and improviser. Best known for his guitar playing, Frith first came to attention as a founding member of the English avant-rock group Henry Cow. He was also a member of the groups Art Bears, Massacre, and Skeleton Crew. He has collaborated with numerous musicians, including Robert Wyatt, Derek Bailey, the Residents, Lol Coxhill, John Zorn, Brian Eno, Mike Patton, Lars Hollmer, Bill Laswell, Iva Bittová, Jad Fair, Kramer, the ARTE Quartett, and Bob Ostertag. He has also composed several long works, including Traffic Continues (1996, performed 1998 by Frith and Ensemble Modern) and Freedom in Fragments (1993, performed 1999 by Rova Saxophone Quartet). Frith produces most of his own music, and has also produced many albums by other musicians, including Curlew, the Muffins, Etron Fou Leloublan, and Orthotonics.

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Discography

Studio and live albums

Guitar Solos 1974
Guitar Solos 2 1976
Gravity 1980
Speechless 1981
Live in Japan (The Guitars on the Table Approach Vol. 2) 1982 · Live
Live in Japan (The Guitars on the Table Approach Vol.1) 1982 · Live
Voice of America 1982 · Live
Cheap at Half the Price 1983
With Enemies Like These, Who Needs Friends? 1987
The Technology of Tears (and Other Music for Dance and Theatre) 1988
The Top of His Head 1989
Live Improvisations 1990 · Live
Step Across the Border 1990
Dropera 1991
Null & Fred Frith 1991
Helter Skelter 1992
Nous autres 1992 · Live
Quartets 1994
Quartets: Lelekovice (String Quartet No 1) / The As Usual Dance Towards The Other Flight To What Is Not 1994
Middle of the Moment 1995
Sounds of a Distant Episode 1995
Réel 1996 · Live
En Public Aux Laboratoires D'Aubervilliers Improvisations 1997
The Previous Evening 1997
Pacifica 1998
Friends & Enemies 1999
Stone, Brick, Glass, Wood, Wire (Graphic Scores 1986-96) 1999 · Live
2 Gentlemen in Verona 2000
Ars Longa Dens Brevis 2000 · Live
Traffic Continues 2000
Clearing 2001
I Dream of You Jumping 2001
Keep the Dog: That House We Lived In 2001 · Live
Digital Wildlife 2002
Freedom In Fragments 2002
Prints: Snapshots, Postcards, Messages and Miniatures 1987-2001 2002
Accidental: Music for Dance, Volume 3 2003
Rivers and Tides { working with time 2003
Tempted to Smile 2003
Eye To Ear II 2004
What Leave Behind 2004
Allies: Music for Dance, Volume 2 2005
Eleventh Hour (Arditti Quartet / Uwe Dierksen / William Winant) 2005
Impur 2006 · Live
Ironic Universe 2006
The Art of Memory II 2006
The Compass, Log and Lead 2006
The Happy End Problem 2006
Cutter Heads 2007
The Stone: Issue Two 2007 · Live
The Sugar Factory 2007
Back to Life 2008
Drift 2008
Still Urban 2008
The Technology Of Tears 2008
To Sail, To Sail 2008
Impur II 2009
Nowhere, Sideshow, Thin Air (Music for Dance Volume 6) 2009
The Big Picture 2009
Eye To Ear III 2010
Clearing Customs 2011
On Cold Mountain: Songs on Poems of Gary Snyder 2011
Backscatter Bright Blue 2014
Fred Frith / Michel Doneda 2014
The Natural Order 2014
Field Days (The Amanda Loops) 2015
Hello, I Must Be Going 2015 · Live
Propaganda 2015
Everybody/s Somebody/s Nobody 2016
Live In Europe 2016 · Live
Storytelling (live at Theater Gütersloh) 2017 · Live
A Day Hanging Dead Between Heaven and Earth 2018
Fred Frith Live at the Stone - All Is Always Now 2019 · Live
Woodwork 2019
Cut Up the Border 2020
Free Postmodernism (BBQ with Fred Frith USA 1982) 2020
Lock Me Up, Lock Me Down 2020
A Mountain Doesn’t Know It’s Tall 2021
Debates For Ganden / Inimitable 2021
Atmospheres: Music for Three Films 2023
Laying Demons to Rest 2023
Something About This Landscape for Ensemble 2023
Guitar Solos / Fifty 2024
Atmospheres II (music for three more films) 2025
Matter 2025
Nature 2026

Member of

Henry Cow 1968– · English avant-rock group

Awards

Films about Fred Frith

1990Step Across the Border1990 film by Nicolas Humbert and Werner Penzel

Listen on Spotify

Frequently asked questions

What instrument does Fred Frith play?

Fred Frith is known for playing bass instrument, bass guitar and violin.

When and where was Fred Frith born?

Fred Frith was born 17 February 1949 in Heathfield.

What are Fred Frith's best-known albums?

Albums in our database include Guitar Solos (1974), Guitar Solos 2 (1976), Gravity (1980), Speechless (1981) and Live in Japan (The Guitars on the Table Approach Vol. 2) (1982).

External links

Data compiled from open sources; see the source links below. Spotted an error? Let us know.