{"title":"The Free Design","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Free Design was a vocal group from Delevan, New York, known for their jazzy pop music. Their unique sound can be described as a blend of sunshine pop and baroque pop. The original lineup consisted of siblings Chris Dedrick, Sandy Dedrick, and Bruce Dedrick, with younger sister Ellen Dedrick joining later on. Near the end of their initial career, Stephanie Dedrick also became a member.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAfter disbanding in 1972, The Free Design made a comeback in 2000 when they recorded the song \"Endless Harmony\" for the Beach Boys tribute album \"Caroline Now\". This experience reignited their passion for music and led to the release of their full-length album \"Cosmic Peekaboo\" in 2001, featuring the original lineup. Sadly, Chris Dedrick passed away from cancer at the age of 62 on August 6th, 2010.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIf you enjoy artists such as *Eternity's Children*, *Harpers Bizarre*, or *Margo Guryan*, then you will definitely appreciate The Free Design's enchanting melodies and harmonies. With influences ranging from *The Cyrkle* to *The Association*, this talented vocal group has left an indelible mark on the world of pop music.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"kites-are-fun","title":"Kites Are Fun","description":"\u003cp\u003e1967, just like it was yesterday, pre Vietnam war scenario, high hopes and a new bright horizon, soon to be fall. Meanwhile, the music and – in this case – the celestial vocal harmonies of the East Coast unit formally known as Free Design Their 1967 debut \u003ci\u003eKites Are Fun\u003c\/i\u003e is still a case in point and a major influence on today’s alternative pop. Often referred as the East Coast answer to Mamas and the Papas, the band had a more ethereal and eclectic approach. From the gentle orchestral accompaniment of ‘Make the Madness Stop’ to the folkish bossa of ‘When Love Was Young’ through the sensational arrangements of ‘Proper Ornaments’ - a number eventually championed by Madlib in the stunning tribute The Now Sound Redesigned (released on Light In The Attic in 2005) – you’ll find more than a singular approach. Produced by none other than Enoch Light the album is still an astonishing piece of heavenly art-pop with such a lysergic counterpoint.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Bonfire Records","offers":[{"title":"Black LP","offer_id":50384774332747,"sku":"1165394","price":25.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/9ffe7e92-d44d-484c-8bce-e02d2d2b1395_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1726303451"},{"product_id":"afloat-afloat-in-dub","title":"Afloat \/ Afloat In Dub","description":"\u003cp\u003e“I could sit in awe of the talent on show here all day long.” - Neil Hodge Louder Than War… The NJE started out as a basic improvising trio playing a monthly residency in a pub in the East End of London, working themselves up the ranks via The Roundhouse and Chats Palace to Daylight Music at the EFG London Jazz Festival and Pizza Express\/Holborn Live. They still find it hard to use the \"J-word\" to describe their music. \"We play instrumental music rooted in rock and blues music - it's just that we use electronics and jazz instruments to do it,\" says multi-instrumentalist Terry Edwards. A good example of this is Terry's trade-mark sound of playing two saxophones at the same time. \"I first heard that as a teenager on Hit Me With Your Rhythm Stick by Ian Dury and The Blockheads rather than Roland Kirk, the godfather of the technique.\" Drummer Simon Charterton's influences are Little Feat, The Grateful Dead and Krautrock and Mark Bedford is the bassist of Madness so there's a really broad church of inspiration bubbling away here, which is truly not that far away from jazz. Let's just say they took the scenic route to arrive just to the left of 'jazz'. Here you'll find the first studio\/live cut-up album including the singles Knife-Edge, Acoustic (pts I \u0026amp; II) and Voodoo Child and eight tracks mixed up and dubbed up by On-U Sound supremo Adrian Sherwood, all in a beautiful PiL-shaped tin.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Sartorial Records","offers":[{"title":"CD.","offer_id":50402545369419,"sku":"2180393","price":17.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/Near_Jazz_Experience__Afloat_Afloat_In_Dub_e6dac55e_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1726549230"},{"product_id":"character-actor-ep-rsd-2024","title":"Character Actor EP - RSD 2024","description":"\u003cp\u003e\n                            \u003cstrong\u003eThis product is a Record Store Day exclusive title\u003c\/strong\u003e and is not available to pre-order.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\n                            To buy in-store: 8am, 20\/04\/2024 (Record Store Day).\u003cbr\u003e\n                            To buy online: 8pm, 22\/04\/2024. (Subject to availability).\u003cbr\u003e\n                            Don’t forget: Click 'Notify Me' to be the first to know about its availability online. It also helps us to place accurate orders so that we can please as many of you as possible on the day.\u003cbr\u003e\n                            \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThis is a 5 track EP of brand new, previously unreleased material from The Near Jazz Experience (Terry Edwards, Mark Bedford and Simon Charterton). Whilst recording the new album Terry asked pianist Mike Garson (best known for his work with David Bowie, Nine Inch Nails, Smashing Pumpkins) - whom Terry has toured with if he'd like to play on a track. Mike said yes, recorded a stupendous solo for Character Actor at his home studio and sent it over. All in the space of 24 hours! On hearing the piano part NJE bassist Mark Bedford came up with the idea of having the piano mixed with the original track (as intended) but also using it as the basis for a completely new recording with the piano leading rather than complementing the band. Side 1 of the EP has these two very different versions from the same seed. Unidentical twins indeed. Side 2 of the EP contains 4 outliers from the album sessions. These aren't out-takes or unfinished pieces.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Sartorial Records","offers":[{"title":"Black 12\"","offer_id":50408498921803,"sku":"2181435","price":17.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/I00544113_149ea5f9_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1726604855"},{"product_id":"neon-6","title":"Neon","description":"\u003cp\u003eCykle produced one album's worth of solid garage rock, and it certainly proves that the band was an enthusiastic bunch of musicians. Much closer to late 60’s garage (proto) punk than psychedelia, the album was released in 1969.  They were best known for their 1966 song \"Red Rubber Ball\" (written by Paul Simon) which went to #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. The band was discovered and managed by Brian Epstein and given the unique spelling of their name by John Lennon. The group was formed by guitarists and lead singers Don Dannemann and Tom Dawes (bass guitar), who met while studying at Lafayette College in Easton, Pennsylvania. The other members were Earl Pickens on keyboards and Marty Fried on drums.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Endless Happiness","offers":[{"title":"Black LP","offer_id":50428562178379,"sku":"2201267","price":17.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/Neon_55987cba_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1726833441"},{"product_id":"butterflies-are-free-the-original-recordings-1967-72","title":"Butterflies Are Free  The Original Recordings 1967-72","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe Free Design presents a 4CD collection of original material. The Dedrick children, Chris, his brother Bruce, their sister Sandra, and their younger sisters Ellen and Stefanie, were born into a world of music. Their father, Art, was a trombonist and arranger, their mother a music teacher who played French horn. Uncle Rusty, a jazz trumpeter with Red Norvo.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eUnder the influence of the Hi-Lo’s and Peter, Paul and Mary, \u003cstrong\u003eThe Free Design\u003c\/strong\u003e rose through the folk scene of the Greenwich Village coffee houses, achieving national prominence with the enchanting \"\u003cem\u003eKites Are Fun\u003c\/em\u003e.\" They would prove to be at least the artistic equals of such popular contemporaries as The Association, The Mamas and the Papas, The Fifth Dimension, and Harper’s Bizarre, but without quite matching their commercial success.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eRather than be dictated to and diluted by the majors, they chose to commit to the artistic freedom and potential to develop offered them by the producer Enoch Light through his independent set up, Project 3. While his label might not have been able to provide the resources of a Columbia or RCA, he believed in the group, gave them carte blanche, and hired some of the finest session musicians in New York to back them.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe decision to put their art first was justified by the extraordinary quality of the seven albums recorded between 1967 and 1972. We have Enoch Light’s vision and the group’s brave decision to stick to their guns to thank for the fact that this splendid music exists today.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eDuring the 1990’s, The Free Design enjoyed a renaissance. The enthusiastic reevaluation of their work by a new generation of international musicians; Cornelius, Beck, Stereolab, and the High Llamas, who insisted that The Free Design be placed among the all-time greats of vocal harmony; to be spoken of in the same sentence as The Beach Boys and The Carpenters.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eWith exceptions, The Free Design were at their most pure in recordings of their own compositions. \"\u003cem\u003eKites Are Fun\u003c\/em\u003e,\" \"\u003cem\u003eBubbles\u003c\/em\u003e,\" \"\u003cem\u003eKije’s Ouija\u003c\/em\u003e,\" \"\u003cem\u003eMy Brother Woody\u003c\/em\u003e,\" \"\u003cem\u003eIvy On A Windy Day\u003c\/em\u003e,\" \"\u003cem\u003eStarlight\u003c\/em\u003e,\" \"\u003cem\u003eDaniel Dolphin\u003c\/em\u003e,\" \"\u003cem\u003eI’m A Yogi\u003c\/em\u003e,\" \"\u003cem\u003eMy Very Own Angel\u003c\/em\u003e,\" and the \"\u003cem\u003eDorian Benediction\u003c\/em\u003e,\" each adorned by the baroque fantasy quality which is uniquely theirs.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eBreathtakingly original songs full of playful, nostalgic lyrical imagery; sometimes surprisingly dark; always enormously listenable. Whilst the arrangements reflected Chris Dedrick’s classical training and eclectic taste, the beautifully detailed sound must be attributed – at least in part – to the legendary sound engineer Phil Ramone, a magician whose emphasis on subtlety and nuance in performance conceived such creations as \"\u003cem\u003eThe Girl from Ipanema\u003c\/em\u003e\" by Astrud Gilberto, \"\u003cem\u003eMe And Julio Down By The Schoolyard\u003c\/em\u003e\" by Paul Simon, the Bob Dylan album, \"\u003cem\u003eBlood On the Tracks\u003c\/em\u003e,\" and, of course, \"\u003cem\u003eBubbles\u003c\/em\u003e\" by The Free Design.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"El","offers":[{"title":"CD | x4","offer_id":50487066132811,"sku":"1102281","price":19.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/bcaf069f-f55d-4798-8c63-1d0a32bc95aa_thumbnail_4096.png?v=1727620020"},{"product_id":"sing-for-very-important-people","title":"Sing For Very Important People","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe Free Design make childhood a bit more psychedelic with this 1970’s children’s album, featuring many of the group’s classic favourites, plus a number of new cuts! The album is full of lyrical references either to their childhood or that of their own children.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Light in the Attic","offers":[{"title":"Pink LP","offer_id":50526015947083,"sku":"1108734","price":17.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/0811e341-e9d7-4a31-9a2d-0ebb15352aea_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1728038587"},{"product_id":"revival-11","title":"Revival","description":"\u003cp\u003eSunshine pop pioneers and sixties hitmakers The Cyrkle (\"Red Rubber Ball\", \"Turn-Down Day\") return with their first album in half a century, their signature harmonies soaring on tracks like the indie hit \"We Thought We Could Fly\" and the new single \"Dance With Me Tonight\". It's not just nostalgia: The Cyrkle is singing for tomorrow.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Big Stir","offers":[{"title":"CD","offer_id":50543121334603,"sku":"2185411","price":12.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"LP - Black","offer_id":57601584890187,"sku":"R5089-2141","price":22.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/a4280688516_65_390e596e_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1728307734"},{"product_id":"minx-5","title":"Minx","description":"\u003cp\u003eRecorded in 1967 and almost shelved until the film's release two years later, \u003ci\u003eThe Minx\u003c\/i\u003e soundtrack is full of The Cyrkle’s trademark three-part harmonies, intricate arrangements, and paisley-psychedelic sounds. The Minx initially eluded the grasp of even the most dedicated The Cyrkle’s fans, later turning itself into one of their best works. \u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Endless Happiness","offers":[{"title":"Black LP","offer_id":50875405992267,"sku":"2230086","price":27.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/5060672889360_34224e17_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1732261417"},{"product_id":"nought-to-60","title":"Nought to 60","description":"\u003cp\u003eA statement of intent from The NJE. Spirit of Indo takes up the whole first side of their RSD 2021 mini-album - and it certainly doesn’t outstay it’s welcome. Improvised over a gently incessant yet soporific loop, bassist Mark Bedford and drummer Simon Charterton fall in and out of grooves while multi-instrumentalist Terry Edwards deftly moves between saxes, trumpet and melodica to invent topline melodies within that comfortable straitjacket. As the track progresses bigger instrumentation is suggested by the tunes - and so the track builds with more horns and percussion, the resulting climax making way for the comforting loop to bring us back down to the start. Side 2 opens with an instrumental version of Bowie’s Five Years, even more pared down than Edwards’ previous take on the tune for a John Peel session in the nineties. Bedders’ acoustic and electric basses weave around each other while Simon’s understated cymbal-work buoys up the fragile melodica melody. Tizita raises the tempo slightly and is inspired by Ethiopian jazz-legend Mulatu Astatke who Terry had the pleasure of working with a few years back. Title track Nought to 60 is driven by Teutonic beats on electronic Wave drum, a Motorik bassline and heavily effected saxes which thunder towards the buffers - after which you’ll want to flip the album and start all over again.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Sartorial Records","offers":[{"title":"LP - Black","offer_id":51026046615883,"sku":"1118553","price":22.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/0d45e6db-5f4e-480a-83e1-de7a76babb27_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1735562727"}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/collections\/test_ca4274cf_thumbnail_4096_22b535af-f71a-45d6-95d8-5d3d7301575e.jpg?v=1726303426","url":"https:\/\/shop.roughtrade.com\/collections\/the-free-design.oembed","provider":"Rough Trade","version":"1.0","type":"link"}