Fred Frith – Cheap At Half The Price
Label: RecRec Music – ReCDec 903
Country: Switzerland
Released: 1991
Recorded: August 1983, United States
Genre: Electronic, Rock
Style: Art Rock, Experimental
Cheap at Half the Price is a 1983 solo album by English guitarist, composer and improviser Fred Frith. It was Frith’s fifth solo album, and was originally released in the United States on LP record on The Residents’ Ralph record label. It was the third of three solo albums Frith made for the label.
Cheap at Half the Price was recorded by Frith at his home in New York City on a 4-track machine. He played all the instruments himself, with the exception of bass guitar on two tracks, and drums, for which he used tapes and samples previously recorded by other drummers. The record differed from Frith’s previous experimental albums in that it consisted largely of pop-like songs, and he sang for the first time.
The LP’s release in 1983 caused a stir in progressive circles because of its “apparent simplicity“ and its departure from the experimental music Frith had become known for.[1] But a remastered version of the album released on CD in 2004 was better received by critics, who admitted that they had overlooked what Frith had been doing at the time.
1991 CD release
Track listing
No. Title Length
1. “Some Clouds Don’t“ 0:00
2. “Cap the Knife“ 3:12
3. “Evolution“ 6:02
4. “Too Much, Too Little“ (Frith, Tina Curran) 9:26
5. “True Love“ ([nb 1]) 11:38
6. “The Welcome“ 14:37
7. “Same Old Me“ 17:05
8. “Some Clouds Do“ 20:04
9. “Instant Party“ 22:53
10. “Person To Person“ ([nb 1]) 24:50
11. “Walking Song“ 27:13
12. “Flying in the Face of Facts“ 30:28
13. “Heart Bares“ 33:07
14. “Absent Friends“ (Frith/trad. Swedish) 38:08
15. “The Great Healer“ 42:07
Personnel
Fred Frith – guitar, 6-string bass, Casio-101, violin, xylophone, homemade instruments, voice
Frank Wuyts – drums
Fred Maher – drums
Paul Sears – drums
Hans Bruniusson – drum samples
Tina Curran – bass guitar (“Too Much, Too Little“)
Bill Laswell – bass guitar (“Same Old Me“)
Aksak Maboul – clapping (“Absent Friends“)
Sheena Dupuis – voice (“True Love“)
George Cartwright – alto saxophone (“Person To Person“)
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