news

This page has a list of any recent or impending events relevant to Free Design fans.


July 2005	A little later than originally planned, South Korean label Beatball Records finally release Chris Dedrick's "lost" 1972 solo album Be Free under the title Wishes. They were kind enough to ask me to write the liner notes.
June-July 2005	Light In The Attic finish their epic Free Design reissue series with reisues of One By One, There Is A Song, Volume 3 of the Redesigned 12" EPs and The Now Sound Redesigned (a CD collecting the three Redesigned 12" EPs together in one place).
July 2004	Light In The Attic release the second batch of Project 3 reissues: You Could Be Born Again and Stars/Time/Bubbles/Love. Without wishing to blow my own trumpet too much, Light in the Attic asked me to write the liner notes for the CD reissue of Stars/Time/Bubbles/Love. The reissue of You Could Be Born Again has liner notes by Sean O'Hagan from the High Llamas.
April 2004	Chris Dedrick's lost solo album Be Free is due for its second release, this time in Korea. The label concerned is Beatball Music and they were kind to ask me to write the liner notes.
9 March 2004	Chris Dedrick's wife Moira puts a portrait of Chris Dedrick up for sale on eBay to commemorate the imminent release of Be Free in Korea
22 January 2004	Light In The Attic release the first of three remix EPs: The Free Design Redesigned. The first EP contains remixes by Madlib, Peanut Butter Wold, Sharpshooters, Chris Geddes + Hush Puppy and Mellow.
29 September 2003	The first two albums in reissue series mentioned below are now out: Kites Are Fun and Heaven/Earth.
1 August 2003	Incredible news! Light in the Attic records (in Seatlle) are reissuing the Free Design catalog on CD and 180gsm vinyl! Not only that but the LPs will reproduce the original deluxe gatefold sleeves and there will also be bonus tracks on each reissue! You may want a lie down after all that...
30 August 2002	I've upgraded the message board! Now much improved and not limited to discussion of the Free Design.
14 August 2001	Information about a new compilation added to the site. The title is The Very Best Of Free Design and is being released by UK label Cherry Red. Amazingly, this will be the first UK release for The Free Design! It's due out on 27 August 2001.
17 March 2001	New interview with Chris Dedrick about the new album goes up on the site.
12 March 2001	Lyrics added for Cosmic Peekaboo added to the lyric bank.
4 February 2001	The Free Design are releasing a new album. Titled Cosmic Peekaboo the album will be released on the German Marina label on 6 March 2001. To coincide with this I will be interviewing Chris Dedrick about the album and this interview will appear initially on the Marina site and then on this site. Read the press release.
1 January 2001	This site has been made the UBL/ARTISTdirect Fan Site of the Week for the week beginning 01/01/01!
7 August 2000	German label Marina releases a Beach Boys tribute album Caroline Now! which features a new recording by the Free Design (a version of Endless Harmony).
22 June 2000	US band Dressy Bessy are to record a cover version of Bubbles for the forthcoming Power Puff Girls movie. More information from the Kindercore website.
29 May 2000	Harvard-based radio station WHRB will be broadcasting (on the radio and over the web) a Free Design "orgy" from noon to 10pm! This will culminate in the world premiere of an entirely new album by the Free Design! More info here.
22 March 2000	Heard today that Japanese label Airmail will finally be releasing Chris Dedrick's 1972 solo album Be Free which has never been released before. More info when I have it.
5 October 1999	Chris Dedrick kindly sent me a copy of the the lyrics to all the original songs on the Free Design albums! So, I replaced all the lyrics in the lyric bank with this more accurate information, including for the first time, the lyrics for the hard to find last Free Design album, There Is A Song.
27 September 1999	Stereolab release their new album "Cobra And Phases Group Play Voltage In The Milky Night" which contains the single "The Free Design".
6 September 1999	Stereolab due to release the first single from their new album and the single's called: "The Free Design"!
3 September 1999	Siesta release the third and final Free Design compilation, Umbrellas.
early 1999	the third and final compilation from Siesta.
9 December 1998	A second Christmas single to be released by Siesta.
6 December 1998	The interview which I carried out with Chris Dedrick in the Summer finally goes live.
15 October 1998	"Raindrops", the second 20-track compilation from Spanish label Siesta was released. It features three tracks from the hard to find last Free Design album "There is a Song" (Ambrotype, 1973).
July 1998	Japanese label Trattoria has already released 4 Free Design LPs on CD. The set is completed this month with this release of the remaining two Project 3 titles "Heaven/Earth" and "Sing For Very Important People".
28 July 1998	"Kites Are Fun - The Best of The Free Design" issued by US label Varese. This collection will feature 15 selections by the group from their Project 3 sessions that were produced by Enoch Light, in addition to a bonus track of unreleased material. Liner notes by Elliot Kendall will feature interviews with Free Design leader Chris Dedrick and original sessions engineer Phil Ramone. This mid-line priced release will spearhead the Soft Pop Classics series for Varese that will be continued with Sunshine Days Vols. 4 & 5 this summer.
3 March 1998	"Bubbles", a 20-track compilation from Spanish label Siesta was released. This release follows up Siesta's release of the "Christmas" 7 inch EP (SIESTA 65) last year which featured some previously unavailable Free Design recordings. This is actually the first of three Free Design compilations being released by Siesta, the others due for release in September 1998 and January 1999.