Fred Frith

Guitarist Fred Frith is one of the most celebrated and influential figures in the world of improvisational and avant-garde music. Capable of artful and technically skillful performances, Frith is also willing to approach the guitar in unconventional ways in pursuit of new sounds and unusual tonal colors. Frith has created a large body of work as a solo artist, and collaborated with Brian Eno, John Zorn, Robert Wyatt, the Residents, Derek Bailey, and Jad Fair, among others. A thorough overview of his massive catalog is essentially impossible in a limited space, but 1974's Guitar Solos is a fine introduction to his improvisational work, 1983's Cheap at Half the Price puts a curious but wry spin on pop music, 2000's Traffic Continues is a project with the contemporary classic group Ensemble Modern, and 2023's Laying Demons to Rest was recorded with composer and trumpeter Susana Santos Silva.