Don Freed

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Don Freed (born 1949, New Westminster, British Columbia, but raised in Saskatoon), is a Canadian singer and songwriter best known for his works about life on the Western Canadian prairies and the province of Saskatchewan in particular. He is occasionally referred to by the more formal Donald Freed.

Freed, who is of Métis descent, began his musical career in 1966, and in 1969 appeared with Johnny Cash in the documentary Johnny Cash! The Man, His World, His Music. He was subsequently signed by Capitol Records and recorded an album for them in 1972, which was never released. Freed went on to record a number of albums in the early 1980s which were regionally popular in Western Canada, such as Off in All Directions and Pith and Pathos. Many of Freed's song about prairie life have been incorporated into high school curricula throughout Saskatchewan.

Among performers who have collaborated with Freed on his recordings include Colin James (who made some of his earliest recordings with Freed), Jane Siberry and actress Linda Griffiths. He also collaborated with Joni Mitchell on her album Taming the Tiger, co-writing the song "Crazy Cries of Love". Mitchell and Freed were romantically linked in the mid-1990s.[1][2]

Beginning in the early 1990s, Freed began to shift his musical focus from that of being a solo performer to being a promoter of Métis and First Nations culture, particularly involving children. His work in teaching songwriting to children in northern Saskatchewan was covered nationally by CBC Newsworld and even earned an article in the American Billboard magazine. Several albums have been released of Freed's collaborations with children, as well as an album of songs called Mystery Boyz created in collaboration with young offenders incarcerated at the North Battleford Youth Centre in North Battleford, Saskatchewan.

In 1999, Freed co-wrote Sasquatch Exterminator, a book (with accompanying CD) aimed at teaching Aboriginal language to children. It was produced in conjunction with the Gabriel Dumont Institute.

In recent years, Freed has brought his songwriting workshops to the Edmonton Folk Music Festival and to venues throughout the Northwest Territories and Yukon. Freed's most recent CD release is 2005's The Valley of Green and Blue, which celebrates his Métis heritage.

[edit] Album discography

1972 - unreleased album for Capitol Records
1981 - Off in All Directions
1982 - Pith and Pathos
1989 - On the Plains (audio cassette release only)
1992 - Live ARR! (audio cassette release only)
1993 - Young Northern Voices
1996 - Singing About the Métis
1998 - Inner City Harmony: A Class Act
1999 - Borderlands
1999 - Sasquatch Exterminator (CD and book)
2000 - Mystery Boyz
2001 - Our Very Own Songs
2005 - The Valley of Green and Blue

Early pressings of Off in All Directions included a comic book entitled Scratchatune Comics, featuring illustrated adaptations of Freed's songs.

In addition, Freed released a cassette single, "Saskatchewan" in 1988. (The song was originally to have been released on a 45 rpm vinyl single a year earlier, however a production problem resulted in its release being cancelled at the last minute.)