Design was a British

vocal group A vocal group is a performing ensemble of vocalists who sing and harmonize together. The first well-known vocals groups emerged in the 19th century, and the style had reached widespread popularity by the 1940s. Types Vocal groups can come in se ...

of the early 1970s and its members were Barry Alexander, Gabrielle Field, Kathy Manuell, Jeff Matthews, John Mulcahy-Morgan and Geoff Ramseyer. Their musical style has been described as

folk rock Folk rock is a hybrid music genre that combines the elements of folk and rock music, which arose in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom in the mid-1960s. In the U.S., folk rock emerged from the folk music revival. Performers suc ...

'with intricate and appealing harmonies and an interesting psychedelic twist' and 'sunshine harmony pop with a light hippy vibe' and is now called

sunshine pop Sunshine pop (originally known as soft pop) is a subgenre of pop music that originated in Southern California in the mid-1960s. Rooted in easy listening and advertising jingles, sunshine pop acts combined nostalgic or anxious moods with "an appre ...

. Design released 13 singles and 5 albums in the UK and appeared on more than 50 television shows before they split up in 1976. Barry Alexander, Jeff Matthews and Geoff Ramseyer all played guitar in addition to singing, while Barry also played keyboards. Gabrielle Field occasionally played

tenor A tenor is a type of classical music, classical male singing human voice, voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. The tenor's vocal range extends up to C5. The lo ...

recorder Recorder or The Recorder may refer to: Newspapers * ''Indianapolis Recorder'', a weekly newspaper * ''The Recorder'' (Massachusetts newspaper), a daily newspaper published in Greenfield, Massachusetts, US * ''The Recorder'' (Port Pirie), a news ...

History

Design was formed as a six-piece vocal group by singer and songwriter Tony Smith while he was working at the

BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board ex ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

in December 1968. The group signed a recording contract with Adrian Kerridge at Lansdowne Studios and recorded their first album ''Design'' during 1969. This led to a two-album deal with

Epic Records Epic Records is an American record label owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America Sony Corporation of America (SONAM, also known as SCA), is the American arm of the Japanese conglomerate Sony Group ...

in the

USA The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country Continental United States, primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., ...

. When Tony Smith left the group in November 1970, he was replaced by guitarist Jeff Matthews. After this line-up appeared on The Morecambe and Wise Show in 1971 Design became one of the most televised groups in the UK, making guest appearances on dozens of TV shows with

The Two Ronnies ''The Two Ronnies'' is a British television comedy sketch show starring Ronnie Barker and Ronnie Corbett. It was created by Bill Cotton and aired on BBC1 from April 1971 to December 1987. The usual format included sketches, solo sections, seria ...

Benny Hill Alfred Hawthorne "Benny" Hill (21 January 1924 – 20 April 1992) was an English comedian, actor, singer and writer. He is remembered for his television programme ''The Benny Hill Show'', an amalgam of slapstick, burlesque and double ente ...

Val Doonican Michael Valentine Doonican (3 February 1927 – 1 July 2015) was an Irish singer of traditional pop, easy listening, and novelty songs, who was noted for his warm and relaxed style. A crooner, he found popular success, especially in the Un ...

Rolf Harris Rolf Harris (born 30 March 1930) is an Australian entertainer whose career has encompassed work as a musician, singer-songwriter, composer, comedian, actor, painter and television personality. He often used unusual instruments in his performan ...

Cilla Black Priscilla Maria Veronica White (27 May 1943 – 1 August 2015), better known as Cilla Black, was an English singer, actress and television presenter. Championed by her friends the Beatles, Black began her career as a singer in 1963. Her ...

Tommy Cooper Thomas Frederick Cooper (19 March 1921 – 15 April 1984) was a Welsh prop comedian and magician. As an entertainer, his appearance was large and lumbering at , and he habitually wore a red fez when performing. He served in the British Army f ...

, and many others. They recorded the albums ''Tomorrow Is So Far Away'', ''Day Of The Fox'' and ''In Flight'' before Gabrielle Field and Geoff Ramseyer left the group in October 1974. The remaining foursome recorded the album ''By Design'' before finally disbanding in October 1976.

Discography

Albums

* January 1971: ''Design'' (Epic) (USA) * March 1971: ''Design'' (Epic) * October 1971: ''Tomorrow Is So Far Away'' (Epic) * February 1973: ''Day of the Fox'' (Regal Zonophone) * May 1974: ''In Flight'' (EMI) * February 1976: ''By Design'' (EMI) * October 2012: ''One Sunny Day: Singles and Rarities 1968-1978'' (RPM) * April 2019: ''Children of the Mist: The Best of Design'' (Market Square) * March 2021: ''Design: 50th Anniversary Expanded Edition'' (Vacancy)

References

External links

Official Design website

MusicBrainz
{{DEFAULTSORT:Design Musical groups established in 1968 Musical groups disestablished in 1976 British folk rock groups Epic Records artists British vocal groups

History

Discography

Albums

See also

References

External links