Before?

anonymous

Hi Friends,

Before John, Fred was the first person to experiment with electronic music.

Is it okay? The intended meaning is that John experimented, but before him there was Fred.

Thanks, friends.

If Fred was the first, then of course he was before John. That's why the sentence seems strange. It contains excess information that the reader can infer for himself. I suggest one of these:

Fred experimented with electronic music before John did.
Fred was the first person to experiment with electronic music.
John was not the first to experiment with electronic music; Fred was.

CJ