Jad Fair


Jadwin B. Fair is an American singer, guitarist, graphic artist, and founding member of lo-fi alternative rock group Half Japanese.

Biography

Fair was born in Coldwater, Michigan. In 1974, he and his brother David formed the lo-fi group Half Japanese. Since then, Half Japanese has released nearly 30 records.
Besides Half Japanese, Fair performs and records as a solo artist, and collaborates with artists such as Terry Adams, Kramer, Norman Blake, Kevin Blechdom, Isobel Campbell, Eugene Chadbourne, DQE, Steve Fisk, Fred Frith, God Is My Co-Pilot, Richard Hell, Daniel Johnston, J. Mascis, Jason Willett, Monster Party, Weird Paul Petroskey, R. Stevie Moore, Thurston Moore, The Pastels, Phono-Comb, Steve Shelley, Strobe Talbot, Teenage Fanclub, The Tinklers, Moe Tucker, Bill Wells, Jason Willett, Adult Rodeo, Lumberob, Yo La Tengo, and John Zorn.
In 1982, Fair released his first solo work, the single "The Zombies of Mora-Tau" followed by the full-length album Everyone Knew... But Me one year later.
Besides his musical career Fair is also active as a visual artist, drawings, as well as papercuttings. He took up papercutting to alleviate boredom while touring on the road. Many of the album covers are made by Fair. Four books of Fair's art have been published. Exhibitions of Fair's paper cuts and drawings have taken place in New York, Tokyo, Glasgow, Austin, Paris, London, Houston, The Hague at the State-X New Forms festival, and in Nantes at Le Lieu Unique together with Daniel Johnston.
It's Spooky is a 1989 collaboration album by Daniel Johnston and Jad Fair. Strange but True is a collaborative album between the band Yo La Tengo and Jad Fair. It was released by Matador Records in 1998. Song titles on the album were taken from outrageous newspaper headlines. In 2002, Fair recorded an album with R. Stevie Moore, titled FairMoore, described as "a lovely, heartfelt effort that shows both in top form" by Dave Mandl, who stated that it "brings together two fiercely original figures in the American music underground", the album consisting of Fair reciting his poetry over Moore's instrumental backing. Words Of Wisdom And Hope is a collaboration between Glasgow, Scotland's Teenage Fanclub, and Fair, released in 2002.
In 2008, experimental instrument builder Yuri Landman constructed for Fair a special two-string instrument called the Bachelor QS. In 2011, Half Japanese reunited as a live band and toured through Europe. In 2011, Thick Syrup Records released the compilation album 78 LTD. This album features the track "36 Perfect Ways I Ching of Love" Fair made with Ken Stringfellow. In 2012, Fair contributed to the Landman album That's Right Go Cats with a 22-minute vocal contribution on side A of the record. The Nantes-based venue Le Lieu Unique organised a large exhibition of graphical work made by Fair and Daniel Johnston in April 2012. In the same month Fair released a lost album called Songs from a Haunted House with Gilles Reider on Interbang Records.
In 2012, Jad Fair released a collaboration with French experimentalist trio Hifiklub and German guitarist/producer kptmichigan on Joyful Noise Recordings. The band was originally assembled to provide the audio component to Jad Fair's art exhibition at Le Dojo – Nice in France, 2011.

Discography

In Half Japanese

Solo

Albums

  • Everyone Knew... But Me
  • Monarchs
  • Best Wishes
  • Great Expectations
  • I Like It When You Smile
  • Short Songs
  • Greater Expectations
  • Sunshiney Sunshine
  • ''His Name Itself Is Music''

    Compilation albums

  • Mr. Snail's Halloween Party
  • ''Beautiful Songs ''

    EPs

  • ''The Zombies of Mora-Tau''

    Singles

  • "Good Day" –
  • "Three Cycles"
  • "Samantha"

    With David Fair

  • Jad and David Fair – Best Friends
  • Jad and David Fair – 26 Monster Songs for Children
  • Jad and David Fair – Six Dozen Cookies
  • David and Jad Fair – Halloween Songs
  • David and Jad Fair – I'll Be Moe
  • David and Jad Fair – ''Shake Cackle and Squall''

    With Daniel Johnston

  • Jad Fair and Daniel Johnston – It's Spooky
  • The Lucky Sperms – ''Somewhat Humorous''

    With Kramer

Albums

  • Jad Fair and Kramer – Roll Out the Barrel
  • Jad Fair and Kramer – The Sound of Music
  • Jad Fair and Kramer – ''The History of Crying''

    In Mosquito

  • Mosquito – Oh No Not Another Mosquito My House Is Full of Them!
  • Mosquito – Time Was
  • Mosquito – UFO Catcher
  • Mosquito – ''Cupid's Fist''

    With Nao https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/YXIMALLOO

Albums

  • Jad and Nao – Half Robot
  • Jad and Nao – Half Alien
  • Jad and Nao – ''Half Monster''

    With The Pastels

EPs

  • Jad Fair and The Pastels – This Could Be the Night EP
  • Jad Fair and The Pastels – ''No. 2 EP''

    With The Shapir-O Rama

  • We Are the Rage – Jad Fair & The Shapir-O'Rama
  • I Like Your Face – Jad Fair & Shapir-O'Rama

    With Teenage Fanclub

Albums

  • Teenage Fanclub and Jad Fair – ''Words Of Wisdom And Hope''

    Singles

  • Teenage Fanclub and Jad Fair – "Near To You"
  • Teenage Fanclub and Jad Fair – "Always in My Heart"
  • Teenage Fanclub and Jad Fair – "Like a Monkey in a Zoo"

    With Jason Willett

Albums

  • Jason Willett/Jad Fair/Gilles Rieder
  • Jason Willett & Jad Fair – It's All Good
  • Jad Fair & Jason Willett – Honeybee
  • Jad Fair & Jason Willett – The Mighty Super-Heroes
  • Jad Fair & Jason Willett – Wonderful World triple cassette
  • Jad Fair & Jason Willett – Twister lp
  • Jason Willett & Jad Fair – We're Going to the Moon cd
  • Jad Fair & Jason Willett – Wild cd
  • Jad Fair & Jason Willett – The Mighty Hypnotic Eye cd
  • Jad Fair & Jason Willett – Enjoyable songs lp & cd
  • Jad Fair & Jason Willett – The Attack of Everything paperback + cd
  • Jad Fair & Jason Willett – Superfine cd
  • Jad Fair & Jason Willett – ''The Greatest Power''

    Singles

  • Jad Fair & Jason Willett – "Punk Rock"
  • Jad Fair & Jason Willett – "The Corpse is Missing"
  • Jad Fair & Jason Willett – "Jackpot - Songs And Art"

    With Yo La Tengo

  • 1998: Yo La Tengo – ''Strange but True''

    With Phono-Comb

  • In A Haunted House 7"
  • Monsters, Lullabies...and the Occasional Flying Saucer CD

    Other projects

  • Between Meals – Oh No I Just Knocked Over a Cup of Coffee
  • Coo Coo Rocking Time – Coo Coo Party Time
  • The Making of the Album, 1991, Seminal Twang – TWANG 02 CD Maxi Single w/ Daniel Johnston, Gilles Reider & Tom Recchion
  • Workdogs in Hell – Workdogs in Hell
  • Strobe Talbot – 20 Pop Songs
  • Jad Fair and R. Stevie Moore – FairMoore
  • Jad Fair & Bill Wells – Whale EP
  • Jad Fair And Daisy Cooper – South Pole, People in a Position To Know, 2007
  • Human Adult Band / Jad Fair – Samantha 2009, Third Uncle Records
  • Coo Coo Rocking Time – Seven Ways To Sunday
  • Coo Coo Rocking Time – Coo Coo Party Time – Remastered Louder
  • Yuri Landman Ensemble feat. Jad Fair & Philippe Petit – That's Right Go Cats, 2012,
  • Monster Party: Jad Fair, Gilles-Vincent Rieder – Songs from A Haunted House CD/LP
  • Whistling Joy Jumpers: Jad Fair, Thollem McDonas, & Brian Chase – Surprising Wooden Clocks
  • Jad Fair & Strobe Talbot, Let's Born to Rock, Joyful Noise Recordings, 2014
  • Jad Fair & Danielson, Solid Gold Heart, Sounds Familyre, 2014
  • Jad Fair & R. Stevie Moore, The Great American Songbook, Vol. 1, Joyful Noise Recordings, 2014
  • Jad Fair, Tenniscoats, & Norman Blake, How Many Glasgow, Sweet Dreams Press, 2014
  • Jad Fair & Norman Blake, Yes, Joyful Noise Recordings, 2015

    Compilations

  • Jad Fair / Tom Recchion / Ant Farm – Slowscan Vol. 4, 1986 Slowscan
  • ''I Said No Doctors!''