Written by: Alex Green
David Fair, one half of the legendary indie rock outfit Half Japanese has died.
Along with his brother Jad, the two formed Half Japanese in the mid-seventies. Considered to be one of the greatest underground bands of all time, the Half Japanese journey began with the 1977 EP Calling All Girls and from there they went on to release classic albums like 1/2 Gentlemen/Not Beasts, Sing No Evil and Music To Strip By.
Along with Godley & Creme’s 1977 effort Consequences and Carla Bley’s Escalator Over The Hill (1971) Half Japanese are only one of a handful of artists to release a triple album as their debut. Low-fi, experimental and idiosyncratic, the music of Half Japanese eludes the cultural timeline and due to its DIY approach, remains fresh, vital and dynamic.
Over the course of their career, Half Japanese played with everyone from Nirvana to Neutral Milk Hotel. Fair released a series of records with his brother as well as a series of solo albums as well.
A filmmaker, an actor and an accomplished and renowned visual artist whose medium was both paper cuttings and sketches, the Michigan-born Fair’s artistic endeavors were the subject of Skizz Cyzyk’s 2015 documentary David Fair Is The King.
Producer and friend Don Fleming wrote of Fair’s passing on social media: “David Fair of 1/2 Japanese and Coo Coo Rockin’ Time died yesterday. His daughter Harper toasted him with a root beer float, and he passed soon after, peacefully. He had been getting treatments for cancer over the last couple of years. The sweetest guy, with a great sense of humor. He was a pure artist and musician, all from the heart. Goodbye David.”
