Following up their 2017 EP The Epilogue EP New Jersey’s Day At The Fair have released a four track record featuring covers from Bette Midler, Air Supply and more.
The Jersey/Drive-Thru family tree is well represented on this record as Heath Saraceno (Midtown) performs on “What Does It Take” and the album was recorded at Rob Freeman’s (Hidden In Plain View) studio.
A covers album may seem to have come out of nowhere, but its been decades in the making according to DATF bassist, Rob Heiner:
After we released ‘The Rocking Chair Years’ in 2005, Chris (Barker-vox, guitar) and I would take the night shift if we had to drive to the next venue after a show. We’d usually pack it in around 4-5:00 in the morning, pull over at a rest stop or somtimes just in the middle of nowhere. The two of us would bust out our folding chairs and have a few nightcaps before waking up Todd and letting him know it was his turn to drive.
We would spend a lot of that time talking about, “How the fuck are we going to follow up this record?” One fateful night, Chris goes, “I got it. We do an entire album of Air Supply covers. No one will ever expect it. It’ll be awesome.” I’ll admit, I didn’t share the same vision, but I promised him that one day we would cover an Air Supply song. That didn’t stop Chris from sharing this dream with me for another 200 drunken nights or so.”
Listen to the EP here.
Bad Dad (occasionally called Ed) has been on the periphery of the punk and punk-adjacent scene for over twenty years. While many contributors to this site have musical experience and talent, Ed’s musical claim to fame comes from his time in arguably the most punk rock Blockbuster Video district in NJ where he worked alongside members of Blanks 77, Best Hit TV and Brian Fallon. He is more than just an awful father to his 2 daughters, he is also a dreadful husband, a subpar writer, a terrible dresser and has a severe deficiency in all things talent… but hey, at least he’s self-aware, amirite?
Check out the pathetic attempts at photography on his insta at https://www.instagram.com/bad_dad_photography/
