Savatage were finally getting exposure, but in 1986, the band released "Fight for the Rock", a stab at mainstream success that was driven primarily by Atlantic. Jon himself refers to the record as "Fight for the Nightmare". The material was written mostly by Jon and Criss in the kitchen of the apartment the band was staying in. Some of the songs were written in the studio, such as "Lady In Disguise." Atlantic put a lot of pressure on the band to become a radio friendly band and this resulted in the two covers of Free's "Wishing Well" and Badfinger's "Day After Day". Fans were confused by the sudden shift in sound the band took and sales did not meet expectations. Jon had however described the album as a good "musical and life experience".