Happy New Year, San Diego!
28 VOL. 6 ISSUE 1
BY BART MENDOZA © MUSICSCENESD // MUSICSCENESD.COM
JANUARY 2020
Gregory Page One Hell Of A Memory
Singer-songwriter Gregory Page’s most recent album, One Hell Of A Memory, is the latest in a string of aural gems that mix acoustic guitar based tunes with earworm melodies. Under normal circumstances Page would be in the midst of a year of promotional appearances and globe trotting to promote it, however the past twelve months have been anything but normal. Several proposed tours to date have been cancelled, but there are still hopes Page can make it to Europe before summer.
Page arrived in San Diego from England in 1976 and began performing music soon after. “I am a local musician here in this city, I play all sorts of gigs around town which keep me busy and inspired,” he said. “But I’m also an international Artist representing San Diego when I’m on stage at The Paradiso in Amsterdam or performing at the Woodford Folk Festival in Australia.” Page’s music is popular the world over, but seems to have special resonance in the Netherlands, where his concerts are sold out events. He credits a fellow musician for help with his breakthrough there. “The Dutch people and I have a fondness and appreciation for nostalgia and history,” he remarked. “Fifteen years ago I released an album, Love Made Me Drunk, on AJ Croce’s record company. It was a collection of original songs I wrote while I lived in Paris with my family. It’s drenched in nostalgia. AJ sent the album to a Dutch radio program and the rest is history,” Page Local News > LocalUmbrellaNews.com
proud of the work put in to making this recording. “The engineers, Robbie Robinson and Jeff Berkley labored over each special microphone, it’s placement on the instrument,” he said. “Whether it be a Mandocello from 1905 played by Steve Peavy or a set of Uillieann Pipes played by Eric Rigler, each instrument, with its unique tone, requires much thought and a strategy to record. For me the recording is the icing on the cake in the creation of the songs.”
said. Plans are underway for a tour there later this year to promote the new album. “My label in Holland, V2 Records, whom I’ve released seven albums with, is hopeful I will be there in the Spring,” Page said. “In this new found reality I am optimistic that touring will resume (then) for me. I am already a mild germaphobe, so not much is different other than wearing a mask, which I’m ok with. For me, it depends on the timing of the vaccine. I will be standing in line with Personal Trainers and Hairstylists to get the jab in the arm.” Page notes One Hell Of A Memory, is meant to be more than a collection of tunes. “I don’t write songs I write albums,” he said good naturedly. “In a world of singles and compilations the art of deep listening to an album from start to finish is becoming lost.” He’s
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Asked to cite a favorite from his vast catalog of tunes, Page is quick to name “Ballad Of Bridget Healy” from the new album. “It’s one of my most recent songs. I had been trying for ages to write a song about my Irish Grandmother Bridget Healy who grew up in Dublin during the 1916 Easter Rising. I lived with my granny and she would tell stories of what that war was like for her and her family,” he said. While being a musician seems to get harder by the day, Page’s motivation remains strong. “There are many extraordinary adventures yet to experience,” he remarked. Page considers his guitar a traveling companion. “What keeps me going is always the hope that I travel more and experience cultures and places beyond my backyard,” he continued “Travel is one of the most important ways to find empathy and understanding with my fellow humans. Music for me is my language.” www.gregorypage.com
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