MARTIN PAGE – The First And Last Freedom (2025), MP3+FLAC

A recognized name among AOR and rock&pop fans of the ’80s, English musician MARTIN PAGE co-wrote some of the greatest songs of that decade, like “We Built This City” for Starship’s 1985 LP Knee Deep in the Hoopla LP together with “These Dreams” on Heart’s 1985 album Heart, and performed on many hits such as 1984 Ghostbusters theme song and collaborated with legend Robbie Robertson on his 1987 self-titled album.

During 1994, Page issued his debut solo album ‘In the House of Stone and Light’, highly regarded among AOR fans & collectors. Since then he released many albums, however some are instrumental – Page proper last song-format CD is from 2017.
Well, 2025, MARTIN PAGE is releasing another album – ”The First And Last Freedom” – plenty of elegant and melodic songs, and featured at in exclusive.
Usually, Page albums are “one man show” with him playing all the instruments, but amazingly, some of the musicians that had played the first 1994 Page solo album became available again, and perform here.

Martin Page speak about the creation:
”When I started these songs, I had no intention, or even a thought, of composing them for a potential album, but rather as a means of getting material together for a “working” collaboration with drummer and great friend, Jimmy Copley. Jimmy was suffering from leukemia in England and, at the time, his girlfriend suggested I send him some new songs via email to lift his spirits and encourage him to fight on, get out of hospital … and maybe even play on these four new songs I would send him.
Jimmy was the drummer on my 1994 first solo album, “In The House of Stone and Light”, and we’d promised each other over the years that one day we’d do it all again. So, the first four songs of this album were written initially for a compassionate cause: to inspire, encourage and heal the spirit of a friend with a terminal illness.

Guitarist Jack Hues was in Los Angeles around this time, and he come over to my home studio and play/jam on the tracks I had prepared for Jimmy – to get his mind on music. Within a week after Jack had played, guitarist Neil Taylor was in town from London, on tour. He had a free day and came to visit and play on the same tracks, adding his special unique flair.
Suddenly, I was making an album with my favorite musicians that had accompanied me in the past. It seemed it was just meant to be.

Once it became obvious to me that I was developing a proper new album, with guest musicians that had also played on ‘In the House of Stone and Light’, I began to think about getting performances from other players, including those who weren’t located in L.A.
So, many of the musicians’ performances on this album were recorded away from me – in different studios, in different countries – and sent to me via Dropbox files, which added to the “walk up the mountain”, as I would have to compile the best performances of their parts into the arrangement.
Because of the extraordinary contributions by these super players over the ensuing years, I meticulously pieced this record together, studying their performances and arranging them into the songs – slowly, carefully, with great respect and reverence.

I was engineering the album in general, and I would eventually be mixing and mastering the project. I felt no pressure to rush, just to get it right. The main factor of the time it took was my growing sense that I was making a very strong piece of work – possibly my strongest project since “House”.
This album wasn’t going to let me cut corners. While it was initiated within the loose “freedom” concept of writing demos/songs for hope and encouragement for my friends in need, it had to be finished with that same dedication, however long it would take.”

An album many years in the making, including beautiful melodic songs. On the other hand, the album title, “THE FIRST AND LAST FREEDOM”, according to Page, came quickly and easily: “Music was my first freedom in life, and music will undoubtedly be my last.”
Highly Recommended

01 – Courage (Intro)
02 – Courage
03 – Fade
04 – To Feel
05 – Your Whole Heart
06 – Eve
07 – Black Sun
08 – Simplicity
09 – Little Bird
10 – Abraham
11 – Breathe in My Heart

Lead Vocals – Martin Page
Bass and Fretless Bass – Martin Page
Drums – Bobby Summerfield, Trevor Thornton
Guitars – Martin Page, Neil Taylor, Jack Hues, Bill Dillon, Ray Parker, Jr., Russell Broom, Brian Fairweather
Keyboards, Synthesizers – Martin Page, Paul Joseph Moore
Horns – Gary Meek
Background Vocals – Martin Page, Diane Poncher

MP3 FLAC