Gene Page Tries To Be A Known Artist In His Own Right:

[Boogiedown]

Its January 1975 and Billboard Magazine has a discussion with Gene Page:

Gene Page Could Be On Stardom's Brink
By BOB KIRSCH
LOS ANGELES
-The arranger/
conductor/writer/performer has
come into his own in the past year through the successes of Barry
White and Johnny Bristol, and there
are many in the industry who feel
Gene Page may be the first of the
genre to become known to the public
in general after the release of his first
Atlantic album.
Page is certainly no stranger to the
industry. At the age of 32, the Westlake School of Music and Brooklyn
Conservatory of Music graduate has
arranged and/or produced for the
likes of Diana Ross & The Supremes, Ms. Ross alone, Marvin
Gaye, the Mamas &the Papas, Martha & the Vandellas, the Jackson
Five, Barbra Streisand, the Righteous Brothers, Shirley Bassey, Freda
Payne, Barry White, Nancy Wilson and Elton John.

Currently, he is working simultaneously with John, the Osmonds,
Barry White, Stanley Turrentine
and Barbra Streisand.
Page's father was a classical composer and Page himself originally
studied to be a-classical pianist.
However, he was exposed to some of
the popular music of his day and became interested in that.
"Fortunately for me," he says,
"I've had a chance to be involved
with all kinds of people, from Phil
Spector to Ahmet Ertegun to Barry
White, Elton Johnand Marvin Gaye
today. And you can learn something
from everyone. I learned something
from Ahmet," he says. "I did some
work for Atlantic with Solomon
Burke and the Drifters and Ahmet
asked me fora bill. When I gave it to
him he gave it back. He told me it
was too small. When I did 'You've
Lost That Lovin' Feeling' for the
Righteous Brothers with Phil Spector, I learned how licks can be
moved around,such as moving horn
licks to bass as he did on that record.
"Working with Motown, particularly Holland, Dozier and Holland
and the Corporation, who wrote the
Jackson Five material, I learned how
sophisticated soul can be. Those
people were really way ahead of
their time. We used to put strings on
the Jackson Five sessions and when
the records were released you could
hardly hear them. People thought
strings couldn't be funky. Now you
can hardly hear a soul cut without
strings."

Page feels it's good that "arrangers are finally getting some public as
well as industry recognition," and
adds that his methods are a fusion of
all he has learned from others plus
some of his own techniques thrown
in. "The classical training certainly
helped,"he says, "especially the way
the market is going today. But once
in a while I find myself thinking too
classical and I have to toss a little
funk in."
Page, however, is certainly not
limited to soul acts, as his past and
present roster of credits indicates.
"It's good to wear different hats now
and then," he says, "especially at the
same time. You have to keep switching with each artist, change your
own pace a bit and know each per-
son as an individual."
Page cites long time friend Barry
White as an example of what's happening in music today. "Barry is the
type of arranger/conductor/writer/producer/singer who appeals to everyone. He doesn't have only a black
audience because he's black." Page
says, "He's really become universal and that's the way I see music going."
With all his success as a behind
the scenes man, why would Page
choose to cut an LP himself? "I just
thought the time was right," he says.
"I may go on the road with an orchestra like Barry, or I may not. it's
tricky these days to know what style
you want to be in or what you want
released as a single. Every audience
segment likes something else, and
there are some things that appeal to
everyone." [Page has just released
"All Our Dreams Are Coming
True," a lush cut designed for universal appeal.] "I'll still keep up all the other things," Page smiles, "especially since I'm already working with four
or five artists at once. But I'd like to
see how I do with my own thing for
once"

[jack020]

One of my favorite instrumental disco Lps. Love his work with Barry White and so many others.

[theboyfromxtown]

Its January 1975 and Billboard Magazine has a discussion with Gene Page:

Fabulous. I bought this track as a 45.

[Boogiedown]

One of my favorite instrumental disco Lps. Love his work with Barry White and so many others.

any particular favorite cuts?

theboyfromxtown Fabulous. I bought this track as a 45.

nice!

My contention has always been without Gene Page there'd have been no Barry White nor his sound. Always thought this demonstrated that and this was even Gene's purpose in releasing this .... but ...maybe it was the other way around?

Apparently one thing Page can't do is sing ....and so without that he's competing as a poor man's version of The Love Unlimited Orchestra ....which was already a second fiddle to Barry himself.