Jordan Page

By Michael Sragow, The Baltimore Sun

10:39 a.m. EST, January 7, 2012
When Jordan Page was a boy of 11 with a yen for acting, his greatest thrill was playing the Crown Prince in '"The King and I" onstage.

Two decades later, in the middle of an odyssey that began on Maryland's Eastern Shore, he's starring in a real-life rock tour with lyrics a lot more volatile than "Shall We Dance" or "Getting to Know You."

As a singer and writer of protest songs that decry big government, big business and the military-industrial complex, Page has become the go-to entertainer for supporters of Ron Paul, the libertarian Republican who seems to be drawing in young Republican and independent voters.

Page, 32, has proved his ability to ignite Paul's crowds before the candidate comes on as the main attraction. The singer-songwriter has done it nine times so far, and he says he's available "whenever they need me to rock out and melt faces." He was headed for a rally in New Hampshire this weekend.

"Dr. Paul has said that a revolution needs two things: young people and music," Page says. The anti-federal, anti-war message of the 76-year-old 10-term Texas congressman, and his consistent opposition to the status quo, roused the fervor of young people in Iowa last week and may do the same in New Hampshire's primary on Tuesday.

The American musical landscape is full of rock-star activists — but they usually support liberal causes. Bruce Springsteen and John Mellencamp endorsed Barack Obama and opened for some of his campaign appearances during the 2008 campaign. But Page has woven Paul's platform into his own musical agenda with extraordinary commitment. He doesn't arrive at events just in time for his number, and he doesn't leave right afterward.

"At every event I've ever seen him play at, like, in New Hampshire at the Porcupine Freedom Festival, he gets there early," says Nathan Cox, a Virginia coordinator of the Campaign for Liberty who's now active in Veterans for Ron Paul. "He wants to talk to people and share his ideas and his music. And he hangs for several hours after he plays. People just love him."

What transformed Page from a budding thespian to a rocker who plays industrial-strength guitar, scribbles heavy-duty lyrics and calls for revolution?

It started with a family calamity. After his father suffered major injuries in a car crash, the family moved from Agawam, Mass., where Page had gone through grade school, to the Eastern Shore — first to Tilghman Island, then to St. Michaels — where his dad had a support network of relatives.

In Agawam, "I thought my life was realized," he says, but on Tilghman Island, Page didn't know who he was or what he wanted to do. He even stopped acting. Rock music often emerges from teen angst; Page spun his first works out of preteen angst.

"I was wondering, 'What am I doing here?'" he says.

His father, a Vietnam vet who had been director of shipping at a large company before his accident, and his mother, an early-education specialist who ran a preschool in Agawam and became the director of The Kinder Garden in Easton, raised him in a solid liberal environment.

He first got his hands on a guitar two days before he left Massachusetts. It became, he says, his salvation.

"I was able to express what I was feeling as a displaced young person through music," he says. "A lot of my friends had similar feelings, but I had the ability to express them through song."

Older friends and his elder sister (he also has a younger one) turned him on to some of their favorite bands. Long before he entered high school, the ecstatic doominess of the Doors got to him, along with the operatic albums of Pink Floyd.

Words and music became Page's anchor, but some funky things happened on his way to becoming a versifying troubadour. His ambition didn't waver as he entered Washington College (where he studied anthropology), but it did become transformed. In his junior year, he went to Rhodes Un - Baltimore Sun

Jordan Page landed on the scene of the liberty movement in 2008 with the Revolution EP. Now his debut LP called Liberty is available with a new, elevated tone. His heart is still in the music and lyrics, and that’s just how his fans like it.
From the top, Jordan’s unquivering sound is in full motion and you’re along for the ride. “Dragons” stirs up visuals of devilish creatures “covering the world” as war and slavery envelops civilization.

Before you can catch your breath, “Frontlines” pounds thunderously revealing truth between soaring solos.

Track 3 begins with the familiar acoustic guitar as Jordan, father of two sons, sings “The Message of Freedom.”

Originally heard on the Revolution EP, “Reckoning” is transformed into a hard rock track with some wild-eye psychedelia thrown in. The sound lays down like a blanket when “unaware populations in despair surrender all of their control” and then takes off like a flying carpet over description of inevitable destruction in which “ignorance won’t save you.”

The revolution is lifted above politics in “Victory Song” when Page is backed up by a choir singing “I won’t stand in yesterdays, I believe in the here and now.”

The musical vigilance doesn’t take a break on the titular track “Liberty,” the album’s first single. Soothing violins and agitating questions make it a triumph among truth-seeking ballad rock songs.

Relentless riffs and persistent percussion on “Warning” shake your spiritual core and Jordan catches you just as you fall with “tidings spoken with breath born in love.” The epic “War Machine” stomps out the age-old statist myth that we must fight them over there so we don’t fight them here. By now you may just want to grab a pitchfork and torch or some tar and feathers, but the album is just halfway through!

Jordan Page’s monumental Liberty gets more experimental and the artistic courage pays off for him and listeners alike. Whether it’s the redone tracks “Listen” and “Here, There and Everywhere” or the brand new “Rolling Wheel,” “Son of Abraham,” “Trails,” and “Until the Race Is Run” this music, like the message of freedom, is written to bring people together.

Most inspiring of all is track 11 “Year of Youth.” Dedicated to the project under direction of the Young Americans for Liberty, Jordan’s words peel back the covers on the bed that a sleepy citizenry and ambitious central planners share. Is there any doubt his hope is properly placed when he sings “if youth is a moment too fragile and brief, there’ll be no holding on when age comes like a thief”?

These 15 songs restore a theme that American society would do good to hear: that the price paid at home for empire abroad is not worth the temptation. Liberty is part warning call, part call to arms, and all parts a devotion to affection for family and tradition. Jordan Page is an artist whose time has come. - Nick Hankoff

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 8, 2008
CONTACT
Mary Alexander
Outreach Director
Jordan Page Music
240-277-3139
jordanpagemusic@gmail.com





JORDAN PAGE “ROCKS THE NET” WHILE FIGHTING FOR CIVIL LIBERTIES
Baltimore-area musician uses songs as a tool for social change

Baltimore, MD – Music is everywhere. It is in our homes, cars, workplaces, shopping centers and more. Yet music has increasingly become little more than a diversion, not a forum for political or social commentary. But there are still examples of engaged and passionate musicians, who see music as something more than a pastime. Jordan Page is one such artist.

Annapolis, Maryland-based Jordan Page fuses raw songwriting emotion with an impassioned sense of social justice. He’ll showcase his powerful acoustic music at The Ramshead Onstage in Annapolis on May 24. The show also promotes the Future of Music Coalition’s Rock the Net campaign, which educates musicians and fans about the importance of net neutrality.

Net neutrality is the principle that preserves an open Internet. Certain telecommunications companies would like to charge content providers higher fees for faster delivery of their sites. The result would be an Internet where those who couldn’t afford to — or didn’t want to — pay a toll would be stuck in the slow lane. Artists could lose an important connection to their fans, while listeners might be denied their freedom of choice.

Supporting net neutrality fits right into Page’s mission. “Music is a powerful medium for social change,” he says. “As an artist, I feel I have a responsibility to educate and speak out against injustice.”

In the past year, Page has received worldwide play on XM Radio for his inspiring recordings, which call attention to the difficulties facing the American people in a time of war and an increasingly unpopular presidential administration. “This is real music, says said Billy Zero, Program Director for XM. “Much of today's music seems to be over-produced and very formulaic. . . this is not the case with Jordan.”

Thanks to XM, MySpace, and Page’s spirited live performances, his music and message are spreading and have gained the attention of several national political action organizations. In the coming months Page will be a featured a writer on the Free Press Action Network (www.freepress.net), as an interview guest on The Progressive Radio (www.progressive.org), and as a partner with Restore the Republic, who will offer free access to his songs through their website (www.restoretherepublic.com).

Tickets to The Ramshead Show are available through www.ramsheadtavern.com. For additional information on Jordan Page, bookings, or schedule please contact Mary Alexander at jordanpagemusic@gmail.com or visit www.jordanpagemusic.com or www.myspace.com/jordanpagemusic.


About Jordan Page

Jordan Page’s unique sound, a bridge between hard rock and acoustic rock, has been gaining him fans everywhere he goes. Influences like Jeff Buckley, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, the Doors, U2, and Alice in Chains can be heard in his songs, but the content and character of his music are drawn from his own life's experiences. From living in post-apartheid South Africa and immersing himself in the native cultures, to mentoring at-risk teens in Seattle through Americorps, to performing coast to coast, Jordan has collected a brilliant body of work and has only begun to share it.

About Rock the Net:

Rock the Net was established in 2007 to increase musician awareness about the importance of net neutrality. Since its launch, over 750 bands and 155 independent labels have joined the campaign. More information can be found at http://www.futureofmusic.org/rockthenet/ and http://www.myspace.com/futureofmusiccoalition.
- FUTURE OF MUSIC COALITION

Artist: Jordan Page Title: The Book Of Life Label: Self Issued Web: jordanpagemusic.com

You can look at the songs as chapters in The Book Of Life from Jordan Page. Each one a particular instance that follows the central character on life’s path as they encounter obstacles, love, loss, spirtituality, affirmation of faith and inner peace. Page has included a brief synopsis above the lyrics as to what each song is in reference to so there’s no doubt as to what he’s singing about. Starting off with the beautifully atmospheric Presence “In which a young man speaks to his father, and through the act of dying, an old man brings two generations close together”, Page’s mournful voice is full of pained _expression as he sings “Your presence fades, your life contracts. And what’s a heaven for? Disengage and seek the change, to feel something more.” It’s a wonderfully moving song that immediately establishes Page as a songwriter of the first degree. The tunes range from folk rock to hard rock, with songs like Dancing Waves “In which this man prostrates himself, and as the deity engulfs him, he finds himself daring to look the impossibility of truth in the eye.” It has a slight grunge feel to it that gives it an ominous sound that befits the subject matter perfectly. Page knows his way around a good pop song. Evergreen “In which the reality of love takes hold, and in an instant, he is transformed.” It’s a bouncy number with a catchy melody that provides one of the lighter musical moments on the record. At times Page’s voice reminded me of Gordon Lightfoot, rich and resonant, with warm tones. It’s most apparent on The Horror Show “In which our protagonist discloses a dark fascination with grotesqueries, and is given a warning against the snares of fame.” It’s a harder song that shows Page’s rock side very well. The Book Of Life is certainly a serious listen and well worth the time spent experiencing the musical journey that Page has so lovingly laid out. It’s one of those personal offerings that to use the old cliché, has universal appeal. It’s a mature work that recounts circumstances anyone could encounter in life and tries to put them in some kind of perspective. He succeeds with an extremely listenable album of thinking person's rock.
- Chesapeake Music Guide- Reviewed by Michael Macey

Today I present to you Jordan Page, an Annapolis-based singer/songwriter whose politically charged lyrics and passionate singing has got people talking.

His brand of acoustic rock--a mixture of Bob Dylan and Pearl Jam, among other influences--is a powerful call-to-arms against injustice and war. "I will not submit to authority of man/ I’m alive I’m awake," Page announces on the percussion-driven "Listen." "Song for Bob" is an acoustic plea for peace dedicated to Dylan. With things going the way they are now, Page's message of justice and peace needs to be heard.

For those living near Annapolis, you can hear Page every Wednesday night at Castlebay on 193 Main St. For everyone else, click on the links below to find out more about the singer/activist:

http://www.jordanpagemusic.com/

www.myspace.com/jordanpagemusic

Click here to order his CD "The Book of Life"
- Travis Mamone

Page to take the Rams Head by the horns
By PETER HOWELL
Entertainment Editor
March 29, 2007

ANNAPOLIS — “My goal,” says Tilghman Island native Jordan Page, “is to take my music as far as it can go.”

Thursday night he’ll take it to a new level. For the first time, the Jordan Page Band will head-line at Naptown’s top music venue, the Rams Head On Stage. Showtime is 8 p.m., and tickets are $13.50. Michael K and the Populists will open.

Headlining at the Rams Head has been Page’s goal for a year and a half. But it’s hardly the end of the line. More like a station on the way to bigger venues, a recording contract, national exposure, control over his own destiny. He wants the whole enchilada, but is not willing to play Faust for it.

“I make a living doing what I love to do,” says Page, whose only day job is teaching guitar and bass at Believe In Music at Easton Plaza. He’s looking for a record deal, but not just any deal. “Record companies can make it easier or make it harder,” he says. He wants to sign with an independent label. “Indie labels are smaller,” he explains, “more concerned with developing the artist.... With major labels, you essentially sell your soul.”

Page has self-produced two albums, The Precious and the Pain and The Book of Life. He sells them the old-fashioned way, at concerts; and online at iTunes and www.jordanpagemusic.com. An indie label “can help you to reach a wider audience” and sell more records, according to Page.

Jordan Page is good-looking (especially if you go for that shaved-head thing), talented, upbeat, and hard-working with a bright future.

“I’ve become a regional touring artist over the last year,” he says. “I do about 16 shows a month now.” He has played the Castle Bay (every Wednesday night), Heroes Pub, Armadillo’s Bar & Grill and Whiskey 1803 in Annapolis; Clyde’s in Alexandria, Va.; The Tombs in Washington’s fashionable Georgetown; Lisa’s Small Plates & Wine Bar on Kent Island; and the Rams Head Roadhouse in Crownsville.

Page has opened twice at the Rams Head On Stage, the flagship of the Rams Head fleet: for Eric Lindell Feb. 5; and for the Doug Segree Band four months ago.

“We played to a packed house,” he recalls, “and we really did well. We rocked.”

Opening for a more famous artist beats sitting home alone. But opening artists are expected to play a lot of covers.

A headliner, by contrast, has far more latitude to play his own music, the music that might one day make him a star. “No one ever got famous,” country singer John Berry once told me, “singing other’s people’s songs.”

Page agrees, and that’s one reason he’s excited about Thursday’s gig. “The Rams Head On Stage is not a venue you go to to play other people’s music,” he says. “This is a Jordan Page concert for sure. It’s not a Bob Dylan or a Tom Petty concert.” When the slot was offered to him, “It took me about a minute to evaluate yes or no,” says Page. “It was obvious I had to do it.” When he moved from the Eastern Shore to Annapolis 18 months ago, “I set my goal to headline at the Rams Head.”

It’s been a busy year and a half. He used his first gig in Annapolis, at Heroes, to leverage bookings at more clubs. One such gig led to radio airplay. Ted Kelly, host of The Pop Heard ’Round the World on XM Radio’s UPOP Channel, heard him open for John Eddie on March 11, and he was on the air live the next day. Billy Zero has played his songs on Radar Report.

When he takes the Rams Head stage, Page will unveil unreleased songs he wrote during a six-month visit to South Africa. “I didn’t think the time was right” to sing them in public, he says. “But I have been given a message that the time is right to play it” now.

A music industry friend once told Page, “Your fantasies have to die for your dreams to come true.” Now 27, he has given up on becoming a rock star by age 25. And his dream is to be God’s messenger.

“I feel that God has called me to do this,” he says, “that he has blessed me with a gift that I don’t deserve” and has told him, “Don’t waste it.”

- Star Democrat