Transcript of "Mike and Maty" Interview
February, 1996

Mike:  Our next guest has written songs over the years for a number of artists.  Do you remember the song "These Dreams" by Heart and "We Built This City" by Starship.  He has now stepped into the spotlight and recorded his own album--tired of writing for someone else.  It is called "In the House of Stone and Light."

Maty:  I love that song!

Mike:  Great song, talented artist.  Please welcome Martin Page.

Maty:  I love that song, I'll tell ya.  

Martin:  Thank you very much.

Maty:  Oh, I sing it, (sings)  "In the House." Oh, I don't want-- I don't want to ruin it for you.

Martin:  You're going to sing in my ear now, right?  There's like a duet coming on here, isn't there?

Maty:  Oh, never, never.

Martin:  Well, I'm glad you like it.

Maty:  Well good--and you're wearing your AIDS [ribbon].

Martin:  Well, you know, there's so many people that I know that have been affected by this, and I'm still in contact with a lot of them that are dealing with it, and I think any opportunity you get to say that this is one of the most important causes, even more than sending people up to the moon.  I think we've got to deal with what we've got down here on Earth, so it's just a little sign to say lets hang in there and fight for it.

Mike:  Speaking of hanging in and fighting, you know you started out--  You don't start out as a famous singer or songwriter.  Interesting shift from a professional soccer player?

Martin:  God, you know I was a professional soccer player back in England.

Mike:  Were you good?

Martin:  Brilliant

Martin:  Except for...I don't know if the camera can get it but you can see from an angle here that I broke my nose so many times playing the game, so I decided there must be something--  I can see the camera's trying to get it.  Can you get it?  From many soccer games.  Lot of shadow going over the audience.

Martin:  I love the game so much;  I still follow it.  When I was sixteen years old I was signed to the professional team Southampton in England, and that's all I wanted to be, and I played that up to the age of about eighteen.  But during that period that I was playing professional I got a chance to go into the London clubs and hear some great music, and I thought there must be an easier way than breaking your nose every week to make a living.

Maty:  Yeah, but that's a gift.  You can't just say, "Oh--"

Martin:  What, breaking your nose is a gift?

Maty:  Breaking your nose is a gift.  No, becoming a songwriter like you did.

Mike:  Who was your big break?  Who was the big, big song first...?

Martin:  Well my big break really was I had my own band back in the 80s, a band called Q-Feel.  And I can tell you all know who that is.  Yes, anyway--

Mike:  As much as they knew you played soccer.

Martin:  Exactly.  And there was a song called "Dancing in Heaven" which did very well in the 80s in Los Angeles.  That brought my partner and myself across.  When I was here during that time it seemed that all the American bands were looking to change their sound.  It was the sound of the new music, like Tom Dolby, Human League, and a lot of artists wanted to work with English performers at that time.  So I fell into working with Earth, Wind, and Fire, The Commodores, and eventually I worked with Bernie Taupin, Elton John's lyricist.

Maty:  He's brilliant, too.

Martin:  Yeah, he's great, lucky to work with him.  And we wrote "These Dreams" and "We Built This City" together.  That was our first songs.

Mike:  And the one you're going to sing for us now is "In the House of Stone and Light."

Martin:  Love to.

Mike:  Introduce the guy, bring him out here.  If you would folks, Martin Page at work.  This is your guitar player?

Martin:  No, this isn't my guitar player.  Yes, of course.  This is Brian from Glasgow.

(performs)

Mike:  Welcome back.  Real quick:  Where did that song come from?  How was it inspired?

Martin:  Actually, the house of stone and light--I went to the Grand Canyon about two years ago and I learned that the Indians called the Grand Canyon the house of stone and light.  But I really wrote it about saying it was the house of the soul.  It's about getting everything right inside your own body.

Mike:  Well, you've got it right here.  I don't know if we're on the album, but I like the little twist you put in there.  The Mike and Maty thing was cool.  Keep that.

Martin:  Oh you liked that, did you?

Mike:  Yeah.  Thank you.  Martin Page, sing us out if you wouldn't mind.  Bye, everybody.

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