Page Gets Mixed Reviews…From One Guy

“I’m a fleabit peanut monkey…all my friends are junkies.”

I saw Monkey Man on the setlist from the Fillmore of Living Arts show in Philadelphia and nearly crapped my pantolones cortos on the spot. Could Page possibly break out one of my favorite tunes of all-time at the New York show? And did he pick this one specifically to poke a stick at his former redheaded guitarist with the legally documented smack issue? I’d like to think he’s that clever, but then again, the next line is “That’s not really true.”

Regardless, Page tickled the opening notes of Monkey Man and I just about hit the ceiling, price of admission right there, a glorious five minutes. Anyone who dislikes the way Page played this is either lying or impersonating Terri Schiavo.

But therein lies the rub with this show: It’s not a terrifically overwhelming sign when the highlight of the night includes a well-placed, well-performed Stones cover and an old Page-penned Phish tune that followed as the encore. I’m captivated by several of his new songs, and I’m genuinely impressed by how they sound live, but there just isn’t enough material for this band to expect a large audience to pay for a fairly expensive ticket on name recognition alone.

There’s a reason both the Lupo’s and Avalon shows were tragically undersold. Vida Blue saw Page touring with established heavy hitters in the Allmans’ Oteil Burbridge and the Funky Meters’ Russell Batiste. But this time around, the number of people willing to pay $30 to hear an album played live, with no commanding presence on stage aside from the main protagonist, is dwindling. I’m sure Page is tired of a dominating guitarist hogging the spotlight up on stage, but some of these tunes were meant for rockin’, and there’s a definite lack of rockin’.

Then again, some of these tunes are fantastic, and they’ll surely remain in Page’s (heavy) rotation no matter with whom he’s playing. Heavy Rotation, Runaway Bride, Beauty of a Broken Heart and Back in the Basement are all stellar songs and jams, each well-written and, more importantly, well-played live. 

My one and only complaint for Page on these tunes: more organ. When you have the Goff Brothers hookin’ up all the latest equipment, you might as well use what you got. I’m a sucker for the organ (did I just come out of the closet with that word choice?), and outside of the CTB encore, Page spent much of his time on the keyboard.

But four great tunes does not a show make, nor does four musicians automatically make up a band. And while I think every member of his new unit is solid to quite solid, I’m not sure I agree with what’s going on up there. The rhythm section gets a pass, as they held down a great beat all night — Rob O’Dea and Gabe Jarrett get gold stars for the evening. I’m just not sold on what I see as musical confusion and congestion between Jared Slomoff, Adam Zimmon and Page himself.

Slomoff spends most of the show sitting before a keyboard and providing some more texture to the material (Zimmon’s also a very textural and space-exploring guitarist). But it’s no coincidence that many of the best tunes of the night featured Slomoff either on rhythm or lead guitar. That’s where he needs to be, contributing to the guitar work if not leading the jam. I mean, seriously, who goes to a Page show and complains that there aren’t enough keyboardists? I’m not arguing for the departure of Zimmon (I could, but I won’t) from this band, but Slomoff needs to cut out the Larry Flynt routine, get up out of that chair and rock the fuck out.

If this review’s been a little meandering, I apologize. But the show took this form, as well — it started out hot, with Heavy Rotation and Stealers Wheel’s Stuck in the Middle With You opening the evening. From there, it seemed to be two off, then one on, then two off, then one on, bringing us some ups and downs, allowing for some roars and some polite claps. I find it difficult to imagine anyone walking out of that show saying it was anything near “great,” just as I can’t picture anyone saying it was a “shit sandwich.”

It’s Page, and it’s Page’s new band, and it’s Page’s new material, and we’ll see where it goes from here. Rome wasn’t burnt in a day. In the meantime, go and support the guy and enjoy the truly solid tunes he’s written, and bring a chair for the ones you don’t enjoy off the album. As for me, I’ll continue to see what lies in wait, and from a band alignment perspective, I’ll be hoping he figures out the most effective way to present this music. 

‘Til then, I can’t wait for the audio to hit the world wide web so I can hear that Beauty of a Broken Heart, Monkey Man, CTB trilogy that had me at all smiles.

Setlist: 6/4/07
The Fillmore New York at Irving Plaza

Heavy Rotation
Stuck in the Middle
Close to Home
Maid Marian
Back in the Basement
Final Flight
Complex Wind
Runaway Bride
Rules I Dont Know
Beauty of a Broken Heart
Monkey Man

enc: Cars Trucks Buses

• Previously on Hidden Track: Page Tour Begins; Turn The Page: McConnell Moves Forward; The Chairman Returns to the Boards