Color Page Background without using the Rectangle tool?

[World View]

It is easy to color the background with the rectangle tool.

But it totally sabotages any further work.

I just tried to move a whole composition on a black background - but I can't select them. because of this damn rectangle tool whenever I try to select the elements on the page, the frame tool gets selected and the frame moves, but not the content.

How can I get out of this? 

I'd like to fill the page with black without the annoying rectangle tool that sits like a block there and prohibits selecting a larger group of items and therefore moving them. I can only select one of two, but not eight or nine elements to move together. The rectangle tool blocks everything.

[walt.farrell]

A couple of choices:

1. Select the objects using the Layers panel.
2. Lock the rectangle layer in the Layers panel before selecting the other objects.

[World View]

Thank you, Walt! 

This saves me to select each and every item in the design to move them together!

Locking the rectangle layer will be it!