Coke Machine Glow
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Coke Machine Glow
Narrated by:
Dan Ayckroyd, Robbie Baker, Clare Downie, Clemens Downie, Lou Downie, Willo Downie, Johnny Fay, Sarah Harmer, Dave "Billy Ray" Koster, Paul Langlois, Ron MacLean, Bruce McCulloch, Kaya Usher, Various
Buy Now for $19.98
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By:
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Gordon Downie
About this listen
Coke Machine Glow is a rich, haunting collection that reveals both the public and private selves of one of Canada's most enigmatic musicians. In poetry that is urban, gritty and political, as well as romantic, nostalgic and whimsical, Downie allows us a glimpse inside his world. With his acute and observing eye, he gives us snapshots of his life, both on the road and at home; he writes of loneliness and isolation; of longing and desire; of the present and the past; of dreams and nightmares; love lost and love of family. Ultimately, this book is about the distances that bridge and separate us.
Layered and deceptively simple, imbued with Downie's wit, insight, anger, compassion and rock'n'roll edge, Coke Machine Glow is a remarkable debut from a remarkable creator.
This special audiobook edition features readings from Downie's family and friends, including:
Dan Ayckroyd
Robbie Baker
Andrew Cash
Dave Clark
Julie Doiron
Charlyn Downie
Clare Downie
Clemens Downie
Lou Downie
Mike Downie
Patrick Downie
Paula Downie
Willo Downie
Johnny Fay
Josh Finlayson
Sarah Harmer
Kevin Hearn
Dave "Billy Ray" Koster
Paul Langlois
Andy Maize
Ron MacLean
Bruce McCulloch
Dale Morningstar
Larry Murphy
Andrea Nann
Dr. Pee
Damian Rogers
Jonathan Shedletzky
Gord Sinclair
Kaya Usher
Critic Reviews
“[Downie] writes in an accessible, entertaining way, but with a refined enough approach that his works can’t be dismissed as crude or simplistic. When he wants, he can be quite funny, and he can drop Canadian references — Pierre Trudeau, Tim Horton's, hockey, Canada geese — without sounding like he’s trying to be Canadian. His particular strength as a poet is his unusual, unexpected imagery… the words are exact, sensuous and satisfying.” —National Post
“Downie’s fertile imagination can no longer be contained within the Hip alone.” —Nicholas Jennings, Maclean’s
“Downie has a casually attentive way with words; each one does its work without mystification or excess. At a time when poetry has mostly turned away from large-scale social realities, he bridges deftly and persistently between personal and national narratives. Like Greg Curnoe and Stan Rogers, he never learned that ‘here’ is a four-letter word.” —Robert Everett-Green, Globe and Mail
“Coke Machine Glow…is perhaps the most eagerly anticipated poetry collection in recent memory…Downie doesn’t disappoint…[He] is something of a national treasure.” —Calgary Herald
“Coke Machine Glow is a wildly enjoyable read…[Downie] writes of and from hotel rooms, hotel bars and diners, giving us a peek at the often boring and lonely, but occasionally exhilarating, life of a travelling performer.” —Moe Berg, Globe and Mail
“[Downie’s] gentle irongy and clever conceptual turns are thoroughly contemporary and undeniably original…Downie’s debut…possess[es] a distinct, personal vision and reintroduces whimsy and humour to an artform often hobbled by its own self-importance — laudable achievements for any first book.” —Kevin Connolly, eye Weekly
“Songs like “Thirty-eight Years Old,’ ‘Wheat Kings’ and ‘Nautical Disaster’ have inspired a new generation of Canadian poets by demonstrating how relevant, contemporary narratives can be rendered in provocative yet accessible verse…[H]is best poems [are] elegantly understated…” —Quill and Quire
“Downie’s fertile imagination can no longer be contained within the Hip alone.” —Nicholas Jennings, Maclean’s
“Downie has a casually attentive way with words; each one does its work without mystification or excess. At a time when poetry has mostly turned away from large-scale social realities, he bridges deftly and persistently between personal and national narratives. Like Greg Curnoe and Stan Rogers, he never learned that ‘here’ is a four-letter word.” —Robert Everett-Green, Globe and Mail
“Coke Machine Glow…is perhaps the most eagerly anticipated poetry collection in recent memory…Downie doesn’t disappoint…[He] is something of a national treasure.” —Calgary Herald
“Coke Machine Glow is a wildly enjoyable read…[Downie] writes of and from hotel rooms, hotel bars and diners, giving us a peek at the often boring and lonely, but occasionally exhilarating, life of a travelling performer.” —Moe Berg, Globe and Mail
“[Downie’s] gentle irongy and clever conceptual turns are thoroughly contemporary and undeniably original…Downie’s debut…possess[es] a distinct, personal vision and reintroduces whimsy and humour to an artform often hobbled by its own self-importance — laudable achievements for any first book.” —Kevin Connolly, eye Weekly
“Songs like “Thirty-eight Years Old,’ ‘Wheat Kings’ and ‘Nautical Disaster’ have inspired a new generation of Canadian poets by demonstrating how relevant, contemporary narratives can be rendered in provocative yet accessible verse…[H]is best poems [are] elegantly understated…” —Quill and Quire
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