{"product_id":"coke-machine-glow-isbn-9780676974010","title":"Coke Machine Glow","description":"Gordon Downie, lead singer and lyricist for the popular Canadian rock band The Tragically Hip, released his first solo record, \u003ci\u003eCoke Machine Glow\u003c\/i\u003e in Spring 2001. Alongside the album, his first book of poetry and prose under the same title was published, including the lyrics to the sixteen songs on the record. Now, on the 20th anniversary year of \u003ci\u003eCoke Machine Glow\u003c\/i\u003e, fans have more to delight in: an audiobook of \u003ci\u003eCoke Machine Glow\u003c\/i\u003e and a brand new album by Downie, released posthumously. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e \u003ci\u003eCoke Machine Glow\u003c\/i\u003e 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.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e Layered and deceptively simple, imbued with Downie's wit, insight, anger, compassion and rock'n'roll edge, \u003ci\u003eCoke Machine Glow\u003c\/i\u003e is a remarkable debut from a remarkable creator.“[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.” —\u003ci\u003eNational Post\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“Downie’s fertile imagination can no longer be contained within the Hip alone.” —Nicholas Jennings, \u003ci\u003eMaclean’s\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“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, \u003ci\u003eGlobe and Mail\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e“\u003ci\u003eCoke Machine Glow\u003c\/i\u003e…is perhaps the most eagerly anticipated poetry collection in recent memory…Downie doesn’t disappoint…[He] is something of a national treasure.” —\u003ci\u003eCalgary Herald\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“\u003ci\u003eCoke Machine Glow\u003c\/i\u003e 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, \u003ci\u003eGlobe and Mail\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“[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, \u003ci\u003eeye Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e“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…” —\u003ci\u003eQuill and Quire\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cb\u003eGordon Downie\u003c\/b\u003e was a Canadian rock musician, writer, occasional actor, and activist. He was the lead singer and lyricist for the Canadian rock band The Tragically Hip from its inception in 1984 until his death in 2017. In 2001, Downie recorded his first solo album, \u003ci\u003eCoke Machine Glow\u003c\/i\u003e, and published his first book of poetry and prose of the same name. He released six more solo albums, two of which were published posthumously. Downie, along with his bandmates from The Tragically Hip,  was appointed to the Order of Canada in 2017 for contribution to Canadian music and their support of environmental and social causes.\u003cb\u003eCoke Machine Glow\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eHere we are on the highway. \u003cbr\u003eHere we are on the road.\u003cbr\u003eHere we are in the parking lot's\u003cbr\u003epink Coke machine glow.\u003cbr\u003eHere we are in the bedroom. \u003cbr\u003eHere we are in the bed.\u003cbr\u003eHere we are \u003cbr\u003ebeside each other \u003cbr\u003eafter everything \u003cbr\u003ewe've said.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eGranddad \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThere's a haunting picture of you and a horse\u003cbr\u003eYou were never in better shape than you were\u003cbr\u003ein World War II\u003cbr\u003eSkinny little sinews\u003cbr\u003eYou were so tenuously you\u003cbr\u003eThis horse for Churchill. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eStarpainters\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe myth is neither here nor there,\u003cbr\u003efrom the air.\u003cbr\u003eJust blue lake stains\u003cbr\u003eon green and purified, parcelled squares:\u003cbr\u003ea crazy quilt of spearmint,\u003cbr\u003eof mustard and honey tones;\u003cbr\u003ea scuffed-up kitchen floor of tiles\u003cbr\u003eon top of bones\u003cbr\u003ewith a big trap door.\u003cbr\u003eTowns down diagonal lines disappear\u003cbr\u003eand drop out of sight\u003cbr\u003einto the night beyond the national night,\u003cbr\u003eand underneath the grit and glare\u003cbr\u003einto unfettered nothingness and thin air,\u003cbr\u003eas herds of clouds lazily graze\u003cbr\u003eon thermal sighs of delight.\u003cbr\u003eThe Starpainters are taking over now,\u003cbr\u003etheir scaffolding is in its place.\u003cbr\u003eYour anaesthesiologist tonight\u003cbr\u003eis washing up and on her way.","brand":"Vintage Canada","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46302240080101,"sku":"NP9780676974010","price":14.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9780676974010.jpg?v=1767723888","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/products\/coke-machine-glow-isbn-9780676974010","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}