Customer Reviews

Temporary Road

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Gorka is the poet of my heart and soul...he writes music that may not be the story of my life, yet tells my story implicitly. His rich baritone voice and beautiful guitar make his lyrics even more incredible. Gorka also has an incredible ability to tell a whole scene in a few words, using strong descriptions and subtler puns to round out the emotion of every song. Don't just buy this cd...go check out his others...

If you want a musician who exudes honesty and does a great job of capturing some of life's greatest struggles and pleasures in his music, John Gorka is the one to check out. I saw him live in Oshkosh in 2001. He put on a wonderful show and he is just a regular guy, no false pretenses...it's just John and his guitar. I wish more musicians were that way, unaffected and genuine. He had a great dialogue with the audience and he was truly enjoying himself. "Feel Like a Train" is the best track on the CD.

There is nothing like a child singing "grand larceny" to really take note of the power of Gorka's writing. There is a poetry and elegance to every line, even the hard luck tunes. I bought this when it came out and it has stayed within the family as you can see. A true classic.

This is the first place I encountered Mr. Gorka.
I was immediately impressed with his tunefulness and thoughtfulness. "Temporary Road" is a record that makes me think: transporting me either to the scenes that he tellingly limns, or to reconsider ones from my own life. His rich voice proves a wise companion, leading through and around everyday life, revealling the magic of the mundane: a convict being freed (Vinnie Charles), a travelling musician pondering love (The Gypsy Life). His upbeat tunes are also powerful (Gravyland, All That Hammering) as they intelligently explore a world-weary cynic's greatest trial: daring to hope. Only one track (13) over-reaches. Otherwise, the album approaches perfection.

Only recently did I learn that John had made his own version of "If I could forget to breathe" a long time ago, and then I found that the album "Temporary Road" has been discontinued. Happily, I found a private supplier on Amazon, and I promply decided to buy the CD, which was used but in fine condition.
There are many great songs on the album - Looking forward, The Gypsy Life, Vinnie Charles is free, All that hammering, Can you understand my joy; those are my favorites but the others are also high quality for the most part.
What makes John stand out is his characteristic baryton voice, coupled with gentle guitar picking, and really fine poetry put into songs. The preeminent example is the aforementioned "If I could forget..", it's simply one of a kind.

I have been listening to John Gorka for the last 20 years. His rich baritone, spartan accompaniment and thoughtful lyrics have been endearing. Suffice to say that when I discovered my favorite CD was missing when it came time to transfer songs onto my new iPod, I was sick! I went to the iTunes store and... no TEMPORARY ROAD could be found! All his other work was there and I purchased WRITING IN THE MARGINS which I had missed when it was released 2 years ago.

So why is TEMPORARY ROAD missing from iTunes? There can be only 2 reasons. Reason 1 (and my hoped for explanation) is that there is some sort of copyright dispute. Reason 2 (my sneaking suspicion) is the song "Brown Shirts."

In the last 8 years of political right wing Nirvana known as the Bush Years, "Brown Shirts" is a shoe aimed squarely at the President's forehead. It's original inspiration came from his father's administration: George Herbert Bush's use of the words "new world order." But the song finds its fulfillment in Bush 43 and here are the lyrics to tell you why:

Brown shirts here in the White House
Brown shirts up on top of the Hill
Brown shirts can you hear them marching
I swear they are marching still

Brown shirts for the good of the country
Brown shirts pride all over the land
Brown shirts give us law and orders
You'll know when you raise your hands

Brown shirts is this how it all started?
Brown shirts oh no worse than their kids
Brown shirts sure they're tough on the bad guy
Though they made him what he is

Bridge:
Brown shirts
Brown shirts
They're a little more subtle now
Brown shirts than the "house painter" man
Brown shirts speak of God as their witness
But they would kill Jesus again

Brown shirts here in the White house
Brown shirts in their black limousines
Brown shirts over here in the New World

With fresh red unspeakable schemes

Hmmm... so thinking Amazon customers... decide for yourself. You think something like this might have gotten Gorka's CD banned?

John Flaherty
Grand Island, NE
[...]

Top to bottom, front to back, this has to be the strongest John Gorka recording ever. I just "rediscovered" it after having lost my copy years ago. Unusually upbeat, supported by a super-solid bevy of backing musicians, and there is not a weak track on the disc. Superb.