Luke Hurley is one of the great unsung heroes of New Zealand music and a highly original artist who has been writing, recording and playing music in this country since 1970. Currently based in Auckland, Luke travels widely throughout New Zealand playing festivals, pubs, cafes and private parties. In the past he has toured with international singer/songwriters Michelle Shocked and Marianne Faithful. He is also one of New Zealand’s hardest working buskers known to many for his dynamic street-level performances and was the only musician invited to play at the Auckland International Busking festival in 2006.

Luke stands out from the crowd both for his incisive, insightful lyrics and his unique and powerful guitar technique which includes open tunings and epic raga-like structures. His live performances and 8 studio albums have won him fans around New Zealand and the world. Several of his songs such as ‘Mona Lisa’, ‘2 Degrees Out’ and ‘Japanese Overdrive’ have achieved Kiwi anthem status.

Luke has always remained fiercely independent and apart from a brief spell with Jayrem he has never signed to a record label. Monkey Records therefore feels greatly honoured to be entrusted with his Best Of. Says Monkey Records founder Nigel Braddock “I first met Luke on the streets of Dunedin in 1985 when I was commencing my studies at Otago University and his music was, in a way, a soundtrack to my student days. I never would have guessed back then that over 20 years later I would have been releasing his Best Of on my own record label.”