It’s Saturday night and your girlfriend has been injured in a serious hit and run car accident. A nurse calls your name and guides you through to see your girlfriend. You feel strange and have tunnel vision. 

Headfirst you hit the floor. 6 days later, you wake up from emergency brain surgery. It turns out if you weren’t already in hospital at that specific moment, you would have died. You’re lucky to be alive. Slowly, you begin to notice you can’t move your left hand, how are you going to play guitar? You can’t walk and you can’t talk, how are you going to sing? A nurse brings you a cupcake; it’s your birthday but there’s a catch. No one can visit you, the state is in lockdown due to Covid restrictions.

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Laurie Luke, the Perth based multi-instrumentalist lay’s there, hooked up to machines and all he can think about is music. His new single ‘Long Way Home’ will be released on the one year anniversary of that fateful day in hospital, 17th June.

‘’I was in a coma for a week after brain surgery, between life and death. I remember vividly, being looked after and guided by the old (First Nations) people of this country.

It’s something that I will never forget and I carry it with me everyday. I needed to honour what I experienced, while also relearning how to walk, talk and play music all over again. Every single line I sing and every note I played, was extremely painful (physically) and overwhelming (mentally) as it was still very early in my recovery. In the first few weeks of waking up I had made a promise to myself that despite the obstacles I would record, sing and play every instrument, then release a song to honour the 1 year anniversary of my brain haemorrhage. I needed something to aim for and something to hang on to. There’s nothing like almost dying to give you perspective on what’s important. Music has always been there for me, and it literally helped me rewire my brain’’. Laurie Luke

Staying true to his promise, Luke recorded and played every instrument on the upcoming single. Powerfinger’s Darren Middlelton then came on board to mix it.

‘Long Way Home’ follow’s previous singles ‘Slow Buzz’ and ‘Aurora Borealis’.

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