[4] His roots in three distinct heritages inspired his eclectic songwriting, which has been described as a blend of punk, rock and roll balladry, and traditional Irish folk[5] Musically, Hurley is oft-noted for his soulful ("whiskey-tinged") baritone and the storytelling quality of his lyrics.

[9] The album was recorded with Hurley's band The Gents and features such musicians as The Chieftains' Paddy Moloney, Matt Sweeney, Tami Lynn, film actress Antonique Smith, Denis Diken, Joe McGinty, and Faith Hahn.

The Gents are James Mastro (Ian Hunter), Tony Shanahan (Patti Smith), and Ken Margolis (Cracker), Denny McDermott, Megan Gould, and Jon Spurney.

Their first show was reviewed by the rock journalist John Swenson, who wrote: "Lead singer and songwriter Joe Hurley, backed by a sublime group of New York City All-Stars, The Gents, ventured out last week for a pair of shows that offered up a selection of brand new material and some rarely performed Rogue's March songs....

"[12] The Gents are home at their favourite NYC venue, Joe's Pub, and have individually and collectively enjoyed critical acclaim for years.

The original Rogue's March line-up was Gary Johannes, Bill Gerstel, Jim Harry, Dan Prater, Ken Margolis and Hurley.

[18] Hurley, Irish-blooded himself, began the review as a way to honour "The Great Irish Songbook" by playing Celtic classics alongside the tunes of Thin Lizzy, Morrissey, The Pogues, The Dubliners, U2, John Lydon, and Van Morrison, to name a few.

The performance featured the Alice Cooper Group, Gene Cornish, Oscar winner Sam Bisbee, Tony-winning actor Michael Cerveris, SNL's Christine Ohlman, Joe Piscopo, Noel Kilkenny (the Irish ambassador to the USA), and NYC guitar greats Adam Roth (Denis Leary) and Ricky Byrd, who played Gary Moore's very own Les Paul, in a moving tribute weeks after the Thin Lizzy guitarist's passing.

Past musical guests have included Ronnie Spector, Fountains of Wayne, Martha Wainwright, Gogol Bordello, Garland Jeffreys, Nada Surf's Matthew Caws, Irish sensations The High Kings, The Crystals' LaLa Brooks, Carrie Rodriguez, Ellen Foley, Lenny Kaye, Faith Hahn, Tony Shanahan and Jay Dee Daugherty of Patti Smith Group, Oscar winner Mike Viola, film stars Annie Golden, Jesse Malin, Susan McKeown, Willie Nile, Kristeen Young, Ireland's chart-topping Republic of Loose, members of Irish supergroup Clanaad, the New York Dolls, The Dictators, The Mekons, Cracker, and Ian Hunter Band.

To date, proceeds from the Revue have gone to Save St Brigid's, The Animal Rescue League, Gilda's Club of NY, The Bowery Mission, the Widows of NYPD, and Haitian Relief.

When asked to describe The Allstar Irish Rock Revue, Hurley is quoted as saying, "The Songbook is of Ireland, but for everyone… New Yorkers from all backgrounds singing them.

He has sung and/or recorded with Ian Hunter, playwright Sam Shepard, PJ Harvey, Marianne Faithfull, Judy Collins and Jimmy Webb, Shane Macgowan, John Oates, Prefab Sprout, Laura Cantrell, Tami Lynn, The Waco Brothers, Faith Hahn, Kristeen Young, Antonique Smith, Annie Golden, Amy Rigby, Michael Cerveris, Lala Brooks (The Crystals), Steve Wynn, The Nick Drake Orchestra, Indaculture and the Queens All-Stars, cabaret stars Andrea Marcovicci and Maude Maggart, Martha Wainwright, Sally Timms (The Mekons), Nellie McKay, and Christine Ohlman, among others.