Alan Garrity is a singer, guitarist and pianist who was born on 14 October … Read Full Bio ↴Alan Garrity is a singer, guitarist and pianist who was born on 14 October 1947 in Manchester, England.

Musical Career

The son of a British army officer, Alan moved to Rhodesia with his parents shortly before his fourteenth birthday. As a child he performed in various school musical activities but harboured no pretensions of being anything more than ordinary. He learnt to play guitar at fifteen and, after completing his schooling at Milton High in Bulawayo, trained and worked as a radiographer. As a hobby he sang in local pubs and hotels. It was during this period that Alan realised that he had a three-octave range in his voice. He formed a band in Bulawayo (see TABBRON TRIO) and penned his first seven single, a song called "Coloured Rain". He scored an immediate success with this tune as it raced up the Rhodesian record charts, peaking at Number 2.

With gathering confidence in his musical prospects, Alan gave up his occupation as a radiographer and landed a job as the resident vocalist at the Swaziland Holiday Inn in 1972. The well known Peter Lotis of Gallo records heard Alan perform at this venue and offered him a recording contract. At Peter's suggestion, Alan recorded "Put Your Hand In The Hand" and the song achieved instant success, quickly dominating the local charts. It also made Alan a household name. The song topped the Springbok Top 20 for four weeks and the Rhodesian charts for five. This run at No 1 started on 5 June, 1971.

In 1971 he was presented the Springbok Award as South Africa's 'Most Promising Male Vocalist'. In September, 1971, his first album predictably entitled "Put Your Hand In The Hand" was released.

His next chart success, "I Need Someone", held the record for over ten years as the song with the longest chart run on Springbok Radio's Top 20 hit parade. It spent 33 weeks on the charts between June 1972 and January 1973. This song - which peaked at No 2 on Springbok's Top 20 - earned him two Gold Discs, as well as the 1972 SARI Award as 'Best Song Of The Year'. In 1973, he won that year's award for 'Best LP Of The Year', as well as the SARI Award for 'Best Male Vocalist'.

"Home Isn't Home Anymore" was Alan's next chart entry, spending 16 weeks on Springbok's Top 20, peaking at No 5 in 1973. In December, 1973, he released his third album, "Goodbye Mama", which peaked at No 15 in January, 1974, spending 7 weeks on the Top 20. The single, "Give Me Back My Woman", from this album reached No 9 in the Top 20 in April, 1974, and was present on the charts for 10 weeks. In November, 1974, he released the album "Words and Music" having composed all the songs and lyrics himself.

In 1975 he won his second SARI Award as 'Best Male Vocalist' and succeeded in getting yet another song onto the charts - "She's My Woman". This release reached No 15.

In 1976, Alan's acting skills came to the fore when he took the lead role of Joseph in PACT's "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat", performing alongside well known artists such as Richard Loring, Jody Wayne and Wayne and Alvin Collison. This production toured extensively throughout South Africa and Rhodesia.

Hit singles continued to accumulate with "Santa Maria" reaching No 4 on the Springbok Top 20 in 1981, spending 11 weeks on the charts. Once again, in 1981, he garnered the SARI Awards for 'Best Male Vocalist', as well as 'Best Top Twenty Artist'. In April, 1982, he swan-songed the charts with "You Stood By Me" which reached No 18.

Since then Alan and his family have spent much of their time touring the world from their home in Manchester, England, although he maintained a home in Kleinmond as well. He continues to sing and is involved in cruise director's duties aboard luxury ocean liners.

Singles

Put Your Hand In The Hand (1971)
The Dream Waltz (1971)
Somehow, Somewhere (1971)
I Need Someone (1971)
Till The Rivers All Run Dry (1972)
Home Isn't Home Anymore (1972)
I'll Have To Dream (1973)
Goodbye Mama (1973)
Give Me Back My Woman (1974)
Look What You've Done (1974)
She's My Woman (1975)
Sunshine In My World (1976)
You're Losing Me (1980)
Santa Maria (1981)
You Stood By Me (1982)
Oh Louisa (1982)

Albums

Put Your Hand In The Hand (1971)
I Need Someone (1972)
Goodbye Mama (1973)
Alan Garrity & Pat Matthews (1973)
Words & Music (1974)
Feelings (1976)
Santa Maria (1981)
A Song For You (1982)
Christmas With Alan Garrity (1985)
Licensed To Sing (1989)
A Portrait Of Alan Garrity (1997)

Alan has had his music published and recorded overseas and his records have been released in Holland, Germany, Denmark, Australia, New Zealand, Brazil and Argentina.

SARIE Awards

1972 - Song Of The Year (I Need Someone)
1973 - Album Of The Year (I Need Someone)
1973 & 1975 - Best Male Vocalist
1981 - Top 20 Artist Of The Year (Santa Maria)

Come What May
Alan Garrity Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

There were times
In the days gone by
When I thought I was living
Having fun with all the friends I knew

Now it seems
Oh, so long ago
For my life changed completely

From the moment I met you

Come what may
I will love you forever
And forever my heart belongs to you
Come what may
For as long as I'm loving
I've been living only for you

Now I know
I was lost when I met you
When I met you love told me what to do
Come what may
In a world full of changes
Nothing changes my love for you

You never ask
What the past was like
I will live for tomorrow
Yesterday is very far away

And now you're here
Everything is new
You are all that I long for
And I long for you to stay

Come what may
I will love you forever
And forever my heart belongs to you
Come what may
For as long as I'm living
I've been living only for you

Now I know
I was lost when I met you
When I met you love told me what to do
Come what may

In a world full of changes
Nothing changes my love for you

Overall Meaning

Alan Garrity's "Come What May" depicts the songwriter reflecting on a life that was seemingly fulfilled with fun, friendship, and a sense of living, but it was not until he met 'you,' his beloved one, that his life felt complete. The first verse sets up this comparison, the time of having fun with friends and now looking back it seems like an era that's gone by. He says he was lost without 'you' and has found his way only after meeting them, as love has guided him on this path. This is significant as love is often portrayed as a force that guides someone towards a path of self-discovery, and the lyrics of the song do the same. The chorus is an affirmation of his love, stating that it will remain forever, and he dedicates his life to 'you.'

In the second verse, Garrity says 'you' don't ask about his past, and he lives for tomorrow, with yesterday feeling like a distant memory. He now fully appreciates the present moment and 'you' are the only thing he longs for. The repetition of 'Come what may' in the chorus suggests a sense of perseverance, that no matter what happens, he will always love 'you.' In the bridge, the lyrics imply that the world may be a complex place, but his love for 'you' remains unchanging.

Overall, "Come What May" is a song about finding love and realizing that it's the missing piece to a person's life puzzle. The songwriter expresses the transformative power of love, and how it can change one's perspective on oneself and the world around them. In essence, the song celebrates the optimism and certainty that love can bring into someone's life.

Line by Line Meaning

There were times
There were moments in the past

In the days gone by
In the past times which will never come back

When I thought I was living
When I believed I was alive and happy

Having fun with all the friends I knew
Spending enjoyable moments with all my familiar friends

Now it seems
Currently it appears

Oh, so long ago
A long time has passed

For my life changed completely
My life transformed fundamentally

From the moment I met you
Since the moment I encountered you

Come what may
Regardless of what happens

I will love you forever
I will love you for eternity

And forever my heart belongs to you
And my heart only belongs to you for eternity