Allan was born and raised in La Mirada, California, to Harley and Mary Herzberg. To ensure that the family would focus on music, Allan's mother insisted that the family's guitars would always remain visible in the home. At age thirteen, Allan began playing in honky tonks with his father. Two years later, he was offered his first recording contract, from A&M Records, but rejected the deal. His parents wanted him to finish his education and his father felt that Allan had yet to develop his own distinctive style. Despite his commitment to finishing school, Allan reflects that he was rarely alert in class. "I played the bars at night, I was half asleep when I got to school. I thought sleep was what you did when you got to school." After finishing school, he continued to play in the bars with his band, the Honky Tonk Wranglers. Many of the venues they played were packed, and promoters often tried to move them to larger clubs. The moves would have required him to stop playing some of the older country music, such as covers of George Jones songs, so Allan refused.
Allan was introduced to songwriter/producer Byron Hill on August 28, 1993 by a mutual friend and talent-scout Jim Seal at a bar called the Lion D'or in Downey, California, where Allan was already regularly performing. Seal and Hill had asked Allan if they could showcase an unsigned act that they were developing there. Hill had arranged to bring the head of A&R from a major label to the show to see this other act perform. Allan kindly let them use his stage for the event, giving the new act the opening performance slot that night. Hill promised Gary that they would make sure the A&R person remained there to see his portion of the show. Everyone was knocked out with Allan's performance, and very impressed with his voice. From that point on, Hill began sending Allan songs. Without any serious funding at the time, Hill arranged for Allan to go into Seal's small studio in California to try his vocals on some of existing demo tracks that Hill had sent to Allan from Nashville, Tennessee. Meanwhile, Hill became head of A&R at BNA Entertainment on October 29 of that same year and immediately wanted to sign Allan to BNA, but the then current roster conditions and other circumstances related to the planned restructuring of RCA/BNA Nashville stood in the way.
In the meantime, Allan took a job selling cars. He left a demo tape in the glove box of a car purchased by a wealthy couple. When the couple discovered that he was the singer, they wrote him a check for $12,000. This independent funding allowed Allan to go to Nashville to record some of the songs that were on that early demo tape with Hill as producer. On September 11, 1995, they worked at Javelina Studios for a couple of days on the four songs that Hill immediately showed to labels. Allan's recordings brought serious responses from several labels including Mercury, RCA, and Decca. A meeting was then held at a Nashville hotel among Hill, Allan, and friend of Allan's, who was a program director for a radio station in California, to arrange two showcases in Los Angeles, California, to put Allan on stage at two of the radio station's regular nights at a local club. Byron arranged for staffers at the Nashville office of Decca Records to attend the first showcase held on November 1, 1995. Decca immediately wanted to sign Allan, and knowing that Byron was lining up other labels to see Gary, Decca asked them to cancel the second showcase. A rep from RCA was already booked to see the second showcase the following week, but the "bird-in-hand" deal offer was too tempting for both Hill and Allan, so they committed to the Decca offer.
His first deal, with Decca Records Nashville, produced the 1996 album Used Heart for Sale. The album was named "Best of the Month" by Stereo Review. It advanced to the top 20 of the charts, and produced a Top 10 country hit with the track Her Man (previously recorded by Waylon Jennings). Other tracks from the album, however, proved less successful.
His second album, It Would Be You, was released in 1998. Although Allan had been writing songs since he was a teenager, he does not hesitate to bump his work from his albums in favor of those written by other songwriters he respects. For his second album, Allan replaced one of his songs with No Judgement Day, written by Allen Shamblin. Although the song was a hidden acoustic track, radio stations began giving it heavy airplay. The song tells the story of a shopkeeper in Texas, whose children killed him in search of money. The title track of the album became Allan's second top 10 hit of the year, remaining in the top 10 after 21 weeks of radio play, "way beyond the tenure of most disposable radio hits." At the beginning of 1999, Decca Records folded, and when Allan moved to the parent label, MCA Nashville, It Would Be You was left in limbo.
In 1999, Allan released Smoke Rings in the Dark, an album he recorded while in the midst of a divorce from his second wife, Versace model Danette Day, after only seven months of marriage. Unlike his first two albums, Smoke Rings in the Dark made fuller use of background singers and stringed instruments, "resulting in a lusher, fuller sound." The new album avoided the "devil-may-care brashness" of the first two, instead presenting a tone balanced between youthful optimism and "the knowledge that some of life's experiences exact a high toll." Smoke Rings in the Dark was certified platinum, and it included two successful singles.
In 2001 the album Alright Guy was released. It contained the singles The One, Man of Me, and Man to Man, the latter of which became his first Billboard No. 1 hit. The same year, Allan married for the third time, to Angela, a flight attendant he met on an airplane.
Despite his previous success and eight years in the music business, Allan was nominated for the Country Music Association's Horizon Award, typically given to newcomers, in 2003. The same year he released his fifth album, See If I Care. Allan had to fight to keep the title, which he felt epitomized his attitude towards the music business, that he would continue to make the music that he wanted to make regardless of whether the record label chose to back him or people chose to buy the album. See If I Care included his second and third Number One singles, Tough Little Boys and Nothing On but the Radio. Songs About Rain was a top 15 hit.
In 2003, Allan and his wife, Angela Herzberg, moved to Tennessee from California. On October 25, 2004, Angela Herzberg committed suicide after suffering from depression and migraines. Allan initially put his career on hold, but soon turned to music to deal with the loss of his wife. This resulted in 2005's "heart-wrenchingly personal album," Tough All Over. He included several songs which he wrote or cowrote, including Puttin' Memories Away and I Just Got Back from Hell, which dealt directly with his grief. Several years later, Gary discussed his wife's suicide on The Oprah Winfrey Show.
Tough All Over sold over 99,000 copies in its first week, debuting at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 and No. 1 on the magazine's Top Country Albums chart. It was subsequently certified gold by the RIAA as of December 20, 2006, and contained the top 10 singles Best I Ever Had (written by Vertical Horizon's Matt Scannell) and Life Ain't Always Beautiful, co-written by country singer Cyndi Thomson (under the name Cyndi Goodman).
Allan's first Greatest Hits collection was released on March 6, 2007. A Number One album on the Billboard Top Country Albums charts, the album reprised the greatest hits from his first six albums, as well as two new songs. One of these, titled A Feelin' Like That, was co-written by David Lee Murphy and Ira Dean (the latter a former member of Trick Pony); the single peaked at #12 on the country singles charts.
Allan's album titled Living Hard, was released on October 23, 2007. Serving as its lead-off single was the song Watching Airplanes, which spent more than thirty weeks on the country charts, where it reached a peak of #2 and went #1 on the Mediabase Chart. The song's music video was filmed during live concerts, including one at the Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Morrison, Colorado. Second single Learning How to Bend – co-written by Allan – quickly became another hit song, peaking at #13. The video was filmed during a live performance at the House of Blues in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Following this song is third single She's So California, which Allan co-wrote with Jaime Hanna (of Hanna-McEuen) and Jon Randall, and it peaked at #24, becoming his first single to miss the top 20 since Lovin' You Against My Will in 2000.
Today was released on June 12, 2009, serving as the lead-off single to Allan's studio album, Get Off on the Pain, which was released on March 9, 2010. Title track, Get Off on the Pain, was the album's second single. It debuted at #42 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs chart, the highest-debuting single of his career. Kiss Me When I'm Down the album's third single released to radio in 2010. It debuted at #52 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs chart.
http://www.garyallan.com/pain/
Man Of Me
Gary Allan Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Still when I graduated
I didn't have a clue
Did a stand in the Navy
They did they're best to break me
Somehow I made it through
I've been around the block
But baby I believe
That love and you made a man of me
Raising hell racing cars
Closing down the local bars
That what I used to do
Family told me settle down
Find yourself some solid ground
Where you can put down some roots
Back then I thought love
Was only sissy stuff
But now I see
That love and you made a man of me
Love and you made a man of me
Don't know what it is you do
But every time I'm holding you
I know what my heart is for
I'm the one you lean on
Gotta be strong
It's not just about me anymore
Well goodbye to my blind and immature days
Love and you made a man of me
Made a man of me, yeah
Made a man of me, wow
I'd still be only lost and lonely
As a boy could be can't ya see
That love and you made a man of me
Love and you made a man of me
Ya made a man of me
Man of me, yeah
The song "Man of Me" by Gary Allan is a love song that speaks upon how love and maturity work hand in hand, enabling a person to become a better version of themselves. The lyrics tell us the story of the man who's been through some tough times, such as a troubled high school experience and serving in the Navy, but through the different struggles in his life. , he managed to learn from his mistakes and grow into a mature and responsible person. He has had bad experiences and has made wrong decisions in his past, but with the help of a loving partner, he was able to turn his life around.
The first verse describes the feeling of uncertainty the singer had after finishing high school, and how his experience in the Navy helped him become stronger. The second verse talks about his wild and reckless behavior in his younger days, but thanks to his family's guidance and his partner's influence, he was able to settle down and find stability in his life. The chorus of the song emphasizes the importance of love in his life, and how it has made him a better person.
In conclusion, "Man of Me" is a heartwarming song that talks about the positive effects of love and maturity on a person's life. It highlights how a person can grow and learn from their experiences with the help of those who support them. The song's message serves as a reminder that, with the right person by your side, you can become the best version of yourself.
Line by Line Meaning
Well high school got me educated
Although I finished high school, I wasn't really prepared for the world.
Still when I graduated
I didn't have a clue
After finishing school, I was still lost and didn't know what to do with my life.
Did a stand in the Navy
They did they're best to break me
Somehow I made it through
I joined the military, and although it was tough, I managed to persevere and make it through.
I've had some hard knocks
I've been around the block
But baby I believe
That love and you made a man of me
I've faced some challenges and been through some difficult times, but I truly believe that being with you and experiencing your love has helped me grow and mature into a better person.
Raising hell racing cars
Closing down the local bars
That what I used to do
I used to live recklessly and do foolish things like street racing and drinking excessively at bars.
Family told me settle down
Find yourself some solid ground
Where you can put down some roots
My family advised me to stop living recklessly and start building a stable life where I can establish myself and create a foundation for the future.
Back then I thought love
Was only sissy stuff
But now I see
That love and you made a man of me
I used to underestimate the value of love and thought it was something for weak people, but now I realize that your love has helped me become a stronger and better man.
Don't know what it is you do
But every time I'm holding you
I know what my heart is for
I'm not sure what it is about you, but whenever I'm with you, I feel a sense of purpose and my heart feels full.
I'm the one you lean on
Gotta be strong
It's not just about me anymore
You rely on me and I need to be strong to support you. It's no longer just about me, but about us as a team.
Well goodbye to my blind and immature days
Love and you made a man of me
Made a man of me, yeah
Made a man of me, wow
I'm saying goodbye to my foolish and immature past, and acknowledging that your love has had a positive impact on my life and helped me grow into a better person.
I'd still be only lost and lonely
As a boy could be can't ya see
That love and you made a man of me
Love and you made a man of me
Ya made a man of me
Man of me, yeah
Without your love, I would still be lost and alone like a little boy. But your love has helped me become a man and transformed my life for the better.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: GEORGE G. III TEREN, MELVERN RIVERS II RUTHERFORD
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@marlonregis581
Well high school got me educated
Still when I graduated
I didn't have a clue
Did a stand in the Navy
They did they're best to break me
Somehow I made it through
I've had some hard knocks
I've been around the block
But baby I believe
That love and you made a man of me
Raising hell racing cars
Closing down the local bars
That what I used to do
Family told me settle down
Find yourself some solid ground
Where you can put down some roots
Back then I thought love
Was only sissy stuff
But now I see
That love and you made a man of me
Love and you made a man of me
Don't know what it is you do
But every time I'm holding you
I know what my heart is for
I'm the one you lean on
Gotta be strong
It's not just about me anymore
Well goodbye to my blind and immature days
Love and you made a man of me
Made a man of me, yeah
Made a man of me, wow
I'd still be only lost and lonely
As a boy could be can't ya see
That love and you made a man of me
Love and you made a man of me
Ya made a man of me
Man of me, yeah
@chrisharkins8708
We need this today in country music.. Gary Allan is one of the best. 2023 soon to be 2024.
@PilgrimPiper
My favorite tune of his right here. His style and swagger...really cool. Wife and I enjoy going to his concerts. Peace be with all
@MeggieWillis
Mine too.
@smalltowngirl420
I can't get enough of listening to Gary Allan he is true country. Love this Video..❤
@MeggieWillis
me too.😃
@ramonaendicott5559
Still listening in{2021} he has always had the best voice, like many i don't understand why he never went anywhere
@annaellington976
Will always listen he is the best
@ghostdiaper5927
I wouldn't say he didnt go anywhere he had a pretty good career.
@Chelsea-lp1gc
Wtf are you talking about he never went anywhere? I'm not even a huge country music fan, even I know of alot of his music. He's well known.
@mkowboy13
He was on the top 20’s of the charts up until around 2006 after his wife passed away and then he released “get off on the pain” & “set you free” album which were still successful but it seemed like he kinda went to underground country.. like not in the spot light like performing at the awards etc