Barlow is one of Britain's most successful songwriters, having written fourteen Number 1 singles and twenty four top 10 hits. He has had three Number 1 singles, six top 10 singles and two Number 1 albums as a solo artist, and has had seventeen top 5 hits, twelve Number 1 singles and seven Number 1 albums with Take That. He is also a six-time recipient of the Ivor Novello Award and has sold over 50 million records worldwide. He was appointed an OBE in 2012 for services to music and charity.
Barlow's solo career was predicted to be very successful, being described as 'the next George Michael'. His first two solo singles "Forever Love" (released July 1996) and "Love Won't Wait" (composed by Madonna and Shep Pettibone) both leapt to the number one spot in his home country. "Forever Love" was also used as the soundtrack to the film The Leading Man. His debut album "Open Road" reached number 1 in the UK Albums Chart and went on to sell 2 million copies worldwide. Barlow's first single to be released in the United States as a solo artist was "So Help Me Girl", which reached number 44 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart and number 1 on the US Billboard Adult Contemporary chart. He then achieved another top ten hit in the UK with "Open Road" peaking at number 7 and number 8 in the Netherlands with "Are You Ready Now".
After the success of his first solo album he released his second LP "Twelve Months, Eleven Days" in 1999. Barlow released "Stronger" as the lead single preceding the album. However, due to an expected backlash against Barlow, it received minimal support and airplay and only peaked at number 16. The second single "For All That You Want" again was subjected to minimal radio play and peaked at number 24, however it peaked just outside the top 5 in Finland. "Twelve Months, Eleven Days" was released soon after the first single to little promotion and peaked at a disappointing number 35, which led to Sony recalling Barlow's 'greatest' song according to critics, the scheduled third single from his second album "Lie to Me". This resulted in both Barlow and BMG parting company. To date Barlow has sold 5 million records worldwide as a solo artist.
On September 2013, Barlow announced via his Twitter account that he would be releasing his first full-length solo album in 14 years, on 25 November 2013. Barlow encouraged his followers and fans to tweet #GBSOLO to reveal the album artwork and title, with their profile pictures being used to create a collage of the album cover. On 4 October 2013, Barlow revealed his new album would be called "Since I Saw You Last", and would be preceded by his first single from the LP, titled "Let Me Go", released worldwide on 17 November 2013. He also announced that he would be touring the album in April 2014, playing some of the biggest arenas in the UK.
Never Knew
Gary Barlow Lyrics
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The greener grass it turned to stone
Your shadowed face shines a rainbow now
The sign I found it pointed home
Never knew that I'd miss you this way
Never knew that pain could survive here inside
Never knew that I'd miss you this much
I only walked to breathe again
I felt the walls were falling down
Caught a busy train to freedom
Now here I stand in this lonely town
Never knew that I'd miss you this way
Never knew that pain could survive here inside
Never knew that I'd miss you this much
I'm reaching out to touch, I'm calling out for love
Never knew that I'd miss you this way
Never knew that pain could survive here inside
Never knew that I'd miss you this much
I'm reaching out to touch, I'm calling out for love
In this song, Gary Barlow talks about finding himself on a road to nowhere and realizing that the greener grass he had been searching for had turned to stone. He is lost and cannot find his way back home until he sees the shadowed face of his loved one shining like a rainbow, which points him in the direction of home. He reflects on how he never knew that he would miss his loved one this much or that pain could survive for so long inside of him. He reaches out to her, calling out for love and acknowledging that he only walked to breathe again and felt the walls falling down. He took a train to freedom but now finds himself in a lonely town, missing his loved one.
The song offers a deep reflection on the feeling of loss and how unexpected it can be. It is the realization that you never truly know how much someone means to you until they are gone. Gary Barlow's use of metaphors such as 'the road to nowhere' and 'the greener grass turning to stone' convey a sense of despair and emptiness that one can feel when they lose someone they love. The song's message is that love is one of the most powerful forces in the world, capable of making us feel both intensely alive and incredibly vulnerable.
Line by Line Meaning
I found the road to nowhere
I thought I was moving forward, but now I feel lost and directionless
The greener grass it turned to stone
What I thought was a better opportunity or situation has become barren and hopeless
Your shadowed face shines a rainbow now
Even though you're not here, memories of you bring color and hope into my life
The sign I found it pointed home
I've realized that what I truly need is something familiar and comforting, and that is where I belong
Never knew that I'd miss you this way
I never realized how much I relied on and cared for you until now
Never knew that pain could survive here inside
I didn't realize how much your absence could physically hurt me and weigh on my emotions
I'm reaching out to touch, I'm calling out for love
I am desperate for human connection and the comfort that it brings
I only walked to breathe again
I needed to distance myself from a painful situation and start anew in order to heal
I felt the walls were falling down
It seemed like everything was crumbling around me and I couldn't escape the chaos
Caught a busy train to freedom
I made a bold decision to leave behind my old life and start fresh in search of inner peace and happiness
Now here I stand in this lonely town
Even though I have a new beginning, I still feel lost and alone
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: GARY BARLOW
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind