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.
Open Road
Gary Barlow Lyrics
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I fought the fear and chased the pain
My life doesn't need to be explained
I chose to walk the line as one
Sometimes, as I live upon my island
Cut off from emotion and its pain
Oh, that's when I am tempted by the waters
The waters that I can take me far away
So I'll just keep on walking down this open road
Hoping someone somewhere needs me
So I'll just keep on walking down this open road
Talking to the man who knows me
Yes, he knows me, the man is me
My life was once full of people's faces
Brought to me by love which isn't strange
Oh, my life had the goodness of blue waters
A day's a day for all I used to say
Sometimes I can sit and cry my heart out
Drowning in my autocratic ways
Oh, that's when I am tempted by the waters
Waters that can take me far away
So I'll just keep on walking down this open road
Hoping someone somewhere needs me
So I'll just keep on walking down this open road
Talking to the man who knows me
Yes, he knows me, the man is me
Hmm, hmm, hmm, hmm, hmm
Hmm, hmm, hmm, hmm, hmm
Hmm, hmm, hmm
My life is now full of people's faces
Within the light of change I pulled away
Oh, my life shows that no man is an island
I've exchanged the piece of life I cut away
Now you won't see me walking down that open road
I've found someone now who needs me
No, you won't see me walking down that open road
I've found at last the man who knows me
Yes, he knows me, the man was me
The man was me
The song “Open Road” by Gary Barlow talks about the journey of life and the struggles that come with it. The opening lines of the song, “My life is extraordinary bare, I fought the fear and chased the pain” talks about how hard life can be at times, but how we have to forge ahead despite the difficulties. He goes on to say that he chose to walk the line as one, which means that he chose to face life’s struggles alone instead of relying on others to help him. At times, he feels like he is on an island, cut off from emotion and its pain, and this is when he is tempted by the waters, which represent his desire to escape from it all.
The chorus, “So I'll just keep on walking down this open road, Hoping someone somewhere needs me”, talks about how he will keep moving forward, hoping that someone out there needs him. He also talks about how he is talking to the man who knows him, and this man is him. This means that he is talking to himself and trying to understand himself better.
The second verse talks about how his life was once full of people’s faces, but now it is full of the faces of the people he has met on his journey. He has exchanged a piece of life that he cut away, which means that he has let go of the negative things in his life and replaced them with positivity. The final lines of the song talk about how he has found someone who needs him and how he has found himself. He is no longer walking down that open road because he has found what he was looking for.
Line by Line Meaning
My life is extraordinary bare
My life is simple and unremarkable
I fought the fear and chased the pain
I overcame my fears and pursued what caused me pain
My life doesn't need to be explained
My life is not something that needs to be justified to anyone
I chose to walk the line as one
I decided to follow my own path alone
Sometimes, as I live upon my island
At times, I feel alone and cut off from others
Cut off from emotion and its pain
I disconnect from my feelings and the hurt they cause
Oh, that's when I am tempted by the waters
In those moments, I am tempted to escape
The waters that I can take me far away
I am tempted to leave my troubles behind and start fresh elsewhere
So I'll just keep on walking down this open road
I will keep moving forward on this path I have chosen
Hoping someone somewhere needs me
I hope that I can be of use to someone, somewhere
Talking to the man who knows me
I am talking to myself, my own inner voice
Yes, he knows me, the man is me
I know and understand myself better than anyone else
My life was once full of people's faces
I used to have many people in my life
Brought to me by love which isn't strange
Love is what brought those people into my life, and it is not an unusual thing
Oh, my life had the goodness of blue waters
My life had a sense of purity and clarity to it, like blue waters
A day's a day for all I used to say
I used to live life one day at a time, taking each as it comes
Sometimes I can sit and cry my heart out
At times, I get overwhelmed with emotion and need to let it out
Drowning in my autocratic ways
I am often too stubborn and self-reliant, preventing me from opening up to others
Now you won't see me walking down that open road
I have found what I was looking for and don't need to keep searching
I've found someone now who needs me
I have found someone who values me and relies on me
No, you won't see me walking down that open road
My journey is complete and I am content where I am
I've found at last the man who knows me
I have finally found myself and am comfortable in my own skin
Yes, he knows me, the man was me
I understand and accept myself for who I am
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Gary Barlow
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@LisaChrimes-bt5cq
Someone said to me once Gary Barlow and I said Gary's from Cheshire my Gary can listen to him all day his vocals and passion and he's a ledgend and genius ❤❤❤❤
@dinasilva9263
Damn i miss this era of music so much...my favorite ALWAYS, when music was so beautiful, and was about Love💕
@soufianeamjahed5678
I miss a lot that era , my life were full of music , science fiction movies , i were my aithentical version... Damn such emotions .....
@corner18rugby
He was blessed with an angels voice. And what he does for charities is extraordinary. He is mega awesome, and I'm so glad he is back with Take that as well. They deserve each others friendship.
@zloinaopako
Gary ages well and gets better with time.
@benredfield93
All of Gary Barlow songs are great
@pascalemirouze1728
Amazing singer and composer
@sabinevandaele4175
YES, angel voice so pure
@garyfan98
This is the song I love the most. I've been encouraged by this song ( his singing) since I heared the first time. At that time, I had some troubles and lost my way. Then his song,voice hit my soul and showed me 'how to live with confidence'.
@hugocampos2080
I'm absolutely agree boy!