b. Gary Allan Herzberg, 5 December 1967, La Mirada, California, USA. This country singer-songwriter and keen surfer grew up in southern California. As a precocious teenager he first appeared on stage with the Herzberg family band. A&M Records were soon expressing an interest in the young singer, but his father put a hold on this development. Several years down the line Allan was running his own successful construction business and playing the local bar circuit with his band, the Cowboy Wranglers. His breakthrough came about when a rich benefactor paid for him to hire a studio in Nashville, where he recorded a demo tape with guitar player Jake Kelly. These demos helped secure Allan a contract with Decca Records, for whom he recorded his 1996 debut, Used Heart For Sale. A fine showcase for Allan’s take on Merle Haggard -style hardcore country, the album included the Top 10 hit ‘Her Man’. Further hits proved elusive until the title track of his second Decca album, It Would Be You, returned Allan to the Top 10.
The demise of Decca resulted in Allan switching labels to MCA Nashville. His debut for the company, 1999’s Smoke Rings In The Dark, indicated a move towards a heavily produced and more Nashville-orientated sound, although Allan’s traditional leanings shone through on songs such as the title track and ‘Cryin’ For Nothin’’. The album also included an interesting cover version of Del Shannon’s ‘Runaway’. The follow-up Alright Guy featured Allan’s first country chart-topper, ‘Man To Man’, and the artist built on this commercial momentum with 2003’s excellent See If I Care. Allan’s 2005 release Tough All Over saw the artist breaking into the US mainstream Top 5 for the first time in his career.
