Tough All Over

Gary Allan - Tough All Over

Tough All Over
List Price: $13.98
Our Price: $6.07
You Save: $7.91 (57%)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Buy Used: from $0.37 (click here)
Category: Music CD
See more new music releases
Listen soundtracks from this album



(Click here)
Buy this Music CD at online store in your country
Canadian Music Store

Music CD Cover

Artist: Gary Allan
Edition: Music CD
CD Release Date: 2005-10-11
Music Label: Mca Nashville
Soundtracks:
  1. Tough All Over
  2. Best I Ever Had
  3. I Just Got Back From Hell
  4. Ring Ring
  5. Promise Broken
  6. Nickajack Cave
  7. Life Ain't Always Beautiful
  8. He Can't Quit Her
  9. What Kind Of Fool
  10. Puttin' Memories Away
  11. No Damn Good
  12. Puttin' My Misery On Display

Tough All Over Poster

Tough All Over, Allan's overwhelming sixth collection, on MCA Nashville, is true to all aspects of Allan's past work, beliefs, and successes. He remains a staunch believer in risk-taking tunes, evidenced here particularly by the forceful "He Can't Quit Her," which sees love as addiction, and "Nickajack Cave (Johnny Cash's Redemption)," which portrays a dramatic turning point in the late country legend's life after drugs and alcohol had "him strung out on the ropes."

But Tough All Over also moves on. Previous Allan albums presented his music as the play of a mainstream Nashville artist making his strong and sweet peace with California country traditions stretching from the rich balladry of Roy Orbison to the ornery truths of Haggard and Owens to the post-punk roots allegiances of the Blasters and X.

That play is now gone. In its place is a fully integrated command of California and Nashville country that leaps out as Gary Allan music at its most immediate, satisfying, and mature.

For Allan, Tough All Over has become his favorite record; he describes the final sessions now as "the most expensive therapy I've ever had." He worked, after all, with the same group of musicians -- among them keyboardist Steve Nathan, drummer Chad Cromwell, electric guitarist Brent Rowan, bass player Michael Rhodes, acoustic guitarists Jake Kelly and John Willis, percussionist Eric Darken, fiddle player Hank Singer and steel player Robby Turner -- that he had been friends with and recorded with since his very first studio album.


As the title of Gary Allan's sixth album suggests, there's no change of pace or lightening up on his darkest collection to date (and first since his wife's suicide). Love goes bad on the bittersweet "Best I Ever Had," gets brutal on "I Just Got Back from Hell," and turns positively lethal on "He Can't Quit Her." The closest Allan comes to an affirmative sentiment is the schmaltzy "Life Ain't Always Beautiful," though an extended guitar solo brings the rock balladry of "Putting My Misery on Display" to a soul-stirring finale. "Nickajack Cave" evokes the mythic redemption of Johnny Cash, but there's no redemption for Allan here. He sounds like he's trying so hard to convey life's hard lessons that the comparative understatement of "Puttin' Memories Away" comes as a relief. --Don McLeese

Country Music CDs

Music Genres
Top music charts in Country Music CDs
Alabama Slide Guitar ImageJohnie Lewis - Alabama Slide Guitar
Release date: 1998-01-20; Music CD
Best price: $6.98
Price in other shops: $10.98
Texas Blues ImageLightnin Hopkins - Texas Blues
Release date: 1993-11-30; Music CD
Best price: $11.48
Price in other shops: $16.98
Legends ImageLewis - Legends
Release date: 1986-11-01; Music CD
Price in other shops: $10.98
Hotel California [Vinyl] ImageEagles - Hotel California [Vinyl]
Release date: 1997-12-05; Music CD
Best price: $229.99
Bayou Country ImageCcr - Bayou Country
Release date: 1993-06-18; Music CD
Best price: $84.99
Senor Blues ImageTaj Mahal - Senor Blues
Release date: 1997-06-17; Music CD
Best price: $8.99
Price in other shops: $10.98
Fonte Viva ImageFonte Viva
Music CD
Blackland Farmer-Complete Star ImageBlackland Farmer-Complete Star
Bear Family (GE; Published: 2008-02; Audio CD; Book
Best price: $74.98
Taken By Surprise ImageTaken By Surprise
by Red Hot Burritos
Published: 1992; Music CD
Best price: $19.99
Christmas Joy: Solo Piano for the Holidays ImageChristmas Joy: Solo Piano for the Holidays
by Deborah Offenhauser
Pba Music Pub; Published: 2005-11-30; Audio CD; Book
Best price: $23.99
Top Rated Albums
Sinners Like Me ImageEric Church - Sinners Like Me
Release date: 2006-07-18; Music CD
Best price: $6.07
Price in other shops: $8.94
Carolina ImageEric Church - Carolina
Release date: 2009-03-24; Music CD
Best price: $6.09
Price in other shops: $18.98
Smoke Rings in the Dark ImageGary Allan - Smoke Rings in the Dark
ALLAN,GARY; Release date: 1999-10-26; Music CD
Best price: $9.33
Price in other shops: $13.98
Alright Guy ImageGary Allan - Alright Guy
Release date: 2001-10-02; Music CD
Best price: $2.93
Price in other shops: $9.98
Used Heart for Sale ImageGary Allan - Used Heart for Sale
Release date: 1996-09-24; Music CD
Best price: $3.01
Price in other shops: $5.98
It Would Be You ImageGary Allan - It Would Be You
ALLAN,GARY; Release date: 1998-05-19; Music CD
Best price: $2.38
Price in other shops: $5.98
See If I Care ImageGary Allan - See If I Care
Release date: 2003-09-30; Music CD
Best price: $8.00
Price in other shops: $13.98
Living Hard ImageGary Allan - Living Hard
Baker & Taylor; Release date: 2007-10-23; Music CD
Best price: $7.95
Price in other shops: $13.98
Get Off on the Pain ImageGary Allan - Get Off on the Pain
Release date: 2010-03-09; Music CD
Best price: $5.69
Price in other shops: $10.98
Greatest Hits ImageGary Allan - Greatest Hits
Release date: 2007-03-06; Music CD
Best price: $6.88
Price in other shops: $10.99
Compare prices and find music notes for more than one million Music CD titles