Gary Allan didn’t have a plan for his latest album. One showed up anyway.
In the process of assembling the songs that would become his ninth studio collection, “Set You Free,” he noticed a trend: It reads like a breakup.
It starts with him in kiss-off mode with “Tough Goodbye,” dives into coping mechanisms such as “It Ain’t The Whiskey” and “Hungover Heart” and ends with him “Good As New.”
Critics quickly labeled the collection as Allan’s most optimistic album, and he agrees. Of course, any optimism might make it his most optimistic.
“I think I’m in a really good place,” says Allan from his home near Nashville, Tenn.
“I was called the master of misery. In my defense, that’s my favorite stuff. I just tried to find a brighter way to say it (this time).”
Fans responded to the album. Allan, who started playing county music in his native California as a pre-teen, broke onto the national scene in 1996 with a series of wellreceived albums. Included were several country radio hits, among them three chart toppers - “Man to Man,” “Tough Little Boys” and “Nothing on But the Radio,” the last of those coming in 2004. Earlier this year, one of the singles from “Set You Free,” a heartbreak song called “Every Storm (Runs Out of Rain),” climbed to the peak position.
Allan insists the material in the near-decade between the hits was just as strong as before and after. He blames the promotional team working for the record company, saying they “fumbled” the last release.
Armed with a new group thisyear, Allan says he had “huge” expectations for “Set You Free.” It met them, debuting at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 albums chart, which details sales for all genres. It was Allan’s first album to hit No. 1 overall.
“‘Set You Free’ doesn’t sound like every other album coming out of the Nashville factory these days - and that’s definitely a good thing,” said Country Weekly magazine upon the album’s release.
Allan also credits a few new co-writers as positive influences on the album, including Hillary Lindsey, who has written songs for Bon Jovi, Taylor Swift, Carrie Underwood and many more.
Additionally, Allan was able to use his touring band on the album, bringing 10 years of cohesion to the studio.
“I’ve got a rock band. I always have. We’ve been together for 10 years. That’s our biggest thing with the live performance. There’s a looseness and a spontaneous vibe,” Allan says.
Together, they’ll re-create the songs for the crowds at the Arkansas Music Pavilion, where they perform tonight with special guests Backroad Anthem.
After these dates, Allan will join Sheryl Crow for a string of co-headlining dates and spend time on the country music festival circuit.
Whats Up, Pages 14 on 07/12/2013