Living Hard
| Living Hard | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by Gary Allan | ||||
| Released | October 23, 2007 | |||
| Genre | Country | |||
| Length | 41:01 | |||
| Label | MCA Nashville | |||
| Producer |
Mark Wright Gary Allan | |||
| Gary Allan chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Singles from Living Hard | ||||
| ||||
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [1] |
| Slant Magazine |  [2] |
Living Hard is the seventh studio album by American country music singer Gary Allan. It was released on October 23, 2007 on the MCA Nashville label.
The album debuted at number three on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart, selling approximately 69,000 copies in its first week.[3] Its lead-off single, "Watching Airplanes", reached number 2 on the country charts, "Learning How to Bend" reached number 13, and the third single "She's So California" reached number 24. The song "Half of My Mistakes" was originally recorded by Radney Foster on his album This World We Live In and by Jace Everett on his self-titled debut album, both released in 2005. "Like It's a Bad Thing" was later recorded by Danny Gokey on his 2010 debut album My Best Days.
Track listing
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Watching Airplanes" | Jim Beavers, Jonathan Singleton | 4:03 |
| 2. | "We Touched the Sun" | Gary Allan, Odie Blackmon, Jim Lauderdale | 3:42 |
| 3. | "She's So California" | Allan, Jaime Hanna, Jon Randall | 3:21 |
| 4. | "Like It's a Bad Thing" | Wendell Mobley, Tony Martin, Neil Thrasher | 3:23 |
| 5. | "Learning How to Bend" | Allan, James LeBlanc, Matt Warren | 3:27 |
| 6. | "As Long as You're Looking Back" | Aaron Barker, Dean Dillon, Scotty Emerick | 3:29 |
| 7. | "Wrecking Ball" | Audley Freed, Keith Gattis | 3:49 |
| 8. | "Yesterday's Rain" | Allan, LeBlanc, Warren | 3:55 |
| 9. | "Trying to Matter" | Allan, Casey Beathard, Blackmon | 3:27 |
| 10. | "Half of My Mistakes" | Radney Foster, Bobby Houck | 4:31 |
| 11. | "Living Hard" | Allan, Blackmon, Bob DiPiero | 3:54 |
| Total length: | 41:01 | ||
| iTunes bonus track | ||
|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Length |
| 12. | "Memory on the Run" | 2:59 |
Personnel
- Gary Allan - lead vocals
- Perry Coleman - background vocals
- Chad Cromwell - drums
- Eric Darken - percussion
- Dan Dugmore - steel guitar
- Jerry Flowers - background vocals
- Kenny Greenberg - electric guitar
- Jaime Hanna - electric guitar, strings, background vocals
- Wes Hightower - background vocals
- Steve Nathan - Hammond B-3 organ, piano, Wurlitzer
- Russ Pahl - acoustic guitar, steel guitar
- Jon Randall - background vocals
- Michael Rhodes - bass guitar
- Brent Rowan - electric guitar
- Hank Singer - fiddle
- Russell Terrell - background vocals
- Robby Turner - steel guitar
- Kristin Wilkinson - string arrangements
- John Willis - acoustic guitar, mandolin
- Glenn Worf - bass guitar
Singles
"Watching Airplanes"
"Watching Airplanes" was the lead-off single. His twentieth chart single overall, the song reached a peak of number 2 on the Billboard country charts in early 2008. It was written by Jim Beavers and Jonathan Singleton.
The music video for this song was shot during live concerts at Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Morrison, Colorado, the Red Dirt Roundup '07 in Fort Worth, Texas, the Nutty Brown Cafe in Austin, Texas, and in Saint George, Utah.
"Learning How to Bend"
"Learning How to Bend" peaked at number 13 in the United States. Written by Gary Allan, James LeBlanc, and Matt Warren. The song debuted at number 51 on the Hot Country Songs chart dated April 5, 2008.
"She's So California"
"She's So California" was the third and final single, written by Allan along with Jon Randall and Jaime Hanna of Hanna-McEuen. It peaked at number 24.
Chart performance
Album
| Chart (2007) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Top Country Albums | 3 |
| U.S. Billboard 200 | 3 |
Singles
| Year | Single | Peak chart positions | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| US Country | US | CAN | ||
| 2007 | "Watching Airplanes" | 2 | 43 | 72 |
| 2008 | "Learning How to Bend" | 13 | 96 | — |
| "She's So California" | 24 | — | — | |
| "—" denotes releases that did not chart | ||||
Certifications
| Region | Certification |
|---|---|
| United States (RIAA)[4] | Gold |
References
- ↑ Jurek, Thom. "Living Hard review". Allmusic. Retrieved July 15, 2011.
- ↑ Keefe, Jonathan. "Gary Allan: Living Hard". Slant Magazine. Retrieved July 15, 2011.
- ↑ Katie Hasty, "Underwood Leads Three Country Debuts Onto Chart", Billboard.com, October 31, 2007.
- ↑ "American album certifications – Gary Allan – Living Hard". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH