| Tough All Over | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | October 11, 2005 | |||
| Recorded | 2005 | |||
| Studio | The Sound Kitchen and House of Gain | |||
| Genre | Country | |||
| Length | 47:13 | |||
| Label | MCA Nashville | |||
| Producer | Mark Wright Gary Allan | |||
| Gary Allan chronology | ||||
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| Singles from Tough All Over | ||||
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| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |    [1] |
| Entertainment Weekly | A[2] |
Tough All Over is the sixth studio album by American country music artist Gary Allan. It was released in October 2005 via MCA Nashville. It has been certified gold by the RIAA. Recorded after his wife's suicide, this album is more somber than his previous ones, with several of its songs termed to be "excruciatingly sad."[3]
Two songs from the album were released as singles: "Best I Ever Had" (a cover of a 2001 Vertical Horizon song) and "Life Ain't Always Beautiful" . Both placed reached within the Top 10 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs chart.
Rhapsody ranked the album number 7 on its "Country's Best Albums of the Decade" list.[4] "Allan's sixth album was the first one released after his wife of three years committed suicide. This collection of haunting, heartbreaking songs chronicles his pain and, ultimately, his path back to living. Steeped in grief, Tough All Over is one of Allan's most consistent efforts to date, thanks in part to his gift of conveying emotions like regret, heartbreak and emptiness in a single, well-phrased line. Country Universe said the album was the 3rd best of the decade.[5] Engine 145 country music blog list it number 7 on the "Top Country Albums of the Decade" list.[6]
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Tough All Over" | Jim Lauderdale, Odie Blackmon | 3:21 |
| 2. | "Best I Ever Had" | Matt Scannell | 4:11 |
| 3. | "I Just Got Back from Hell" | Harley Allen, Gary Allan | 4:03 |
| 4. | "Ring" | Kostas | 3:47 |
| 5. | "Promise Broken" | Deric Ruttan, Margaret Findley | 3:11 |
| 6. | "Nickajack Cave (Johnny Cash's Redemption)" | Jamie O'Hara | 4:15 |
| 7. | "Life Ain't Always Beautiful" | Tommy Lee James, Cyndi Goodman | 3:44 |
| 8. | "He Can't Quit Her" | Casey Beathard, Ed Hill | 3:32 |
| 9. | "What Kind of Fool" | O'Hara | 3:57 |
| 10. | "Puttin' Memories Away" | Allan, Matt Warren | 3:32 |
| 11. | "No Damn Good" | O'Hara, Allan, Blackmon | 3:44 |
| 12. | "Putting My Misery on Display" | Allan | 6:07 |
| Total length: | 47:13 | ||
As listed in liner notes.[7]
Strings by the Nashville String Machine.
Weekly charts[edit]
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Year-end charts[edit]
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| Region | Certification |
|---|---|
| United States (RIAA)[13] | Gold |
{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
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