Gary Allan was born Dec. 5, 1967, in Montebello, Calif.,
with the name Gary Herzberg. He was raised in La Mirada,
Calif., and in his teens, he began to play the honky-tonk
circuit. After turning down a record deal while still
in high school, Allan eventually signed to Decca Records
in 1996. Two singles from his tenure there reached the
Top 10: "Her Man" in 1996 and "It Would
Be You" in 1998.
When Decca folded into MCA Nashville, Allan followed,
releasing the album Smoke Rings in the Dark in 1999.
The smoldering title track and "Right Where I Need
to Be" propelled the album to platinum status.
Keeping his trademark traditional sound intact, the
2001 album Alright Guy offered two more hits, "The
One" and "Man to Man."
Despite his numerous hits, Allan was nominated for the
CMA Horizon award -- given to newcomers -- in 2003.
That same year, he released the album See If I Care,
with the hits "Tough Little Boys" and "Songs
About Rain." |
