CD Review – Get Off on the Pain – Gary Allan

14 years ago Liv Carter 3

‘Get Off on the Pain’ – Gary Allan (MCA Nashville, 2010)

These days not many artists have a clear sound of their own. Before the first word is even sung, you already know you are listening to a Gary Allan record. Gary has managed the difficult feat of sounding unique and yet being played on mainstream radio.

New CD ‘Get Off on the Pain’ continues along the rock theme he has been following and the album splits nicely in two: five songs written by others followed by five songs co-written by Gary, or put differently, five songs dealing with varying levels of dysfunction and five more subdued, calmer songs which show a guy who is, if not exactly settled, at least is someone who knows where he wants to get to.

The title track and second single rocks hard and leads into a cluster of songs full of drama which producers Mark Wright and Greg Dorman felt the need to emphasize with too many string sections. I never liked ‘Today’, finding it melodramatic and wanting to tell the protagonist to quit whining, but when heard between ‘I Think I’ve Had Enough’ and the outstanding ‘That Ain’t Gonna Fly’, it works much better.

Despite the pain and bad choices, there is lots of time for love. ‘Kiss Me When I’m Down’ is surprisingly romantic and the duo ‘We Fly By Night’ and ‘She Gets Me’ are odes to domestic bliss.

‘When You Give Yourself Away’ discusses the risks involved when you choose love but how it’s worth it even if you were hurt before, and it features some of my favorite lyrics. The final track, ‘No Regrets’, addresses Gary’s personal tragedy directly and is a beautiful letter to life, love and fate.

While maybe not quite packing the same punch as ‘Tough All Over’, after the minor loss of form of ‘Livin’ Hard’, this album is Gary back to being one of the most exciting artists today. No wonder he doesn’t seem to feature in many award shows – he is in a category all by himself.

‘Get Off on the Pain’ will be in stores tomorrow, March 9.

The Deluxe version also includes the energetic southern rocker ‘Long Summer Days’, which deserved a spot on the regular version, and live recordings of ‘Right Where I Need to Be’, ‘Best I Ever Had’, and ‘Watching Airplanes’.

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Liv Carter

Liv Carter

Liv is a career coach for creatives, and the people who work with them.
She holds several certificates from Berklee College of Music, and a certificate in Positive Psychology from UC Berkeley.
Her main influences are coffee, cats, and Alexander Hamilton.
Liv Carter

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