When Gary Allan released Tough All Over in 2005, it was a turning point. He'd been running all over the country map from the beginning of his career in 1995 (label A&R types and certain producers can feel more like oppressive regimes than nurturers of talent). But on that effort he finally contributed substantially to the songwriting by co-penning four of the album's tracks, and by embracing rock roll in a way he hadn't before. He had to be happy with it. It was still a really slick record but it was harder, leaner, and reflected its title without giving up an ounce of the accessibility or appeal of his earlier albums. Living Hard is part two of that evolution. Allan co-produced with Mark Wright, and co-wrote six of the album's 11 cuts. The confidence that brims from the opening grooves of Watching Airplanes, the set's first cut, is obvious. Written by Jim Beavers and Jonathan Singleton, mandolins and electric guitars entwine to offer a thin rope for Allan's delivery to walk as he brings a broken love song full bore to the listener. With an imaginative mix of Fender Rhodes, strings, big guitars, pedal steel and big tom toms, and slapback on the vocal, its refrain is almost anthemic; his vocal, while big and strong, comes off as bewildered while seeking to console itself by simply sitting still and looking into the sky without having any answers. As good as this track is, it's merely a precursor to Allan's We Touched the Sun. Written with Jim Lauderdale and Odie Blackmon, it's one of those big, fat contemporary country love songs that endears itself to radio play, a big production video, and most of all, scores its memory deep into the ears of every listener. A simple hook that won't let go, the guitars -- metallic leads included -- are enormous, interwoven with strings and a transcendent refrain; the song is almost bigger than the record that contains it. But it goes from here and just gets better.

1		Watching Airplanes
2		We Touched the Sun
3		She's So California
4		Like It's a Bad Thing
5		Learning How to Bend
6		As Long As You're Looking Back
7		Wrecking Ball
8		Yesterday's Rain
9		Trying to Matter
10		Half of My Mistakes
11		Living Hard
12		Memory On the Run