Gary
Barlow was born on the 20th January 1971 in Frodsham, Cheshire (just
outside of Manchester). The first school he attended was Weaver
Vale in Frodsham and then Frodsham High School. From his education
Gary achieved 6 O levels, being more interested in music than exams.
He began working as a musician from a very early age working in
the Connah’s Quay Labour Club in Frodsham on a Saturday night.
He did this for a few years until he met a girl called Heather who
he went around singing with for two years.
When Gary was fifteen
he began to write his own music in the form of ballads. He entered
a competition for the BBC Pebble Mill competition called ‘A
Song For Christmas’, finishing runner up in the competition,
but it allowed him to become friends with a man called Bob Howes
who later introduced him to Rod Argent who Gary wrote to for advice
about his songs. As part of the prize for being a runner up in the
competition Gary was invited to 10cc's Strawberry Studios, a recording
studios in Manchester. Here he met Mark Owen and the rest, as they
say, is history...
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after
take that |
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Having spent six years
as the creative leader of Take That it was no surprise that Gary
went onto enjoy continued success as a solo artist. His superb debut
single in July 1996, 'Forever Love', went straight to Number 1 in
the UK charts and distinguished him as a serious singer/songwriter
aiming firmly at a more mature fanbase.
After being out of the public limelight
for almost a year after leaving Take That, Gary returned to the
Number 1 spot in April 1997 with 'Love Won't Wait' (written especially
for him by Madonna and Shep Pettibone). A month later the long-awaited
and highly-rated 'Open Road' album was released, taking Gary to
Number 1 in the UK album charts and shifting a million copies in
the process - a true indication that he had made the transition
from teeny-bop idol to recognised fine musician. The singles 'So
Help Me Girl' (reached UK no.11) and the album title track, 'Open
Road' (UK no.7) followed, scoring further chart success for the
talented Cheshire musician.
It was clear to everybody that Gary's
talent was far greater than his ex-Take That colleagues. Whilst
he enjoyed a Number 1 album with 'Forever Love', Robbie William's
debut 'Life Thru A Lens' only reached UK number 11 on its release,
whilst heartthrob Mark Owen's fanbase could only take his impressive
indie rock album, 'Green Man' to Number 33. Jason Orange and Howard
Donald left the music business completely.
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ego
a go go? |
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Gary spent 1998 touring the world
and promoting his album with many fine live performances before
returning home to record his second album. By now though, the British
press had decided to spark a war of personalities between Gary and
Robbie, the new lovable rogue of the UK music scene.
Robbie seemed bitter about leaving
Take That and often bad-mouthed
Gary Barlow and the groups manager, Nigel Martin-Smith. The track,
'Ego A Go Go' was clearly aimed at Gary and his ex-manager, although
he later apologised to Gary for this.
Unfortunately Gary was often ridiculed
by the London-based press for his 'nice-boy' personality (he is
a genuine individual who works hard for many local Manchester charities).
It was probably for this reason that he made some ill-conceived
comments to a tabloid newspaper to try and spice up his image, claiming
he had tried cocaine and ecstacy whilst in Take That.
By now, Robbie's 'Life Thru A Lens'
had re-entered the charts, hitting the top spot following the release
of the single, 'Angels'. The
cheeky-chappie from Stoke also enjoyed success with his second chart-topping
album, 'I've Been Expecting You' in 1998.
Robbie had become the bad-boy of the
British music scene, often joining his new mates, Oasis, on drink
and drug binges. His exploits made front page news on almost a dailiy
basis. This behaviour profoundly had a detremental effect on the
a career of Gary Barlow, who wasn't seen to be as cool. The 1999
single 'Stronger' flopped, only reacheing UK no.16, and even the
BBC's London-based Radio One pathetically refused to play his next
single, 'For All That You Want' (written with 10cc's Graham Gouldman).
It only reached UK no.24 as a result.
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12
months, 11 days, 0 success |
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As a result of the bad publicity and
lack of success with the two singles, Gary's second album, 'Twelve
Months, Eleven Days', (the exact length of time it took him to make
the album) failed to receive the success it deserved, and only just
scraped into the Top 40 (UK no.35).
A month later, Robbie Williams was
back at the top of the charts with the cover of World Party's 'She's
The One'. By now his career was to take him to levels that even
Take That could never have dreamed of. Gary however had hit an all-time
low.
The lack of publicity meant live shows
were cancelled and the planned single, 'Lie To Me' was pulled. His
record company hadn't helped - sending aggressive messages to fansites
requesting they remove any photographs of their artist, and also
charging expensive premium rates for fans to listen to telephone
messages left by their hero.
On the 25th March 2000, BMG/RCA released
Gary Barlow from his recording contract.
|
gary
the songwriter |
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Gary decided to take a break and assess
his future during which he married dancer girlfriend, Dawn (Howard
Donald was best man). Together they became parents of Daniel (Aug
2000) and Emily (2002). He also tried his hand at acting, appearing
as a tramp in Heatbeat.
At only 30 years old, Gary was already
an established songwriter and with this in mind he decided to move
into writing and producing for other artists. In January 2001 he
wrote the track, 'Whatever You Want' for Australian boy band Human
Nature.
In June 2001, after buying a beachside
house in Santa Monica, California, he temporarily left his massive
'ranch' in Cuddington, Cheshire, with Dawn and their son Daniel
to try and resurrect his career in the States. Following his earlier
track for Human Nature and working with the likes of Gloria Estefan,
he tried his hand at writing and producing for other artists.
Switching between his two homes on
the outskirts of Manchester and Los Angeles , Gary contributed to
albums for the likes of Elton John, Blue, Donny Osmond, Hear'say,
Monica Naranjo and Vanessa Amorosi, who perfomed at the Manchester
Commonwealth Games closing ceremony. He has also worked with Atomic
Kitten on their April 2003 self-titled album. In typical Manc style,
his production company is called 'True North'.
Whilst the press regularly speculate
on a Take That reunion, Gary seems content on working with other
pop acts in his new found capacity. Wherever his future career takes
him, you can guarantee that his songwriting, whether it be for Take
That or other artists, will have a massive influence on future generations.
How about setting up a Manchester
record label Gary?
[also
see our Gary barlow discography]
[also
see our profile of Take That]
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