"Tough Little Boys" is the first single released from Gary Allan

Gary Allan

Gary Allan Herzberg is an American country music artist, known professionally as Gary Allan.Signed to Decca Records in 1996, Allan made his debut on the United States country music scene with the release of his single "Her Man", the lead-off to his gold-certified debut album Used Heart for Sale,...

's 2003 album See If I Care

See If I Care

-Album:-Singles:-Certifications:-Personnel:*Richard Bennett – electric guitar*Lisa Cochran – background vocals*Chad Cromwell – drums*Eric Darken – percussion*Dan Dugmore – steel guitar*Stuart Duncan – fiddle*Mike Henderson – electric guitar...

. The song reached Number One on the U.S.

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 Billboard

Billboard (magazine)

Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...

Hot Country Songs

Hot Country Songs

Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States.This 60-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly mostly by airplay and occasionally commercial sales...

chart in October of 2003, becoming Allan's second straight No. 1 single.

Content

The song is about a father who has always imagined himself to be tough, even as a child. However, upon looking at his own child, the father starts to find himself worrying for the child's safety, admitting that "When tough little boys grow up to be dads / They turn into big babies again".

Critical reception

Jennifer Webb of About.com reviewed the song favorably, calling it "touching and tender."

Chart positions

"Tough Little Boys" debuted at number 45 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs for the week of June 28, 2003. > >

Chart (2003)	Peak position