Noel Gallagher

Table of contents

1 Songwriting 2 Public Persona 3 Brotherly Love 3..1 Wibbling Rivalry 3..2 Noel Outsmarts Liam Again - December 1998 3..3 Steve Lamacq Show - November 1997 4 Personal life

Songwriting

Oasis are considered by many to be the best Britsh band since the Beatles. Before the arrival of Oasis in 1994, debate raged over weather British rock had had its day. US grunge and dance music ruled. Two events changed all this - Kurt Cobain died and Oasis releases their first album - Definitley Maybe. Supersonic was a roaring battle cry; Live Forever, the polar opposite of 'I hate myself and want to die'; Slide Away a tender melody to an ex-girlfriend and Married with Children a droll voice lementing a current one (yer music's shite, it keeps me up all night).

Noel personally wrote all of the songs on the ground-braking debuet, and the equally successful follow up, 1995's (What's the Story) Morning Glory. Amongst this albums 10 unforgettable tracks were three songs which were to become Oasis' trademark songs - Champagne Supernova, the song woith which Oasis have ended many a live perfomance; the no.1 hit Don't Look Back In Anger; and the phenominal success (and busker's favorate)that was Wonderwall. Noel occasionally provides lead vocals as can be seen on songs such as Don't Look Back In Anger and the Masterplan. Though his voice is not as memorable as Liams, it does provide a plesant break for his brothers grating, arrogant and often nasal, vocals.

As Noel has written the vast majority of Oasis songs, he is, therefore, considered one of the most powerful and influential personalities in British music.

Though the albums Be Here Now (1997), Standing On the Shoulders of Giants (2000) and Heathen Chemistry (2002) have not been received with the same level of enthusiasm by critis, the public appeal has remained just as strong. Standing On the Shoulders of Giants included Oasis' first ever album track written not by Noel, but by his brother Liam. Heathen Chemistry included a further 3 tracks by Liam (including Songbird, which was released as a single), one by bassist Andy Bell and one by guitarist Gem Archer. however, despite this, Noel continues to be the brain and the driving force behing Oasis.

Public Persona

Oasis appeared on the music scene in 1994 and quickly made a public image for themselves. Whereas other Britpop bands such as Elastica and The Manic Street Preachers chose not to play the media 'game', or if they did it was usually un-inspiring (as was the case with Blur) Oasis chose to portray themselves, arguably realisticly, as loud mouthed, arrogant and aggresive. This really caught the public's imagination. Though Liam appears to have really taken it to heart, often verbally abusing photographers and members of the public Noel, perhaps more secure than Liam, tends to be more reserved, becoming agressive only when provoked by people such as Robbie Williams, Damon Albarn of Blur or anyone who challenges his belief that Oasis are the best band in the world. On one occasion he became slightly confrontational when an interviewer decribed them as 'one of the biggest bands in the world'. Noel immediately commented 'What do yer mean one of? Name one band who's bigger.'

Oasis are also famous for taking inspirtation from the Beatles. They often mockingly make comparisons between themselves and the Beatles. On the inlay to the Be Here Now album are scrawled the words 'The Beatles - quite good, Oasis - much better'. In the video for Don't Look Back In Anger, Noel wears a pair of Lennon-esq orange-tinted circular glasses, which Lennon reffered to as 'granny glasses'. Both Noel and Liam can often be seen wearing similar glasses. There are also several referances to the Beatles in Noel's songs, and for the intro to Don't Look Back In Anger, Noel 'borrowed the piano intro to John Lennon's Imagine.

Brotherly Love

The Gallgahers famously share a turbulant relationship. Thier arguments have acheived a status as something of Rock Legand. One of their arguments was even relased on a bootleg single entitled 'wibbling rivalry'. The arguments seem to pit Noel's calm, complacent wit, logic and cannyness against Liams arrogance, tendency to fly off the handle, penchant for psychadelic non sequenters (he once ended an on-stage argument by appealing to the crowd for biscuits) and his vocal dedication to any stand-point, no matter how incorrect or easy to dispel it is. Although Noel often ends up making Liam appear quite stupid in these exchanges, Liam's tendancy to shout and swear his brother down appears an equally effective tactic. However, Noel maintains that they are good friends, and rarly fall out.

Wibbling Rivalry

An excerpt of the argument released on the Wibbling Rivalry single:

Noel: Do you know John Lennon?

Liam: Yeah.

Noel: Well, you must be pretty old. 
      How old are you? 21?

Liam: No. About fuckin' thousand and five.

Noel: You're 22. and I watched you being born, 
      so shut the fuck up about John Lennon.

Noel: (Oasis) is not my band.

Liam: Whose band is it?

Noel: Your band.

Liam: Did you hear that?! It's my band!
      Are you recording this Mr Journalist?
      It's My Band!

Noel: It's your band.

Liam: Hang on a minute... It's not my band 
      now that we're shit and no-one likes us!

Noel: It's your band.

Liam: It was my band whwn we were popular! 
      You sneaky bastard! [Aims kick at Noel]

Noel: Liam's more paranoid. He thinks the 
      world's against him.

Liam: Yeah, yeah, and he's full of shit because
      I don't think that at all. Take that back. 
      He knows he's a genius, but he won't admit it.

Noel: I will admit it. I'm a fucking genius.

Liam: No, you're not! I inspire him more than 
      he inspires me. Bottles of larger inspire me.

Noel: That goes without saying... I'll be Lord 
      Mayor of London by the next six months.

Lamacq: And what will you do?

Liam: Fart in people's mouths.

(Liam storms out)