Liam Gallagher On Primal Scream

Liam Gallagher has spoken to the NME Gold about Primal Scream, he said he's seen them a few times and expressed his love for Bobby Gillespie.

"I was trying to remember the first time I saw primal Scream, and I thought it was at this festival up in Glasgow. Slam, I think it was called. It was around the time of Screamadelica, I think, and we'd done a load of Es and gone up there, but they weren't playing: we just walked in to one of the tents, and the DJ started playing 'Come Together', and all I remember is thinking 'What the fuck is this?' It was just... the bollocks, man.

He added "And I saw them a few times since I've been in London. I love Bobby Gillespie, man, he's a dude. I went down to The Bunker a few times, there old studio in primrose Hill. I know there's a story about us jamming with the guy from Can - I don't remember him, but apparently we had a little jam. I obviously can't play anything, so I must have sat in the corner talking absolute shit on drugs."

 

David Holmes Says Noel Gallagher Is Incredibly Creative When He Wants To Be

Below is a small Q&A with David Holmes from the current issue of Uncut.

UNCUT: What did Noel tell you he was after?

David Holmes: "He didn't tell me anything, really. He asked me to produce 'Chasing Yesterday' but I felt it was too far down the line to get involved, so I suggested making a record from scratch that didn't involve him bringing anything to the studio apart from his guitars and a bunch of pedals" .

UNCUT: And the process? 

David Holmes: "When Noel arrived in Belfast, I had created about 10 loop-based backing tracks that were great jumping off points. Noel set up a chain of guitar pedals and we started experimenting with different sounds/melodies. He pretty much nailed everything that week. He then took the tracks away and slowly but surely started to write the songs".

UNCUT: Did you know Noel anyway? What were your expectations?

David Holmes: "I met him once after a Primal Scream concert in somewhere in Europe. He's obviously a great songwriter, but his skills on a guitar really surprised me. He's incredibly creative when he wants to be. Everything was down to a great vibe and instinct".

Noel Gallagher On Tracks From His New Album, A Unfinished Song And More

Noel Gallagher has spoken to The Sunday Times about his new album 'Who Built the Moon?' that is released on November 24th, it's been reported by them that the album is packed with huge choruses and generic sentiments.

And that there are nods to Primal Scream, Doves and Chemical Brothers.

He said his wife Sara, who is “not into guitar music”, was the real test. “If I’m making music, she’ll say, ‘That’s nice.’ But I was playing something new when she burst in to say, ‘It’s amazing!’ I went, ‘Now we’re on to something.’”

As previously reported the opening track of the album, 'Fort Knox', was written imagining that Kanye West was about to put a rap over it.

While It’s a Beautiful World has a bit of French in which a women says something that translates as: “Rest in peace/It’s only the end of the world. The thing is, nobody in the studio spoke French, and they didn’t think to ask what had been said until the lyric sheets were printed. “But then France is a pretty volatile place at the minute”.

“There was a track we didn’t finish that was drawn out of the Paris attacks. And the Nice ones. We were working on it around Brexit, too, and not that I give a shit about that, but, symbolically, we abandoned the French at the time they were under attack. I felt bad for the French.”

“There was a bit on the news after the attacks, about something we put up in space, and it was so fantastic, what humankind had done. The very next day in the news, some shithead who used to work in Lidl was throwing gay men off a roof in Raqqa, and it’s, like, ‘You scumbag.’ The rest of us are discovering the cosmos and you medieval f*****s are throwing gay people. And he used to work in Lidl? In Bury? F****** c***. It’s all going to come out in that song.”

“Well, everything pre-international terrorism was a bit flowery to me,” he replies. “And what annoys me most is you see the mayor [of London] saying, ‘We will not be cowed.’” Gallagher says there’s nothing wrong with being afraid. “I get on the Tube. My eldest is 17. She uses the Tube. My boys are growing up in London and use public transport. I’m frightened.

“Are you going to walk into an attack and die? Or survive with half an arm? Are your kids going to walk into it on a night out? I’m not buying Khan and his ‘London will stand firm’. I live in the centre and it concerns the f*** out of me.”

Read the full interview in The Sunday Times today.

Noel Gallagher On Harry Styles And Signing For The Greatest Record Label Of All Time

The Oasis guitarist was speaking at a Q&A session before a screening of 'Supersonic' at William's Green

Noel Gallagher has said that Oasis may have “ruined it” for the current generation of artists in terms of creating great rock star stories, quipping: “Harry Styles isn’t going to be fucking coked up at Glastonbury, is he?”

The guitarist was speaking at a short Q&A at Glastonbury this evening (June 23) before a screening of the Oasis documentary Supersonic at William’s Green.

Asked for his take on why musicians and bands seems to be more “well-behaved” in comparison to Oasis’ heyday, Gallagher said that the band weren’t affected by pressure from their label or the music industry in general at the time.

“We were signed by the greatest record label [Creation] there ever was,” he said. “Alan McGee [who signed Oasis to Creation] did not give a fuck whatsoever – we gave less of a fuck than him. Minus fucks were given.

“I think bands like Oasis, Primal Scream and The Verve – we might have ruined it. Because if your share price depends on us… well, then you can fuck off. Harry Styles isn’t going to be fucking coked up at Glastonbury. So we might have ruined it for the next generation. But fuck it, you know what I mean? You weren’t there.”

Source: www.nme.com

Gem Archer And Zak Starkey Team Up For Charity Album

The drummers and bassists behind many classic bands' rhythm sections have reunited for a charity album.

Zak Starkey, who drummed with Oasis on their final two albums ‘Don’t Belive The Truth’ and ‘Dig Out Your Soul’, has formed the band Sshh with singer Sshh Liguz.

Their album ‘Issues’ sees the rhythm sections of many musicians play together to back the duo as they cover a host of classic songs.

These include Amy Winehouse’s bassist Dale Davis and drummer Nathan Allen play on a cover of ‘Back To Black’, while Starkey’s former Oasis bandmate Gem Archer plays guitar on a cover of The Small Faces’ 1966 song ‘Tin Soldier’, alongside their drummer Kenny Jones and The Sex Pistols bassist Glen Matlock.

The album's first single 'Problems' is a cover of The Sex Pistols featuring Matlock and Pistols drummer Paul Cook.

‘Issues’, out later this year, also features members of Primal Scream, Marilyn Manson, Blondie, The Pretenders, Mott The Hoople and The Ruts.

Starkey, who now plays with The Who, said he learnt more about playing drums from Jones than anyone else in his career – including his father, The Beatles drummer Ringo Starr.

Starkey told NME: “Of all the people who’ve taught me drums – Keith Moon, my dad, all of them – Kenney showed me the most. It was just great to play with him. Two Who drummers, past and present, playing at the same time: just one more unprecedented connection in the making of this album.”

Sshh made their live debut at London club The Box this week, watched on by Starr, Klaxons guitarist Jamie Reynolds, Ride guitarist Andy Bell, Adam And The Ants guitarist Marco Pirroni, The Lightning Seeds singer Ian Broudie and producer Youth.

Profits from ‘Issues’ go to Teenage Cancer Trust.

Source; www.nme.com

Irvine Welsh To Write A Movie Telling The Story Of Oasis And Creation Records

Trainspotting writer Irvine Welsh is penning a new biopic based on the life of Creation Records boss Alan McGee.

Creation Records boss Alan McGee is the subject of a new biopic by Trainspotting author Irvine Welsh.

The movie will tell the story of his hard beginnings in working class Glasgow, through bands like Jesus and Mary Chain and Primal Scream, to his discovery of a little Manchester band called Oasis .

Alan, 55, told Mirror Celeb: "I've been friends with Irvine and Dean Cavanagh for a long time - but when I was approached about the movie I still though people were joking.

"They are genius writers and really cool mother f***ers. I've read the first draft and it's very gritty like Trainspotting but then again my book is gritty - my life was gritty."

From a hard childhood in Glasgow, McGee rose up to become one of the most recognisable managers in the world.

20 years ago last month his most famous protégés - the brothers Gallagher played one of their finest series of gigs at Maine Road.

Welsh, known for writing the likes of Filth and Porno has adapted a screenplay called Creation Stories, based on McGee’s memoir The Creation Records Story: Riots, Raves and Running a Label.

It will be introduced at the upcoming Cannes film market.

Burning Wheel Productions’ Hollie Richmond, Shelley Hammond and Nathan McGough will produce the film alongside Orian Williams.

McGee is staying tight-lipped on who will be playing him in the movie which spans his childhood through to selling 60 millions records.

And of course there is no word yet on who will be playing Liam and Noel Gallagher - who are of course a huge part of the story.

McGee added: "I'm very excited. From my beginnings to selling millions of records to now having a movie made about me - how can I complain?"

Source: www.irishmirror.ie

Noel Gallagher On T In The Park, Oasis, Kanye West, Coldplay, Primal Scream, David Guetta And More

Festival veteran Gallagher will close this year's T in the Park on Sunday and has been as outspoken as ever ahead of his trip north.

Noel Gallagher is likely to be disappointed in Saturday’s main stage headliner at T in the Park – because he thought Avicii was the name of his local restaurant.

Noel’s band High Flying Birds will close Scotland’s biggest music festival on Sunday’s main stage.
But he had never heard of the Swedish superstar DJ who’ll take that spot 24 hours before him.
“You can have Avicii, whoever that is,” Noel said. “All I’ve heard is his name.

“I thought it was a restaurant around where I live if I’m being honest. Is it a band or is it a guy? Is it like a David Guetta thing? I mean, holy s**tballs. I’m just glad I won’t be there to see that.”

The former Oasis rocker also joked the picturesque Strathallan site could be transformed into something resembling a warzone by the time he closes the festival on Sunday night.

“It’s going to be like World War I by the time I get there,” he said.
“But I’m looking forward to it.

“T in the Park is f***ing great.

“I love that festival.”

The British rock legend, who is married to Edinburgh-born PR boss Sara MacDonald, played the first ever T in the Park with Oasis back in 1994, in the King Tut’s Wah Wah Hut tent.

Oasis returned to headline the main stage in 2002 and a decade later Noel made his T debut with his own band, High Flying Birds.

He also surprised fans when he joined Paul Weller on the main stage in 2001.

“I’ve seen some great gigs there including Stereophonics,” Noel said.

“I went up there once to hang out with Sara for the weekend when she was working at the festival.

“I remember being with Sara watching Coldplay and the two of us looking at each other and thinking, that band are going to be f***ing massive.

“Paul Weller was doing his acoustic thing.

“He blagged me to get up and do a few songs with him.

“The two of us were f**ing roaring drunk onstage. It was funny.”

He added: “A music festival nowadays reflects everybody’s iPod. You look and ask yourself, is this line up on shuffle or what?

“It doesn’t make any sense, but that’s the modern world.

“In the 60s, everybody was of a certain way of thinking.

“Now musical thought is so fragmented.”

Noel, 48, will be playing songs from both the self-titled High Flying Birds album and follow-up Chasing Yesterday, as well as solo material and choice tracks from his time with Oasis.

Looking back on the music scene when Oasis first played T in the Park, he said: “It’s wrong to say it was better then.

“It’s just this generational thing, though, I thought it was better than.

“Then again I was better then and I was younger then.

“When we were young we were a lot cooler than this generation, let’s put it that way.

“You and I are roughly the same age and the people we liked or that we were brought up listening to, like Joy Division, New Order, Morrissey, Mark E. Smith and Paul Weller, were influenced by people who were also great and slowly but surely the world has watered it down.

“Forget this generation, they’re lost.

“Imagine the next generation. Can you? I can’t.

“I’d rather not.

“My 15-year old daughter, there’s hope for her.

“She asked me about the Stone Roses the other day.

“But my two sons? Lord knows what nonsense they’ll be into.”

Noel believes the problem stems from record companies having too much control.

He added: “Everybody now is signed to major label and they all pander to the radio and everybody sounds the same on the radio.

“Alternative thinking is disappearing. It’s a sad day when people tell me I’m so outspoken and controversial.

“Why, for stating the f***ing obvious?

“There won’t be another music revolution because commerce and big business doesn’t allow revolution.

“It likes the same, the same, the same – Taylor Swift.

“Taylor Swift will still be going in 20 years but she’ll be called something else.

“She won’t be going. It’ll be someone else. But there will never be another Oasis, I can tell you that.
“Never in a million years.

“Five lads from a council estate who wanted to be as big as the Beatles and were big enough to say it. Never.”

NOEL ON KANYE WEST

“He’s nearly as good as me in interviews, but he takes himself too seriously. I’ve never met the guy, right, and Lord knows what he’s like. But I like him. His music is not what I would listen to though I do like Black Skinhead.
“That’s a f***ing great track.”

NOEL ON PRIMAL SCREAM

“If we go back a generation, Bobby Gillespie and Andrew Innes weren’t trying to do something different.
“They were different themselves.
“They were different people with alternative thought.
“Bobby is always trying to be as good as his heroes.
“So is Innes and Andrew Weatherall.”

NOEL ON BEING AN ELDER STATESMAN OF ROCK

“Do I feel it?
“No, I don’t feel like an elder statesman.
“I’m not the elder statesman as long as Paul Weller is around.
“He’s elder than me.
“Print that. He’ll f**ing hate that.
“I feel like I’m just starting off, if anything.
“I know I have a better set of songs to choose from than, say, George Ezra, but I’ve only put my second album out. So I don’t feel anything like that.”
Source: www.dailyrecord.co.uk

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Alan McGee Insists He Won't Be Getting Involved With An Oasis Reunion

No one knows the inner workings of Liam and Noel Gallagher better than the Scot who discovered them.

Alan McGee, 54, unearthed Oasis at King Tut's Wah Wah Hut in Glasgow, signed them to Creation Records and in 1994 the band launched the album that defined an era.

Definitely Maybe gave us tracks like Supersonic and Live Forever and the following year the band reached a pinnacle with What's the Story Morning Glory.

Now 20 years since the launch of the 22 million-selling album McGee is a still a mover and a shakermaker in the music business and has unsurprisingly been rumoured to be involved with an Oasis reunion.

This month The Sun newspaper claimed that "Alan McGee, met Paul "Bigun" Ashbee — who was Liam’s boss when he worked as a car valet and knew members of the band in the early days — in London’s Soho on Monday night to discuss reforming the Britpop icons."

They didn't.

Alan our sister newspaper, the Daily Mirror: "Liam and Noel are the happiest I've seen them in years so for that reason I can't see a reunion happening.

"I've met Noel on numerous occasions recently and bumped into Liam a few times and we've had lengthy conversations and a reunion has never been discussed."

Despite "bumping into" the Gallaghers this has mostly been when DJing and not because he is courting the band.

McGee says he doesn't move in the same circles as Liam and Noel anymore and wouldn't want anything to do with a reunion.

He said: "I haven't even got Liam's mobile phone number anymore - I have Noel's - but not Liam's. That's not because I don't like him, because I do. It's just because I don't have anything in common with him anymore.

McGee has DJed for Liam including in Japan but says because he doesn't drink - and has avoided drugs for more than 20 years - he and Liam have very separate lives.

He added: "Liam is lovely. He's actually a real gentleman. But we have separate lives.

"I live in a small town in Wales where nobody gives a f*** who you are. If I wanted to be involved in the showbiz world I'd be in London."

Could it be that the whole Liam-Noel fallout was stage managed and planned exactly so they could have a dream reunion, taking fans along for the ride?

"No. It's as real as it gets. They are not showbizzy people like that. When they say something, they mean it. When Liam's calling Noel 'Katie Hopkins' he really means it."

Alan admits that while he can't see an Oasis reunion happening "any time soon" it wouldn't shock him to see one "at some point in the next 20 years."

Isn't that pushing it a bit. Will people still want to see Liam snarl when we're all flying round on hoverboards in 2035?

"I saw The Who a few years ago at the Royal Albert Hall and they were every bit as good as when I saw them in 1972. That taught me something about comebacks.

"And who knows what goes on in the heads of the Gallaghers?"

But if that reunion does happen he insists he won't be involved.

"They've already got a manager and I like things the way they are. I certainly wouldn't have any interest in reforming the band.

"I wouldn't even go to see them. I suppose if they toured and somebody told me their gigs were incredible I might go but only if I knew it was going to be great."

But while he may not have any interest in sharing a Brat Awards stage with the Gallaghers any more, he hasn't lost his touch for discovering working class heroes.

His new protégés Alias Kid have already drawn comparisons with the band from Burnage.

Clint Boon of Inspiral Carpets said they "have the potential to be one of the great Manchester bands."

The indy group may be influenced by Oasis, the Stone Roses, Kasabian and McGee's other discovery Primal Scream, but he says it is their work ethic that sets them apart from today's manufactured acts.
McGee said: "If someone wins The Voice the first thing I think is 'poor f***er' because that's the last we'll hear of them."

The Manchester fourpiece are, he says a real working class band.

McGee said: "They are supporting Shaun Ryder and Black Grape at the moment and if they're told they have to climb in the van with him and go to a gig for a hundred quid they'll do it. They are up for any task.

"They don't give a f***."

Now who does that remind you of?

Source: www.scotlandnow.dailyrecord.co.uk

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Noel Gallagher On The Drinking Skills Of Bono, Morrissey And Bobby Gillespie

Noel Gallagher—who recently said he’s lost “a f–king shitload of money” since Oasis split and, in potentially related news, advised One Direction’s Zayn Malik to “f–kin’ get a good accountant because life is very f–kin’ long”—is back with more colorful insights about the rock world.

Rock critic and editor of The Quietus John Doran interviewed Gallagher for Noisey’s The British Masters series and asked him who could drink more: Morrissey, Bono, or Primal Scream’s Bobby Gillespie. Gallagher responded with a predictably entertaining answer:

Bono, hands down. Bobby don’t drink. Morrissey is good crack. He can drink, and remains—doesn’t really get drunk though—he remains equally as vicious from the f—king minute you meet him until seven hours later. I lighten up once I’ve had a drink. Not Morrissey.

But Bono, he is really f—king brilliant company. I’ve been drinking with him, and I’ve been leaving a bar at 6 in the morning and he’s on the bar singing opera. And he’s got a f—king gig the following night with 70,000 people. And I’m being escorted out like James Brown—f—king pissed.

Source: www.ew.com

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Primal Scream To Support Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds In New Orleans

Primal Scream have been confirmed as support for Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds show at The Civic Theater in New Orleans on May 10th.

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NME Review: Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds 'Chasing Yesterday'

07/10

On his second album, Noel settles into solo life with brutish thrills, buoyant melodies and swampy psych rock.

At 47 years old, after more than 20 years in the game and with Oasis now well and truly behind him, what do we really expect from Noel Gallagher? For the first time in a long time, there’s a crop of new British bands who didn’t grow up in thrall to his old one and, while he might frequently lament the loss of “working class rage” in rock’n’roll, Noel is hardly the man to do anything about it. That’s no longer his responsibility. If pop music were a parliamentary system, you fancy he'd be found pissed on the backbenches of the House Of Lords, happily soliloquising about the way things used to be.

The title of his second solo album doesn’t do much to rebut that idea. Call it residual sibling rivalry, call it a lingering uncertainty about his place in the post-Oasis scheme of things, but 2011’s acclaimed, healthy-selling solo debut 'Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds' felt like a record with something to prove. By contrast, parts of 'Chasing Yesterday' can seem muscle-memorised, never more so than on songs like 'The Girl With X-Ray Eyes' and 'The Dying Of The Light', a pair of determinedly epic arena ballads of the sort that he could write in his sleep.

But then, because he's Noel Gallagher, he'll come up with something that floors you, something brilliant. It may not be the most intricate song on the record, but 'Lock All The Doors' which was written back in 1992 – perfectly recaptures the brutish, overdriven thrill of early Oasis. Just as impressive is the buoyant, soaraway melody on 'You Know We Can't Go Back'. It would've made for a better-than-decent B-side back in the day which, given his one-time mastery of that lost art, is high praise indeed. ‘The Mexican’ is terrific fun, featuring judicious amounts of cowbell, a riff so sleazy it'd make Josh Homme blush and a horn section under orders to make it sound as close to The Rolling Stones' 'Bitch' as is legally expedient.

Last year, longtime associate and occasional hype-man Mark Coyle predicted that 'Chasing Yesterday' would be a “seismic” release. As it turns out, that’s only three quarters true. You can guess from the title, for example, that ‘Riverman’ is going to plough a distinctly Wellerian furrow, though you have to admire Gallagher’s chutzpah in sticking a Dick Parry-style sax solo (now there’s a Liam-baiting phrase if ever we heard one) on the end of it. ‘The Right Stuff’ features even more skronking, adding a further layer of jazzy noir to a stew of psych, soul and blues that could’ve been cooked up by Primal Scream. The Johnny Marr-featuring ‘Ballad Of The Mighty I’, meanwhile, might self-plagiarise from 2011’s excellent ‘AKA... What A Life!’, but as evidenced by ‘Lock All The Doors’ which does much the same thing with Oasis' 1995 classic ‘Morning Glory’ the trick is to crib from the right places, whether they’re his own songs or somebody else’s.

Which brings us back to our original question: what do we expect from Noel Gallagher? Too much, probably, like all the other ’90s Britrock titans who’ve never been adequately replaced. 'Chasing Yesterday' has its flaws, but they’re far outnumbered by moments where it succeeds in catching up with its titular quarry. The past will never be a foreign country to Noel Gallagher, but from this vantage point, tomorrow is looking pretty rosy.

Source: www.nme.com

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Noel Gallagher Says New Bands Are Scared Of Social Media

Noel Gallagher has said that new bands are "careerist" and are afraid to be outspoken because they're scared of the backlash on social media.

During a round table interview with the NME, which also included Jason Williamson of Sleaford Mods and Elly Jackson of La Roux, Gallagher was asked why so many bands have so little to say.

"It's because they're s**t scared of social media! They're s**t scared of somebody killing it before it's started. One of the main differences for me is that bands these days are careerists.

"I know for a fact that nobody in Primal Scream ever thought about a career, or Oasis, or The Verve. Everybody was thinking, 'We're having a great time, this is amazing!'"

"I know for a fact that nobody in Primal Scream ever thought about a career, or Oasis, or The Verve. Everybody was thinking, 'We're having a great time, this is amazing!'

Autographed Guitar By Noel Gallagher To Be Auctioned At London's Independent Label Market

A guitar signed by Noel Gallagher will be auctioned for charity at the Independent Label Market in London this weekend.

Sour Mash Records will be giving away the semi acoustic Epiphone Dot guitar, complete with Gallagher's signature, at the Independent Label Market, on Saturday (November 29) at Old Spitalfields Market. All the proceeds will be donated to Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders (MSF).

The blind auction will open at 11am at partner label Ignition Records' stall, and finish at 6:30pm when the market closes. Fans will be able to submit a maximum bid in the form of a sealed bid. The winning individual with the highest bid will be contacted on Monday December 1.

The Independent Label Market returns to east London for the fourth annual Christmas market. Adam Ant will showcase his BlueBlack Hussar label while labels including Mute, 4AD, Bella Union, Hyperdub, Moshi Moshi, Ninja Tune, PIAS and Rough Trade will also host stalls.

Ignition Records and associated labels Big Brother and Sour Mash will be hosting a stall too, including releases from Oasis, Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds and Primal Scream.

Source: www.nme.com

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Noel Gallagher Says Kids Only Recognise Me From Gogglebox

Noel Gallagher has revealed that kids still stop him on the street for his photograph - even though some have no idea who he is.

Talking to the XFM Breakfast Show with Tim Cocker, the legend said he'd been out for a curry with Mani of Primal Scream and the Stone Roses when they noticed a gaggle of kids outside the window, staring in.

"A crowd of kids had gathered," said Noel, "watching us have a curry, about 11 or 12 kids."

Encouraged by the owner of the restaurant, Noel went outside to pose for a photo with the excited kids.

"I was kind of stood there and this girl's going 'Oh my God! Oh my God!' And I heard her whisper to her mate, "Who is it?"

It turned out that Noel's face was familiar to the girl, but not from his record-breaking stint with Oasis or even his more recent solo success. She recognised him from his recent reality TV stint.

Noel revealed: "Her mate said 'He's off Gogglebox'. And she went: 'Are you off Gogglebox?'"

Ever the diplomat, a surprised Noel kept this cool. "I went 'amongst other things, yes'".

Source: www.xfm.co.uk

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Video: Pretty Green Showcase It's Spring Summer 15 Black Label Collection

Monday 16th June saw Pretty Green showcase the Spring Summer 15 Black label collection. The event took place at the famous Gibson Brand studio, the private HQ where bands such as Paul Weller, Miles Kane and Primal Scream plan their tours.

Models took to the catwalk with a sound track of rock and roll to debut the collection entitled ‘The Production’.

The show also marked the 5th Anniversary of the brand. 

Click here to check out a video, and various pictures from the event.

Source: www.prettygreen.com

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Oasis: ‘We Were Five Lads From Strong Irish Backgrounds Making Music’

In a year that has seen much consideration of Ireland’s cultural impact on British life, this month’s re-issue of Oasis’s classic debut, Definitely Maybe, offers solid evidence of its impact, 20 years on from the album’s original release.

It is a record that Noel Gallagher once described as “the sound of five second generation Irish Catholics coming out of a council estate” and true to that summation, Definitely Maybe is perhaps a work that could only have been made by a group of Irish Mancunians.

England saw a wave of Irish migrants arrive in the 1960s as cities such as Manchester provided essential labour during a construction boom.

The children of those immigrants would find new sub-cultural identities in football, fashion and pop music creating a vital and expressive contribution to the communal social fabric and culture of British life, particularly in the north west of England.

Inspired by the anti-establishment, anti-imperial post-Thatcher working class sensibilities laid down by The Stone Roses, Happy Mondays and Primal Scream, all five members of Oasis came from a strong Irish sub-culture.

Within the story was sibling rivalry, protective Irish mammies, absent fathers, hymns, rebel songs, support of Celtic and the Republic of Ireland, holidays in the west of Ireland and everyday post-industrial city life in backstreets Mancunia.

The rise of Oasis amplified the triumphs, humour and tragedy of Irish diaspora life to the nation.

Two decades on, Oasis founding member and rhythm guitarist Paul ‘Bonehead’ Arthurs confirms the significance of that background to the music, attitude and character of the band.

“He’s absolutely right in what he said,” Bonehead says of Noel’s comment. “That’s exactly what we were. We were five lads off the street. I get asked that a lot; ‘what is it about Manchester and Liverpool bringing out such great music?’ and my answer is the same, Celtic blood. It really is that, it’s the only explanation.

“It’s working class people from strong Irish backgrounds making music. My mother was from the west of Ireland in Mayo, a place called Swinford which is literally a few miles from Noel and Liam’s grandparents. My dad was from the North, about 30 miles south of Belfast.

“I went to very Irish Catholic schools, St Roberts in Longsight — everyone was Irish Catholic, we all went to church on a Sunday. I was an altar boy until I was 16 and it was time to hang up the cassock. The family had visions of me being a priest not a rock ’n’ roller.”

Was Irish music a conscious influence on the band? “I was talking about this with Alex (Lipinsky) who I’m in a band with,” he says.

“I put on Sweeney’s Men and he said it sounded like Oasis and The Stone Roses. If someone asked if we were influenced by that, well consciously no but subconsciously probably yes. You can hear their influence in a lot of other Manchester bands like Doves.”

Whether it is later episodes of Shameless or Benefits Street, the media often convey a feckless one dimensional vision of working class life. It’s fair to say Oasis were instilled with a resolute Irish work ethic and for the most part the five-piece held down steady jobs while rehearsing six nights a week. The nuts and bolts of the band were in place as early as 1991.

Liam Gallagher fronted The Rain with Bonehead, a plasterer, bassist Paul ‘Guigsy’ McGuigan, a call-centre telephonist, and drummer Tony McCarroll, a labourer. Noel Gallagher was the last to join. After stockpiling songs working for an Irish building firm, he would immediately take creative control.

Speaking shortly before Oasis split in 2009, Liam reflected on the period: “We had the music. From my point of view you have to try that bit harder with the Irish thing or if you’re Scottish; you’ve got to dig deep because everything revolves around England. My mates, the lads that were English had everything on a plate.”

On leaving school without qualifications Noel Gallagher’s mother Peggy asked him, “what is going to become of you? If music is what you really want to do, I don’t care if you stay on the dole but you better not let me down.”

A stint as a roadie for the Inspiral Carpets provided the budding songwriter with some vital insider awareness. Bonehead casts his mind back to his first recollections of the brothers.

“I knew Noel worked with the Inspiral Carpets and I’d see him at gigs and around the streets and boozers where we lived. I knew Liam before he joined the band, Liam was a young kid, and always a cool f**ker with the best clothes and when you’d see him he’d let on ‘alright mate’.

“I knew he’d make a great front-man. Peggy was everybody’s mate, she was a wonderful woman, still is — and no one is prouder of what Noel and Liam achieved with the band. She’s still here, there and everywhere with them; Queen Peggy.”

Oasis walked the same Manchester avenues and alleyways and came from the same Irish environment as The Smiths. Notably Johnny Marr also offered the band a helping hand. “He hooked us up with our manager (Marcus Russell) and invited us down to his studio,” says Bonehead.

“He was like ‘take this, borrow that, whatever you need.’ We loaded everything in the van. I’ve got to know all The Smiths apart from Morrissey; I’ve become close with Mike Joyce, we grew up two miles from one another. I didn’t know him then but we all knew the same people. It was an instant bond. Those guys are very much the same as us in many ways.”

The Chasing The Sun 20th anniversary edition of Definitely Maybe charts the evolution of the band. The songs and production took a number of attempts to get right and among the 33 extra tracks is the previously unreleased Strange Thing. You can literally hear the band’s self-belief grow as they shake off the indie/baggy era in exchange for a juggernaut of slice-of-life foot stomping, four to the floor rock ’n’ roll.

The bonus discs include a clutch of early sketch recordings and demos which indicate the effort and craft that went into delivering the finished versions, said Bonehead.

“Some of the early songs, like Strange Thing, have got a baggy beat. There’s more songs from that time that have that very Manchester sound, we were still finding our feet. There were times it wasn’t happening in the studio. We tried to record Bring It On Down, which was meant to be the first single, but we weren’t nailing it.

“Noel was in the control room and started writing down some words for what was to become Supersonic; he literally wrote it in minutes. He sang us the melody and wrote the words down for Liam and that was it; bang, recorded in a couple of hours.

“We then brought the song down to Maida Vale and played it to Alan McGee [Creation Records label boss] who was like ‘where the f**k did that come from?”

As momentum gathered throughout the summer of 1994, word of the band’s euphoric gigs swelled like a revival movement. Month by month they outgrew venues as Noel Gallagher enjoyed his most prolific period as a songwriter, never bettered since. Over the next few years his “stockpile” would fill airwaves, pubs, tenements and night-clubs with a run of anthems, said Bonehead.

“He had written Whatever and All Around the World years before Definitely Maybe. I remember saying to him, Whatever has got to be on the album. He had a vision for the band by that point and he didn’t want to record it. He decided to wait until we had a 40-piece orchestra. There’s a strings version on the re-release, it’s been great even for me to hear this stuff.”

Touring with The Verve was also fundamental to the band’s development. “We all looked up to The Verve, they were one of those bands that we aspired to and when we went out on our first proper tour it was supporting them. We learned a lot watching them on stage every night. That was an incredible experience in itself.”

The live versions of Supersonic from around that period sound very spontaneous, particularly Noel’s lead? “That happened sometimes especially at a good gig he extended the outro, he would literally make it up.” Were you never tempted to deliver a solo yourself?

“I went up the neck a few times and Noel would be like ‘nah man, keep it chugging’. Doing bar chords used to do my head in sometimes. I came up with the riff for Up In The Sky and he built the song around that one but generally Noel would arrive with the finished song.”

A number of the live recordings are from early Glasgow gigs. The city where they were discovered by Alan McGee was a stronghold for the band, sharing its diaspora link with Manchester and a well-documented support of Celtic.

“I always had a thing for Celtic because my dad was a die-hard supporter,” says Bonehead, “that was his team. My favourite player was Jimmy Johnstone. Every weekend he made a point of travelling up in the work van with a load of Irish lads, they would get pissed and watch Celtic. Glasgow and New York are my favourite cities in the world.

“Scotland in general was always really good, I remember we played this record company gig with reps flying around and we blew the place apart, that’s where the version of I Am The Walrus comes from.”

The special edition album repeats the inaccuracy that the recording was taken from the Glasgow Cathouse. Noel Gallagher previously explained that “it would look shit if you put ‘Live at Sony Seminar in Gleneagles’! We had a version of it from the Cathouse in Glasgow, which sounded quite similar but it was rubbish.”

The last gang in town currency that created Definitely Maybe wasn’t lost on Noel Gallagher either: “We were all from working class Irish backgrounds, we weren’t the best looking band in the world, apart from Liam who’s a good looking lad, but the point is anyone could have been in the band.”

As the structure of the band was slowly dismantled in favour of ‘professionals’ with the ‘right haircut’ they also conceded the folk spirit and idealism that captured the British public’s imagination. The first to go was drummer Tony McCarroll in April 1995. Although much lambasted by Noel Gallagher, it’s widely acknowledged the drums characterised the raw power of the now classic album.

“No matter what people say there was only one person who could have played drums on Definitely Maybe,” says Bonehead, “and that was Tony, it really was. If you strip away Noel’s guitars and listen to the rhythm section, it’s pure punk attitude in that record.”

Bonehead would quit the band himself in 1999 after a drunken argument with Noel followed by Paul McGuigan. “We were all f**ked by that point,” he says, “but I don’t think it hit me until prior to recording (Standing On The Shoulder Of Giants). I think he picked his moment (McGuigan). I didn’t expect him to leave as well.

Oasis were the first and last band since The Beatles to enjoy such widespread public esteem in Britain. Until their final split in 2009 they would routinely sell out stadiums across the globe. Rumours of an Oasis reunion continue to abound.

A recent exhibition, Chasing The Sun 1993-97, celebrated the early years of the band and a reunion of the original line-up would undoubtedly exhilarate a generation of fans whose lives were sound-tracked by the band’s early output.

Of late, Bonehead has returned to playing live with Phoneys & The Freaks. He has also re-established a solid friendship with Liam Gallagher. “I’m probably closer with Liam now than I ever was, we’ve played together at a couple of events recently.” Will you play together again? “I’d love to,” comes the reply. Is there talk? “There might have been.”

For now Paul Arthurs is staying tight-lipped but if he gets a call from the man he still calls “the chief”, he won’t stand in the way of what the public wants. In many ways he displays something of the Irish Mancunian steadiness that underpinned Oasis.

“I went to see Noel’s High Flying Birds in Glasgow,” he says, “and he dedicated a song to me. We’re not close, I bump into him from time to time but if he wants me to play a gig or whatever — I’m there.”

Definitely Maybe: Chasing The Sun Edition will be released on May 19.

Source: www.irishpost.co.uk

Check out the current collection and offers from Pretty Green here.

This Feeling Joins Forces With Alan McGee's 359 Music

THIS FEELING JOINS FORCES WITH LEGENDARY CREATION BOSS ALAN McGEE'S 359 MUSIC FOR LANDMARK NIGHT OF LIVE MUSIC.

Queen of Hoxton, London, Saturday November 9th / 8pm - 2am

‘London’s most rock ‘n’ roll night out’ and ‘where to see future next big things in advance’ The Evening Standard

He changed the face of British music when he discovered Oasis in a Scottish club but record boss Alan McGee prefers the quiet life these days. McGee, who launched the careers of a host of big names on his Creation label, is out of retirement but is running his new venture – 359 Records. McGee, the man responsible for giving us Oasis, Primal Scream, The Jesus And Mary Chain, Super Furry Animals, to name but a few is joining forces with London's most rock and roll night out This Feeling showcasing the the cream of the crop from the legendary Creation founder's new label 359 Music. All the performers are releasing debut albums as we speak and expected to do big things so don't miss a unique opportunity to witness these four supremely talented acts plus a DJ set from Alan's friends Vicky McClure (This Is England) & Jonathan Owen (Svegali) and This Feeling resident DJ's.

Speaking about This Feeling, Alan McGee said: "This Feeling is the best club in the UK for rock'n'roll music. They are doing a great job of highlighting and supporting new bands. They believe in UK guitar music and are doing all they can to get it out there."

Alan's autobiography ‘Creation Stories: Riots, Raves and Running a Label’ which tells the story from the early days of the label, Oasis' world domination to the demise of Creation. That's in the past though, 359 is Alan's future...

Playing 'live' are:

JOHN LENNON McCULLAGH

Just fifteen years of age, rarely has a more natural talent been seen and John's acoustic-strumming, harmonica-wielding talents have been impressing the likes of Sheffield legend Richard Hawley ('The real deal'), Jake Bugg and Courtney Love ('who is this fifteen-year-old doing Dylan better than Dylan?!').

For a free download from John's debut album 'North South Divide' go to http://www.thisfeeling.co.uk/bands/229-john-lennon-mccullagh-/

CHRIS GRANT

Every song immerses you in his world and Chris performs straight from the heart with enough talent to follow in the footsteps of great Liverpudlian bands like Echo & The Bunnymen and The La's.

For a free download from Chris's debut album 'It's Not About War' go to http://www.thisfeeling.co.uk/bands/231-chris-grant/

MINERAL

With members from Dublin and Paris and influences ranging from The Pixies to Kraftwerk to The Beach Boys, as well as the best in French music (Air, Daft Punk), Mineral have been attracting worldwide interest with their hugely inventive brand of indie/electronica. Romantic and psychedelic in equal measure with ice cool vocals set against a backdrop of classy, thumping electro, expect an all-out sensory assault and a magnificent mash-up of styles that almost defies definition.

For a free download from Mineral's debut album 'Plastic Ekphrastic' go to http://www.thisfeeling.co.uk/bands/230-mineral/

REBECCA CLOSURE

One of the most passionate performers you'll ever witness, the enigmatic Rebecca Closure combines true musical flair with songwriting that's dizzyingly imaginative. From pumping 80s-tinged disco to freaky, psychedelic electro funk, this hugely talented and slightly surreal songstress makes music that's utterly compelling.

For a free download from Rebecca Closure's debut album go to http://www.thisfeeling.co.uk/bands/232-rebecca-closure/

Queen of Hoxton London (8pm to 2am, November 9th) – John Lennon McCullagh (live), Chris Grant (live), Mineral (live), Rebecca Closure (live)

Tickets £5 advance, £6 before 9pm, £8 after

Adv tickets, info and exclusive free downloads for at www.thisfeeling.co.uk

Upcoming Noel Gallagher And Beady Eye TV Appearances

UK only

One2Eleven: Ferdinand & Gallagher

Sky Sports 1HD

19 September 2013 01:15
20 September 2013 17:45, 23:45
21 September 2013 06:45

Ahead of the Manchester derby, United defender Rio Ferdinand names the 11 greatest footballers he has played alongside while Noel Gallagher creates his best City team of all time (15mins)

Beady Eye

Benicassim Festival 2013 Sunday 22nd at 01:40
Sky Arts 1 HD
New: Highlights from the 2013 Benicassim Festival in Spain.  With music from Beady Eye, Arctic Monkeys, Primal Scream, Kaiser Chiefs, Dizzee Rascal and Miles Kane (2 of 2), (1h 20 min)

Ibiza Rocks 2013: The Best Bits... Friday 20th at 22:00 
MTV Live HD
...Show 1.  MTV hits the white isle to catch up with all the party people at Ibiza Rocks - the Balearic's biggest music event of the summer!  Featuring Tinie Tempah, Biffy Clyro, Beady Eye and Jake Bugg (1h) 

Thanks to Michael

Watch Again: Oasis And Noel Gallagher On New Programme To Mark 20th Year Of T In The Park

Oasis and an interview with Noel Gallagher featured in a new programme broadcast on Sunday to mark 20th year of T In The Park.

Click here to watch again (UK Only).

Oasis Feature In A New Programme To Mark The 20th Year Of T In The Park

Oasis feature in a new programme to mark 20th year of T In The Park, and we’re celebrating with footage from some of the best performances from over the years. Packed with the best festival acts, T at 20 includes exclusive band interviews including Noel Gallagher to reveal why T in the Park has become one of the most unmissable music events of the year.

Featuring all the best performances including Oasis, Rage Against The Machine, Pulp, Radiohead, Beastie Boys, Primal Scream, Coldplay, The Who and many more.

You can watch the show on BBC 2 Scotland at 22:00 tomorrow night (July 7th) UK Only, if you don't live in Scotland and have Sky it is available on channel 970.

It should be available to watch again on the BBC iPlayer after broadcast.

Thanks to Michael