Video: Bradley Wiggins Playing Oasis And The Jam Live

The vidoes below show Bradley Wiggins who shocked revellers at the BBC Sports Personality of the Year after-party by jumping on stage and belting out a few of his favourite mod songs with an impromptu guitar session.

Bradley Wiggins Rocks After-Party With Impromptu Oasis Performance

Bradley Wiggins shocked revellers at the BBC Sports Personality of the Year after-party by jumping on stage and belting out a few of his favourite mod songs with an impromptu guitar session.

The Tour de France champion, who claimed the top prize at last night’s glitzy event, celebrated his win in style by rocking out to classic hits by The Jam and Oasis with the hired band.

Wiggins hopped on stage and first asked the musicians if they knew The Jam classic ‘That Entertainment’, which they didn’t.

Not wanting to ruin a good party, they followed his lead, but with the Team Sky cyclist reluctant to sing, he invited anyone who fancied it to get up and give it a go, with a security guard eventually obliging.

Wiggins then requested the band join him in a rendition of Oasis smash hit ‘Wonderwall’, which he lead on guitar while the band’s singer belted out Noel Gallagher’s classic anthem with the help of the crowd.

The Sports Personality of the Year then took the party to trendy London nightclub Whiskey Mist, where he celebrated until 3am.

Source: metro.co.uk

The 15 Best Oasis B-Sides

Following in the footsteps of idols such as The Smiths and The Jam, Oasis continued the tradition of releasing tracks that were left off of each album they released as b-sides amidst their colossal rise to worldwide fame in the mid-‘90s. While common sense might suggest that b-sides are lower in quality than any album track, that’s not the case with Oasis; several of these unreleased tracks are among the best the band ever produced.

With most of the best-hidden gems coming from Oasis’ golden age of mid-90s chart domination, we have ranked the 15 best b-sides from Noel and Liam Gallagher. So, feel free to continue having “Wonderwall” perpetually on pause and instead indulge the underappreciated tracks that truly made Oasis a great band.

Click here to see the songs that were picked.

 Source: www.pastemagazine.com

Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds have released International Magic Live At The O2 DVD through Sour Mash Records.

They will embark on a number European dates before they tour the US and Canada alongside Snow Patrol and Jake Bugg.

For details on the above and more click here.

On This Day In Oasis History...

Below is a video from October 5th 2001, when Noel Gallagher appeared with Paul Weller on the Jools Holland Show.

The pair performed 'That's Entertainment' by The Jam.

 

Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds release International Magic Live At The O2 DVD through Sour Mash Records on October 15.

They will embark on a number European dates before they tour the US and Canada alongside Snow Patrol and Jake Bugg.

 For details on the above and more click here.

Are Bradley Wiggins And Liam Gallagher BFFs (Best Fashion Friends)?

The blossoming bromance between cycling hero Bradley Wiggins and his new, fellow sideburn-sporting friend Liam Gallagher has reached fashionable heights.

We hate to say I told you so - but here we go anyway: when we conjured a slideshow of fantasy fashion campaigns for Team GB's victorious Olympians post-Games, we thought Bradley Wiggins for Liam Gallagher's label Pretty Green would be a match made in mod heaven.

Now it turns out the two got on like a house on fire in real life at the GQ Awards earlier this week, with potty-mouthed Gallagher presenting 'Wiggo' with his Lifetime Achievement Award, and inspiring the ex-Oasis frontman to tweet: "Bradley Wiggins, cool as f*** LG'.

But the bromance has reached third base with reports of Tour de France champion Wiggins snapping up Liam's designs from his local Pretty Green store in Manchester, according to the Manchester Evening News (we wonder if Liam was so generous as to bestow Wiggo with a discount card?).

"Clothes are important, man" professed Gallagher when he talked to us about his line last month - and he's certainly doing something right with 11 stand-alone shops in the UK and expansion in Japan and Tokyo.

The sideburned duo must have clearly bonded over their love of musical 'Modfather' Paul Weller; Wiggins not-so-subtly styles himself on the rock legend while Gallagher's line Pretty Green takes its name from a song by Weller's old band The Jam.

The only forseeable thorn in this fashion friendship's side is Wiggo's six-season design deal with Fred Perry. Looks like Liam will have to wait a while to sign the lamb-chopped legend as his new front man.

Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds embark on a UK tour in September and will tour the US and Canada alongside Snow Patrol and Jake Bugg later this year.

More details on the above dates and more can be found by clicking here.

Noel Gallagher: 'I'm Not Desperate At All To Reform Oasis'

Noel Gallagher has rubbished claims by his brother Liam Gallagher that he is desperate to reform Oasis – although he did hint he could change his mind if he needed the money.

In an interview with MTV, the High Flying Birds man said that his original comments about the possibility of the Manchester legends reforming in 2015 for the 20th anniversary of '(What's The Story) Morning Glory?' had been taken out of context.

For the past several weeks, both Liam and Noel have publicly sparred over the prospect of an Oasis reunion, with the Beady Eye frontman revealing he would eventually like to reunite with his older sibling, only for Noel to reject his offer of an olive branch.

Speaking to NME this week, Liam claimed that Noel was "desperate" to get Oasis back together, but Noel refuted his comments by insisting that his original offer to reform had been twisted by a journalist and went "all the way around the internet".

He went on to add: "And then it's like this mythical reunion is going to take place… It isn't going to take place. Do I look desperate? No. I'm not desperate at all".

However, the singer did joke that he might reconsider in the future depending on his financial situation, adding: "I will say this, though: if I need the money, I will do it. I don't need a lot of money, though, and here's hoping I won't anytime soon. No, I'm not desperate. My shit's not gone down the toilet yet."

Yesterday, Paul Weller hit out at bands who reformed purely for financial reasons and said he hoped he would never feel the need to reform The Jam.

Source: www.nme.com

Best British Track?

For a forthcoming feature in Q Magazine they are seeking nominations for the best, most quintessentially British track by a British artist since 1960. Just one track that you, the Q reader, believe best reflects the British experience in that time.

It might be Live Forever by Oasis, That's Entertainment by The Jam, could be Panic by The Smiths, Born Slippy by Underworld, or Up The Bracket by The Libertines, or of course - something totally different. The choice is yours!

Simply enter here and keep an eye out for it possibly appearing in a future issue of the magazine!

Is It Better To Burn Out Than To Fade Away?

"Rock stars should quit before they're 40." So said Noel Gallagher, not long after Oasis first burst onto the music scene in 1994. Should Noel and men like him have followed their advice and got out while they were still at their peak or do they remain a relevant force to this day?

When the Sex Pistols careered into people's living rooms on the night of December 1st 1976, when they appeared on Bill Grundy's Today programme using some choice language, they epitomised the anger being felt by their contemporaries. It was an anger and resentment that was channelled perfectly into their one and only studio album, 'Never Mind The Bollocks...Here's The Sex Pistols'. Bringing punk to the wider public's attention, it generated love and hate in equal measure, virtually overnight the band were the most notorious rock stars in Britain. Their story was a short-lived one however, and after sending shock-waves through their homeland with their debut release, the band would split just a few months later, ending with Lydon slumped on a stage in the US asking the crowd: "ever feel like you've been cheated?" Certainly no music fan felt cheated, they had entered in a blaze of glory, delivered an album of immense quality and importance, then they were gone, almost as quickly as they came. For twenty years they remained untouchable, the consummate example of the advantages of a band which gets out while they're at their peak. That was, before lures of a comeback proved too hard to resist, and they entered into the other side of the debate.

Nearly twenty years after Never Mind The Bollocks, Oasis hit the ground running with their own classic debut album 'Definitely Maybe'. Truly encapsulating the world and time they lived in, Oasis almost left themselves with nowhere to go as soon as they started. However, Noel Gallagher would produce his second classic album in as many years, when '(What's The Story) Morning Glory' catapulted the band to worldwide fame in 1995, and made them the biggest band in Britain since The Beatles. Still as popular with the public as ever, the albums recently came in at one and two in a poll to find the nation's favourite album. However, it was a level of success Oasis inevitably struggled to sustain. Line-up changes and poorly received albums have sparked wide debate amongst fans as to whether the band should have quit earlier, with departed guitarist Bonehead recently echoing an often spoken opinion when he stated they should've quit after their huge shows at Knebworth Park in 1996. However, the band have shown the virtues of longevity. They have recently completed a huge UK stadium tour, delighting new and older fans alike, and have arguably their best album in a decade under their belts, they've shown they remain a true force in music.

The downturn in sales, along with the upturn in concert tickets, has led Oasis to being dubbed 'The New Rolling Stones'. Still going 50 years after their formation, The Rolling Stones seemingly insatiable appetite for life on the road has seen them become one of the largest grossing touring artists on the planet. While most people would struggle to name one album they have made since 1975, people in their millions flock to see them in venues across the world. Their amazing durability has seen them become one of the last links to the first great era of British rock n roll, and it seems they will continue to sell out stadiums across the world for as long as they wish. Their popularity is as big as it has ever been and if ever band has proved the desire to continue can keep providing success, it is The Rolling Stones.

Recently back in the news celebrating the 20th anniversary of their debut album, The Stone Roses were another band who's impact was immediate when their eponymous album was released in 1989. Delighting the dance and rock lovers of the time, they quickly became a hugely influential group, delivering the kind of legendary music in a few short years that others strive for all their lives to realise. While The Stone Roses' end remains an unsatisfactory one, the impact the band made in such a short space of time means their mark on history was made, the frustration of the closing months of the band was tempered with the feeling that their job was done, that they had achieved what they needed to. While fans in 1994 may have bemoaned the band splitting, it is now seen by many as a decision which preserved their appeal.

One man who certainly made sure he got out while the going was good is Paul Weller. After forming The Jam in 1972 when he was just 14, Weller crafted some of the most memorable singles of the past 30 years, and in doing so turned The Jam into the biggest band in Britain by 1982. However, at the height of their powers, when Weller was still only 24, he disbanded The Jam and went on to form a new group, The Style Council. As the great poem 'For The Fallen' says: 'they do not grow old, as we that are left grow old'; by calling it quits while they were at the top, The Jam have remained forever synonymous with the age they first burst into. Untarnished by greying locks or sub-standard albums, their legacy remains as strong as the day they quit, even if their bank balance is that bit more modest. While fellow members Bruce Foxton and Rick Buckler have toured under the banner of The Jam over the past few years, Weller has constantly resisted a full reunion, whereas as others such as the Sex Pistols have been lured out of retirement for lucrative reunion tours, and in doing so have presented a new image from the four youngsters who changed the face of British music.

Like Paul Weller, Johnny Marr was only too aware of the positives that can be gained from a band that splits at the right time. Alongside Morrissey, he crafted some of the best music produced in the 1980s while a member of The Smiths, gaining a hugely passionate fan-base along the way. However, just like Weller had done a few years earlier, Marr walked away from the band at the height of their success in 1987. While constant reunion rumours, and large cash offers, are rejected, so the reputation of the band is sustained, cemented in the mid-80s, unblemished by the trials and tribulations a long career can bring.

Tarnished reputations is perhaps the biggest pit-fall for a band that remains active for many years. It is long forgotten now, but by the time inter-band differences finally put an end to The Beatles in 1970, they had become seen as a fading force by large sections of the public. It has been said that they got out just at the right time, just as murmurings of a backlash were starting and in doing so preserved a legacy which now sees them described as the most influential band of all time. Would it have been the same if the band had struggled on past their differences, into the 70s and the explosion of punk? Who can say, but it is certainly an intriguing thought.

Another band seemingly following the familiar pattern of The Rolling Stones and Oasis is U2. Their most recent album, 'No Line On The Horizon', has received one of the poorest receptions of any of their albums since their early days, yet the subsequent tour has seen them play to millions of people in Europe, and will take in a huge US tour shortly. Who can deny that kind of interest and support justifies a band prolonging their career?

So, was Neil Young right when he said 'it is better to burn out than to fade away'? It is difficult to say. What history does tell us is that as fame and age take their toll, bands do tend to lose the edge and hunger which found them success in the first place, and thus struggle to reproduce the quality of their old material. For many fans, the disappointment of new releases can dampen their faith and passion for a band they once loved. Their early impact can start to be eroded away, and for some people, a burn out may be long over due.

However, as the recent trend of reunions has shown, nothing can diminish the interest in a band who have made a true connection with their fans and still having these bands around to deliver their classic tunes to new generations of fans is as good a reason as any for a band to keep going. While bands such as Oasis and The Rolling Stones continue to delight fans with their music, they will surely never fade away.

Source: www.live4ever.uk.com

Oasis at the iTunes Festival is now available to download on iTunes, for more details click here.