Oasis in '00: 'I have got caught up in some nonsense that I shouldn't have. But I was young'
Despite fellow Oasis founder members Paul 'Bonehead' Arthurs and Paul 'Guigsy' McGuigan jumping ship before its release, champagne corks popped again in March when Standing On The Shoulder Of Giants took them back to the summit on both sides of the Irish Sea. Liam was also celebrating the birth of his baby boy, Lennon, when he met up with the late, extremely great George Byrne…
'The baby's cool, he's a Caesarean baby, and they're the stress-free ones. There was none of that f*ckin' pushing and shit, they just sliced the missus open and popped him out. He's in bed at eight o'clock and up at half-seven every morning. He sleeps right through. It's mega, I'm doing the f*ckin' lot – champion nappy changer me, man!'
'We were recording and Bonehead finished his parts, so he went home to move house. We went 'Fine' and then got a call a few weeks later saying he wasn't coming back. He didn't speak to us, he got the manager to do it. Until then I thought everything was sweet so we asked the manager 'Well, what's up with him?' The story was that he didn't want to be in the band anymore, so we went 'F*ck it! Leave him for a week or two to let him sort out whatever's up with him'. We had an album to make and, don't forget, we'd had two years off to exorcise our f*cking demons and shit, to get our bollocks together. This was costing us a lot of money, recording down in France, get on with it. I mean, there's lots of things that piss me off but I know that when I've got to go to work, I've got to go to work. We just kept going with the album. I reckoned he'd sort himself out, but when it came to doing the cover he still wasn't having any of it so that was the end of it.
'As far as I was concerned the five of us were equal. When we went into the studio or onstage, or were just sitting down drinking, we were a gang. Me and Noel never set out this plan that it'd be just the two of us in the spotlight, so if that was their problem then that was their problem – f*ck it! I was on the same wage as they were as well, Noel gets the most 'cos he writes the songs, which is only right – he's the one who stays up all night doing the graft while I'm down the pub giving it loads and talking b**locks. It annoyed me when some people suggested that the reason they left was because of money. I'm on the same money as Alan White and he was the last one in, so all that money thing was complete f*cking b**locks. Life goes on.'
'I have been a bit of a casualty, I have got caught up in some nonsense that I shouldn't have. But I was young. I still am young, but I'm thinking a bit straighter now, and I've learned to love music again. For four years, we didn't have a minute and were off our heads most of the time, but now I've had two years off to see what's what. What do I love? I don't love the TV, that pisses me off, had enough of that. I don't love hanging out with celebrities, they do my f*cking head in. Why am I sitting in this nice house in London with all these nice things around me? Through music, and now I wanna get that back..'
George's legendary final question was: 'When the band were in a blizzard of coke, which was your favourite nostril?'
Liam's equally legendary answer being: 'Are we talking power nostril here? The left, definitely the left. The right's the supersub. The left starts the match, does the full ninety minutes, then the right comes in for extra-time and penalties!'
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Irish Independent
29 minutes ago
- Irish Independent
Do Oasis fans know the lyrics?
More than 16 years on from the last time the Manchester rockers played Ireland at Slane in June 2009, the excitement was palpable at their pop-up merch store at St Stephen's Green, Dublin. A steady crowd of people streamed into the store throughout the afternoon, many emerging minutes later with bags stuffed with T-shirts, hoodies, posters and special-edition vinyl presses made for the Live '25 tour. Among the fans flocking to the store were brothers Daniel and Niall Duffy, aged 18 and 20, from Lusk in Co Dublin. Rock 'n' Roll Star, Slide Away and The Masterplan were the picks of the bunch when the Duffys were asked their favourite Oasis tracks. Daniel nailed a rendition of Live Forever as we challenged fans to finish the lyrics from some of their hits. How did fans fare? Watch our video above. There were mixed results – one fan was pitch perfect for a few lines of Hello, a group of American tourists enthusiastically sang the wrong lyrics for Wonderwall and another fan hung her head as she forgot the words to Some Might Say. Meanwhile, the collaboration between Oasis and sportswear giant Adidas has made huge waves, selling out when it was first released ahead of the tour and proving hugely popular at the pop-ups seen across Cardiff, London, Edinburgh and now Dublin. When the Irish Independent visited the store, there was just a single shirt bearing the three stripes left, a lone black and beige, size large short sleeve. A pair of friends deliberated over the shirt, balked at the €55 price tag and promptly placed it back on the rack. It was scooped up by the man next to them in the blink of an eye. For his trouble, he got a look that screamed, 'Would you have stood in my grave as fast?' Brothers Daniel and Niall Duffy, having already shelled out more than €500 for tickets for Saturday's gig at Croke Park, spent nearly €400 between them at the pop-up shop selling clothes, programmes and vinyl. They went to see Liam when his 30th-anniversary tour came to Ireland last year, so Niall made sure to get his younger brother on the Oasis train ahead of the gig. 'I spent €190 on this,' Daniel said, nodding to his recently acquired bag of goodies. 'It's a tour programme, a hoodie and two T-shirts.' The brothers, self-described Oasis superfans, managed to avoid the scramble for tickets many had struggled with. 'We ended up getting on the pre-sale ballot. We weren't far off only paying for the cheapest, we didn't have to deal with the general sale,' Niall said. 'We only paid the standard price for the tickets, we avoided the dynamic pricing totally. 'Standard' pricing for the tickets was still a pretty penny for them at around €170 each for seats in the lower Hogan Stand, but they're just happy to not be up in the nosebleeds. On the relatively younger side of the Oasis fandom, this is the first chance for the Duffy brothers to see the band live. Did they think the day would ever come? 'I had a feeling it would happen at some point,' Daniel said. 'I didn't think it would happen so soon, but I was hopeful.'
Irish Independent
an hour ago
- Irish Independent
Do Oasis fans at Dublin's pop-up shop know the lyrics?
More than 16 years on from the last time the Manchester rockers played Ireland at Slane in June 2009, the excitement was palpable at their pop-up merch store at St Stephen's Green, Dublin. A steady crowd of people streamed into the store throughout the afternoon, many emerging minutes later with bags stuffed with T-shirts, hoodies, posters and special-edition vinyl presses made for the Live '25 tour. Among the fans flocking to the store were brothers Daniel and Niall Duffy, aged 18 and 20, from Lusk in Co Dublin. Rock 'n' Roll Star, Slide Away and The Masterplan were the picks of the bunch when the Duffys were asked their favourite Oasis tracks. Daniel nailed a rendition of Live Forever as we challenged fans to finish the lyrics from some of their hits. How did fans fare? Watch our video above. There were mixed results – one fan was pitch perfect for a few lines of Hello, a group of American tourists enthusiastically sang the wrong lyrics for Wonderwall and another fan hung her head as she forgot the words to Some Might Say. Meanwhile, the collaboration between Oasis and sportswear giant Adidas has made huge waves, selling out when it was first released ahead of the tour and proving hugely popular at the pop-ups seen across Cardiff, London, Edinburgh and now Dublin. When the Irish Independent visited the store, there was just a single shirt bearing the three stripes left, a lone black and beige, size large short sleeve. A pair of friends deliberated over the shirt, balked at the €55 price tag and promptly placed it back on the rack. It was scooped up by the man next to them in the blink of an eye. For his trouble, he got a look that screamed, 'Would you have stood in my grave as fast?' Brothers Daniel and Niall Duffy, having already shelled out more than €500 for tickets for Saturday's gig at Croke Park, spent nearly €400 between them at the pop-up shop selling clothes, programmes and vinyl. They went to see Liam when his 30th-anniversary tour came to Ireland last year, so Niall made sure to get his younger brother on the Oasis train ahead of the gig. 'I spent €190 on this,' Daniel said, nodding to his recently acquired bag of goodies. 'It's a tour programme, a hoodie and two T-shirts.' ADVERTISEMENT The brothers, self-described Oasis superfans, managed to avoid the scramble for tickets many had struggled with. 'We ended up getting on the pre-sale ballot. We weren't far off only paying for the cheapest, we didn't have to deal with the general sale,' Niall said. 'We only paid the standard price for the tickets, we avoided the dynamic pricing totally. 'Standard' pricing for the tickets was still a pretty penny for them at around €170 each for seats in the lower Hogan Stand, but they're just happy to not be up in the nosebleeds. On the relatively younger side of the Oasis fandom, this is the first chance for the Duffy brothers to see the band live. Did they think the day would ever come? 'I had a feeling it would happen at some point,' Daniel said. 'I didn't think it would happen so soon, but I was hopeful.'
The Irish Sun
2 hours ago
- The Irish Sun
I was there when Liam & Noel got career-defining call – I wish I'd kept thank you gifts from opening for Oasis in '94
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The previous night in Dublin, Oasis drummer Tony Gallagher broke his snare drum bashing out early hits, Supersonic, Shakermaker and Live Forever and had to get a replacement from the Catchers. Peter told us: 'Oasis asked could they borrow my snare drum and I said 'no problem'. Advertisement "Oasis gave me some drum skins as a thank you gift, I wished I'd kept them now.' Hanging out with Oasis, Peter recalls Liam Gallagher was wound up with swagger and attitude. He said: 'I didn't approach Liam because Liam was unapproachable. But Noel was the total opposite. 'I remember sitting on the stairs with him backstage in the Tivoli chatting about The Frank and Walters - who were friends of ours - who he had toured with when he roadied for The Inspiral Carpets. Noel was great.' Advertisement HIGH ALERT For the gig in Belfast, Peter recalls how the two bands nearly didn't make it over the border as their convoy was stopped by the RUC. 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Singers Dale Grundle and Alice Lemon created beautiful harmonies together on pristine pop songs like Cotton Dress. Peter said: 'No, it wasn't the sort of crowd we'd usually play for but we lived to tell the tale.' SUPERSTAR MATES The administrator recalled how Oasis were joined by superstar mates on the dates. Advertisement Peter said: 'I remember talking to this guy about music backstage in Dublin for ages. He had a shaved head. 'It was only then he introduced himself as Evan Dando of The Lemonheads, who were a pretty huge band back then.' It's mad to think back to those days. I was 21 at the time and having a ball." Catchers would later go on to tour with Pulp and Edwyn Collins after recording their debut album Mute with Cure producer Mike Hedges. The record won them a devoted following in France, before they signed with US label Warners Discovery and moved to the US. Advertisement The group split after second album Stooping To Fit in 1998. Peter ended up working in a London pub where he met his future Australian wife. They travelled to Oz in 2003 and he has remained there ever since. Peter said: 'It's mad to think back to those days. I was 21 at the time and having a ball. Advertisement Looking at the tickets now — £6.75 to see Oasis at the Tivoli. You'd pay a lot more now. A lot!' You can hear Catchers at 5 Fans paid just £6.75 to see the Manchester lads play Credit: COLLECT 5 The Gallagher brothers performed at the Tivoli Theatre in 1994 Credit: COLLECT Advertisement
