14 hours ago
EXCLUSIVE I sold records to Noel and Liam Gallagher when they were boys and was namedropped in one of their hit songs... tourists have flooded into my shop looking for Oasis stuff EVERY DAY since
Oasis's musical inspirations are famously plentiful: from The Beatles and The Kinks, to T-Rex, Slade and even an iconic Coca-Cola ad.
It's a terrifying thought, but without this fledgling rock 'n' roll education, Liam and Noel Gallagher 's utter domination of 90s British popular culture might never have taken root.
Peter Howard, then, can make a genuine claim to changing the course of music history.
Owner of Sifter Records in Burnage, Manchester since 1977, he is the man who helped shape the future Live Forever stars' early tastes in singles, albums and everything in between.
The boys repaid the favour, immortalising Mr Howard, aka Mr Sifter, in their 1994 hit Shakermaker in a line penned by Noel just before their ascent to superstardom.
'Mr Sifter sold me songs, when I was just 16. Now he stops at traffic lights, but only when they're green,' Liam croons on what was just their second single.
With the brothers just a month away from a comeback 16 years in the making, Mr Howard, speaking from his now 48-year-old shop, has described what it's like to be the first stop on the Oasis tour trail.
He told MailOnline: 'I've had tourists in every day since Shakermaker, often from South Korea and Japan.
'I've always done well out of it, it's given me steady business.
'It injected new life into the business -so [we are grateful]. A lot of people mention Oasis when they come in here.
'They have been huge, a lot bigger than we thought they'd be.'
If Liam's zany lines in Shakermaker are to be believed, the boys stepped into Sifters' store in the late 80s.
But aside from the odd filming day, they have scarcely returned since they paid homage to their favourite record dealer on a track which would become a highlight of their debut album Definitely Maybe.
'In recent years Noel's been in,' Mr Howard, 77, recalled. 'He filmed a documentary here last year.
'Liam hasn't been back in the shop since, and neither have been back as customers for many years.'
The musicians are putting their differences to one side this summer for the first time since a bitter feud broke the band up in 2009, performing 19 shows in the UK and Ireland amid a world tour.
The band can be seen sifting through the disks as they film the music video inside the record store
How Sifters was namechecked by Oasis
Sifters and its owner were namechecked in Shakermaker from their debut album Definitely Maybe - Oasis' first top 20 hit, which peaked at number 11 in the UK charts.
The store - where the brothers used to buy their records - was also featured in the music video, where the band can be seen sifting through his disks.
The lyric goes: 'Mister Sifter sold me songs,
'When I was just sixteen,
'Now he stops at traffic lights,
'But only when they're green.'
The Oasis Live 25 tour kicks off on July 4 at Cardiff's Principality Stadium before playing sell-out gigs Wembley Stadium in London, Edinburgh's Murrayfield stadium and Croke Park in Dublin.
They are also making a long-awaited return to their home city, Manchester, with five concerts at Heaton Park, 29 years after their iconic shows at Maine Road, the home of their boyhood football team Man City.
The area is alive with anticipation ahead of the gigs and Mr Howard is hopeful the Gallagher brothers can give his business a boost once again.
'Not much has altered in recent years, but things might change though come July hopefully when there are more tourists in town,' he said.
But the huge events, which saw millions queue online for tickets last August, are also a source of anxiety for the original 'Mr Sifter' with visitors often expecting something different from his shop.
He said: 'I'm nervous ahead of the concerts
'It's a bit embarrassing really, it's just a second-hand shop. We've got no steady source for material, just whatever anyone hands in.
'Tourists come expecting souvenirs but the original LPs are either too expensive or people don't want to bring them in. They don't sell them readily to second hand shops like me
Posters on the walls at Sifters show artists including Guns N' Roses, local boys Oasis and their idols The Beatles
'It's all a bit embarrassing if I've got nothing to show them. Hopefully they don't abuse me too much.
'But people always say, 'what a nice shop', I suppose they're not rude enough to criticise us.
'This summer, we can bask in the glory of the band and the concerts.'
While Noel and the rest of the band have already kicked off band rehearsals without the frontman, Liam finally joined the rest for a full set run-through on Thursday, just weeks before the world tour begins.
In typical Liam style, the singer made a chaotic entrance to rehearsals, arriving in a van laden with Lockets and cough syrup, suggesting his vocal cords were in need of some TLC.
The rehearsals would have been the first time Noel and Liam have played together since the V Festival in Staffordshire back in August 2009. Just days later, the band split following a huge row ahead of the Rock en Seine festival in Paris.
According to reports, fans of the band have Noel's daughter Anais to thank for the long-awaited reunion tour.
The model, 25, is said to have helped bring the estranged siblings back together after 'planting the idea' of a reconciliation.
Anais also helped piece together the set list and give an insight into what younger fans might want to hear.
According to The Sun, a source said: 'Anais could tell her dad really wanted both his brothers, Liam and Paul, by his side after the split so was determined to get them back in touch.'
They continued: 'She gets on great with Liam's sons Gene and Lennon so she asked them if their dad would be willing to hear her out.
'It enabled her to plant the idea of a reconciliation on both sides. Thanks to her close relationship with Liam, she was able to call him. Once Liam called Noel, the rest was left up to them.'
