Episode 47: Oasis part 4

Oasis has a tour of the USA in 1995. The band is winning awards and selling millions of records, even turning down tours with Bon Jovi and David Bowie! 
Unfortunately Liam’s drunken antics causes Noel to quit the band…will he return to Oasis?  Listen and find out!

Contact the show: jaysrockandrollstories@gmail.com

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:22

Hello, rock and roll, welcome back. Hi there. Little belated, uh, little belated Merry Christmas, happy holidays. Um, welcome to Jay's Rock and Roll Stories. I'm your host Jay. Let's get right back into our story about Oasis. But before we jump back into 1994-95, I want to tell you, um, I want to tell you a little story that this happened from this year. Um, you know what I'm talking about. When I say like, you know, I think um, no, I uh when when I say Liam Gallagher is a good guy, I think he's a good man. And you might think, ah no, he's a fucking rock, rock and roll, rock and roll star asshole. I want to read this to you. Okay, this is from this year. So Liam Gallagher won an award from PETA, the uh the animal, uh Protection of Animal Agency. So, so let me tell you the story here. So the Oasis Star adopted his dog called Buttons from a place called Happy Doggo Sanctuary in Thailand last year after he was a the dog was abandoned in the jungle for quote unquote not being cute enough. So Gallagher, Liam Gallagher, he helped raise 25,000 uh pounds to assist Happy Doggo, that's the name of the dog sanctuary, to help the founder, Nail Harbison, fund the building of an animal hospital to help other dogs in Thailand. So for his good deeds, Liam Gallagher has been awarded PETA's strike the right chord for animals award. Nice guy. That's pretty, pretty cool. Nice little pup named Buttons, too. Alright, let's jump back in time. Let's go to uh August the 13th of uh '94. They're um playing in Sweden, and they play such a good show that this journalist from a magazine called Pop in in Sweden, he writes, you know that feeling when you discover a band and go, Yes, this is my band. Well, that happened for 20,000 Swedes. So after that show to celebrate, uh Oasis, the whole band, they went back to their hotel in Sweden to party, and they met up with the band uh Verve, um Richard Ashcroft, right? Verve, and the band Primal Scream, uh Bobby Gillespie. That guy, Primal Scream. But the bar closes, right? It's like, no, we're we're we're done. Uh the bartender leaves and they shut down the bar. The band, the bands hang around and they decided to just uh break in and dismantle, dismantle the bar, and they drink everything inside. They drink the bar dry and then they say, Oh god, what what else? What else can we drink? They're like, wasn't there like a church next door? Oh yeah, a church. What's inside of a church? Oh, red wine. Let's go check it out. So they go to uh a church, they break in, and uh they can't find any wine, but when but when they come back out, uh I guess um I guess someone saw what they were doing. Someone saw what they're doing, call the police. So the police arrive and their pictures are taken, and the next day on the cover of uh you know the newspaper, the the title is like, Do we need this filth? Uh so the rock and roll partyers. Here's a funny story, I like this. That the I'm just everything from this Paolo Qat book, it's just they're just little anecdotes from you know nine early 90s to 96. Alright, here's uh same time, August of uh August of 94. Oasis, they wrap they wrap up a bunch of shows in England, and they are on the cover of magazines Anime, Melody Maker, The Face, and they have a tagline on on the on the on the magazine. It says uh uh Oasis are the sex beatles. And Noel Gallagher saw that and said, Shit, why didn't I think of that one? Here's another uh nice guy moment. See, these guys are I mean they're full of themselves, but they're nice guys. So there's an in-store autograph signing at uh Virgin Megastore at the end of '94, and uh 2,000 people waited outside, um, and only 200 people got in. So Liam and uh Noel Gallagher devoted about two and a half hours just signing autographs to people, and um Liam Liam hated it. He was like, This feels like I'm at school, but Noel is saying, like, no man, we owe we owe it to these people. Without them, we'd be nothing. Alright, um, remember how we talked about how they're such devoted John Lennon Lennon fans on their on their cover of the for the single um uh Live Forever, the picture is the house where John Lennon used to live in. Um so they tour Europe, they tour Germany, they tour Japan. Uh Tony McCarroll is just pissing everybody off. Like he's uh the thing about him is that he he doesn't really hang out and and you know goof off with the guys. He's just there to drum, and he he doesn't even it's like he doesn't like the lifestyle or something. And it gets to the point where like Gigsy, he's uh he threw because they have he has to uh bunk, he has to room with um with the the drummer Tony McCarroll. And at one point, Tony McCroll uh runs and is and is banging on Noel Noel's door. Please let me in, please let me in. And it turns out that uh Gigsy was gonna stab him. Like, if you don't fucking leave me alone, I'm gonna stab you. So Noel opens the door, comes in, hears a story, and says, like, listen, I'm gonna stab you first, and if if Gigsy stabs you before I do, I'm gonna stab him too. So he's just getting on everyone's fucking nerve, Tony McCurl. The band's first tour of the USA doesn't really hit off that well. Um the uh the audience are just kind of mild. Uh they don't react the same way, and the guys in the band are not really I don't know, they're not just not happy over there. But one thing that they one thing that Liam finds that he seems to enjoy is meth. He likes that stuff. Doing um doing lines of meth that shows, like, you know, behind behind the amp and then coming back out. And that kind of pisses off Noel because he's like, you know, focus on this, let's do this. And Liam hits Noel in the head with a tambourine, and that leads to like that leads to that that story where Noel is like, I'm done. And when when he disappeared and he stayed with that girl, and he wrote a song called Talk Tonight About That Girl, but then he finally comes back to the bin. So yeah, no, Noel quits for a little bit, and he I guess he kind of had like a little, he he had to find some self-ex some some time for himself. He he's uh he meets someone, like he just starts talking to some some Americans when when he was there, and and this woman and this man, and they said, Wow, you look you remind me of George Harrison. And it was a fun it's a funny story because the woman had this pact with her husband. She says, Listen, I will I will always only have sex with you, but if I ever get the chance to have sex with George Harrison, you have to let me. And so sh they have this interaction where it's just kind of like maybe you can be my George Harrison, but it doesn't happen, but it's it's just a funny interaction. And and the the woman is very kind to Noel and just just really just really likes his music, just it makes him feel special, like this is this is actually important. I should be doing this, I'm not gonna give up. And the book talks the book talks a lot about the the Brit Pop stuff, the Brit Pop like wars between um Noel Gallagher, I mean sorry, Oasis and and Blur, and his Noel's friendship with Paul Weller. So Blur is also winning a bunch of um awards and and and um you know Oasis is also winning an awards, they're it's going back and forth. It's so and it's it's funny, it's interesting that um the first Oasis single to be released in the USA was actually their eighth single. Wonder Wall was the first one in the States, but that was like their eighth, eighth one. So the U.S. tour in January, February of '95, they went to Seattle, St. Louis, even Salt Lake City, Mesa in Arizona, Denver, Dallas, Austin, Houston, Memphis, and Atlanta. And then they went back to England and they won the Best British Newcomer Award at the uh Brit Awards. So Noel accepts the award on the stage from um uh the Kinks, Roy Davies. Uh sorry, Ray Davies, who who gives the award to him. And Noel says uh his speech is that he he says, uh, I'd like to thank Ray Davies for influencing me. I'd like to thank George Martin for producing the best band there ever was, The Beatles, and I'd like I'd like to thank our parents live forever. Um the band pushes on to South Wales to record at this place called Loco Studios. They record their new single, some might say. That's a good song. I've been listening to I've been listening to Oasis for a while now, and it just that that's a really good song too. Put that on, some might say. This would be uh Tony McCarroll, their drummer's last recording with the band. Um his abilities as a drummer are just is just not that great. He only has two modes. Uh he has a shuffle, and he had, you know, he just has a simple beat. They even go to the extent of getting him lessons and like like someone who would help teach him, and then he would have homework, and then he would come back, and then the guy would be like, Hey, so how'd you do in your homework? He's like, I didn't do it. So yeah, it's just like getting to the point of like, you know, let's fuck this guy, you know. It's it another funny thing is he wrote a book. This guy, Tony McCroll, wrote a book about his his time in Oasis. And I'm I'm not I'm not lying, I bought it, and I'm gonna read it because it's gonna be everything that the band poll told Paolo Hewitt not to put in his book, the one I just read. So I'm gonna I'm gonna get to that. I'm gonna have a Tony McCarroll episode one day. Alright, so here's another review. Um sorry, here's another story here. So they finally get a new drummer, and uh coincidentally, this the new drummer is the younger brother of Steve White. Steve White was the drummer of the style council, and he Steve White is the drummer of um Paul Weller's band. Um there's lots of happy stories, but I gotta I gotta tell you a little a sad one here. So on a on a sour note, um Noel quits the band for a second time, and that this is why. So they're in the studio, they're recording the album Um What's the Story, Morning Glory, which is a great album, and Liam gets all flustered and stressed out and runs off to the local pub. And so he he's uh he's recognized by a bunch of people at the pub, and they're buying him drinks, so he's hanging out and partying with the pub while while Noel is in the studio, you know, putting down the tracks for Champagne Supernova and uh Don't Look Back in Anger. Two great songs. So Noel wraps up the recording and he heads back to their like communal house and where to find Liam has invited all of these people from the bar to the house, and which just pisses Noel off. He's like, get the fuck out of here, and then and I guess like Liam mentioned that he made some girl cry, like he's and that really pissed Liam off because he was like, Hey, don't be mean to this this chick, you know. And then Liam gets so angry, he starts throwing furniture, he's breaking stuff. Uh Noel has had it, he's he's being driven away. Like some someone says, Hey, get take me out of here. He's in a car, he's being driven away while Liam is trying to find things to he throws trash cans at the car speeding away. So in in the car, he uh Noel was quoted saying, I don't want to do this anymore. I'm gonna I'm gonna fuck off and I'm gonna do my own thing. Which is an interesting quote because he does do that in the future. When when Oasis breaks up, he can't stand his brother anymore, and Noel has that he started that band of uh high flying birds, and there's that period, because there's like a decade where Liam wanted to get back together, and Noel's like, I'm not doing anything with you, man. You're you're fucking nuts. So let's go back again here. So July 95, Oasis are asked to open for Bon Jovi, they're asked to open for David Bowie, they're asked to open for R R E M, which I think they do, they do play with REM. Umle's uh response to being asked to play with Bon Jovi is kind of funny. He says, uh, he says, nah, that's not worth the humiliation. And then uh his response to to David Bowie is he's like, ah man, if if if it was like 20 years ago, yeah, sure, but now he's he's like an old guy. Um also it's interesting that at this period there is uh journalists asking Noel, uh, what is the lifespan of Oasis? And he and Noel says, I don't think very long. I I think I think I got two albums in me, and that's it. We'll be done. And then they ask, and then they told Liam that, like a journalist told Liam that, and Liam got pissed off. He's like, No, man, I'm gonna get that guy to keep writing songs. We're not we're never gonna end this. I thought that was interesting. You know, that it's just devotion in in in different ways, you know. Here's uh I want to hear a couple stats here. These are from okay, this is from October 2 of 1995. So on that album, what's the story, Morning Glory? That album had six singles. These are all good songs, too. This is uh uh okay, start starting from the top. Some might say, some might say uh went platinum, uh roll with it, went platinum. That means it's uh about six hundred thousand more, six hundred thousand or more. Uh Morning Glory, Wonder Wall, Don't Look Back in Anger, Champagne Super Champagne Supernova, six songs. Um yeah, like a lot of sales here. This is uh I think Champagne Supernova sold 1,800,000 copies. That's just that's amazing. Wow. Alright, so here is uh here's a tragedy I want I want to share with you. So this is um this is in 1995, they play with REM at uh a castle, an outdoor festival by a castle in Ireland, and there's like a there's like an old moat that kind of circles around the castle, you know, and it's a ton of people, like so many people there, and Noel is saying how the people up front were going crazy. This was such a festival. Three kids like were just having such a great time, they jump in that mode and they drown. It's fucking tragedy. Uh yeah, the book talks a lot about the the Brit Pop stuff, the blur, oasis, uh, the battling for who's the best. But um, I think I would I would probably I I'd like to just save that kind of information for a separate episode because that there's like so much gossip and there's girlfriend sharing, and it it gets interesting. It's kind of a little soap opera. So August uh August of '95, Oasis sets out on a successful tour of Japan. When they return home, Noel has a phone message on his machine, and it's inviting him to do a benefit album called Help. And this will this will help the um victims of the Bosnian War. So the idea is that a bunch of bands, I think it's like at least 10 bands. I think it's um 10 to 15 bands, I think. And so the the the idea is every band would go into their respective studio September 3rd at midnight and wrap up your recording by the 4th. Send the master tapes, uh, cut the master tapes, send it uh by the 5th, and then you know, uh have the tapes ready and then be in the shops within a couple days. So it's just like a it's like let's do it, let's do it. It's kind of cool. So the way the song that Oasis does is called Fade Away, and they're in the studio doing it. Guess who's a uh uh a guest guitarist on that song? Uh Johnny Depp. I guess he was in town. He died, he plays guitar. Johnny, Johnny Depp, and Johnny Depp and uh Jeff Beck made an album together before uh Jeff Beck died, I think 2022, 2023. So anyway, so they're in the studio and um with this idea, and Paul Weller joins them, and Paul Weller says, why don't we get Paul McCartney? And so it's like Noel Gallagher, Paul Weller, Paul McCartney, uh the rest of the band, and they they call themselves um the Smoking Mojo Filters, and they do uh they do a cover um they do a rendition of uh Come Together by the Beatles, and it's like a very happy moment for Noel Gallagher because he's in the studio with Paul McCartney to his right and Paul Weller to his left, you know, his heroes. It's kind of cool. The um the author makes uh an interesting note, uh Paolo Hewitt. He says in 1995, Oasis play a small tour of Sweden right before the show. Uh Liam Bonehead and all the sound guys and crew, they go out onto town to party a little bit, and it was said that Noel stayed back. He stayed, he stayed in the hotel, he was just like wandering around looking upset, and it and it was said that he he stayed in his room watching a documentary, and the documentary was the um Earl Sebastian's documentary on Marvin Gay. Why do you think he was so you know caught up in this documentary? Marvin Gay, like the uh this very talented singer, very famous singer, who also had an impossible an impossible uh way or non-existent ever kind of any love or recognition from his own father. The same thing with with Liam and Noel. That it that hurts. That's sad. Alright, so um these guys definitely have a sense of humor. I'm gonna share some of these things, little little couple stories here. So they definitely have a sense of humor. When when um the album, What's the story, was uh soaring up in the charts, Bonehead, while staying at the hotel, one of these hotels in Europe, I think it was in Amsterdam, um, he get like at night, he gets on the on the roof with a stereo and he's blasting the album, and they get kicked out and they're never allowed to come back to that hotel. But I I just thought it was cool, like, yeah, yes, we did it. Um Noel, in an interview with a with some host, talks about uh talks about his music upbringing and uh he he mentions a despised music teacher from from you know grade school or whatever and he says uh there's one thing I I would like to say to him. Uh do you want to borrow a tenor? Do you want do you need you want do you need to borrow 10 bucks? Um the book uh the book doesn't really have any type of like you know ending. It's just it's just kind of uh anecdotes. And uh so what we know now is Oasis are back together and they're going on a on a tour in 2025. They're coming to the closest place I would get to see them would be in Los Angeles. They're playing at the Rose Bowl. I don't know, I'll keep you updated. Who knows? Who knows? Who knows? I can grab a ticket and go to that show, Rose Bowl 2025 to see Oasis, and I would do a like. I'm here! Dude, we're here! We're at we're at the fucking show. Alright, anyway, if you liked that episode, uh leave me uh you know a comment, five stars, whatever you want to do. You want to email the show? It's uh Jay's Rock and Roll Stories at Proton.me. Thank you for coming. That was just a that was just a little taste of Oasis in in their prime. Um they they go on to make more albums. They're just not as good as those early ones there. And I I just wanted to share those little anecdotes. I thought I thought they were they're fun stories, you know, and I think it shines a light on the the rock star image that the media shows us, but but really they're just regular like regular people, you know. Anyway, thanks for coming, and uh, I'll see you next time. Rock and roll.