#oasis the masterplan

[beforethepoison]

[darklylovely]

peak sibling behavior from noel and liam about "listen up" for the masterplan (x). liam was so right though; if you listen to the two versions back to back, it is so much better after the edit.

[nvm-lili]

[aeolianblues]

“The masterplan was, there was no masterplan. Except to write good songs. Oh yeah, and to be the biggest band in the world. A modest ambition, but it put Oasis on the road to greatness.”

OASIS - THE MASTERPLAN (1998)

Plus some more pics of Oasis albums we have at our stations, sent to us promotionally by Sony Canada on behalf of Creation Records.

Liner notes below the cut:

The masterplan was, there was no masterplan. Except to write good songs. Oh yeah, and to be the biggest band in the world. A modest ambition, but it put Oasis on the road to greatness. "Me mam always used to say, God loves a tryer," Noel Gallagher says. "And I went, 'Why? Has he got a car?' She went, 'No, a tryer-Not a tyre." So the Gallagher boys did try, and if you want proof of how hard they tried then hear these tracks - B-sides, all of them, made by a band who believe a B-side is no excuse not to care. Outside of Britain it hasn't always been easy to hear Oasis B-sides. But in Britain or anywhere else, they sound majestic played back-to-back.

We open heroically with ACQUIESCE which is one of those all-time "shoulda been an A-side" numbers. (Creation Records certainly thought so, and who could blame them?) The song is about friendship in the widest sense and not, as often speculated, about the Gallagher brothers themselves. Noel sings the chorus because, he claims, Liam couldn't reach the high notes. Or he was in the pub. Whatever, it was written on a slow train to Wales and made possible because Noel likes to travel with his guitar. It's no surprise that Acquiesce is present: via the Internet, Oasis fans were asked to vote on this album's choice of tracks.

But the inclusion of UNDERNEATH THE SKY might have been "influenced" by Noel, who cites this as a favourite song. Its happy-wanderer feel was inspired by a pocket-book of travellers' quotes he came across, and the jollity's enhanced by a four-handed piano part courtesy of him and Bonehead (who tackles the tinkly bits, apparently).

TALK TONIGHT is another self-selecting choice, from Noel's acoustic repertoire. Beautifully tender, its thoughtful air derives from a Texas studio session: Noel was back after his brief flounce from the band on a US tour: "Me and Liam had a disagreement, probably about what shoes he was wearing, so I'd fucked off to Las Vegas." It was an Oasis fan in San Francisco who talked him down off the ledge. The same reflective interlude gave us another song, in HALF THE WORLD AWAY (which is Paul Weller's favourite Oasis track). The pressure was already building, though, when Noel began writing (IT'S GOOD TO BE FREE, at the start of those troubled American dates. He finished it in Las Vegas: "Cocaine psychosis," reckoned producer Owen Morris, detecting a Fear And Loathing vibe in that sinister guitar feedback. Accordion expert Bonehead donates the breezy coda, which lends a misleadingly cheerful touch to what was a deeply fraught Oasis session: "Believe me, it was horribe. it wasn't funny at all." The Morse Code segment, by the way, is meaningless so far as anyone knows.

The oldest song here is GOING NOWHERE, written around 1990 before the band was signed ("It's about what we were going to do when we got a shitload of money off Creation"); it was not recorded until after the Be Here Now album, when there was a hankering for something less massive. Noel and drummer Alan White are the only Oasis members involved, with piano, brass and horn players to bring a vaguely Burt Bacharach atmosphere. Noel only wishes he knew another rhyme for "car" and

"Jaguar." Nearly as vintage in its origins, however, was HEADSHRINKER: recorded for Some Might Say in '95, it was written about three years earlier, during the band's punkier phase. It's also one of Liam's greatest vocals, partly because of the freedom from pressure that doing B-sides can offer. Although a load of drug references were binned from the lyric, a manic edge remains to this tale of an early girlfriend Liam could not shake off. It may start out like The Faces' Stay With Me, but Noel says he was thinking of The Rolling Stones at the time. And ROCKIN' CHAIR dates from Noel's days in Manchester, planning to leave his own girlfriend and dreaming of the good life down in London.

FADE AWAY first surfaced on Cigarettes & Alcohol, and was probably elbowed off Definitely Maybe in favour of Slide Away. Since then the chorus alone has guaranteed its popularity with Oasis fans: "The dreams we have as children fade away...

It's about growing up but not growing old," says Noel, echoing a John Lennon belief that you won't get anything unless you've got the vision to imagine it. It's a classic Buzzcocks trick, this, placing a wistful lyric inside the most glorious rush of punk rock energy. That said, it was a relief for Noel to do a track like THE SWAMP SONG, which required no words at all. Alongside Roll With It, The Swamp Song was a warm-up exercise for the Morning Glory sessions; it was also used to set the sound levels at Glastonbury, which is where Alan White's thunderous drumming was taped. Later on, when Paul Weller turned up for Champagne Supernova, he added The Swamp Song's harmonica and duelling guitars: "Very rock'n'roll," chortles Noel, "but we didn't manage to stand back to back once, which I was very upset about!" Its working title "The Jam" was scrapped, tragically.

Contrary to previous credits, I AM THE WALRUS was not recorded at the Glasgow Cathouse, but at a conference of Sony executives, gathered to hear Creation's new signings. Oasis used to play it at gigs in Liverpool, as an act of bravado aimed at the local bands, even The Beatles never did this one live. Technical note: any "looseness" in Noel's guitar playing here is attributed to half a bottle of Sony-financed gin. Speaking of guitars, the soaring LISTEN UP used to boast a solo much longer than the one you hear in this version; Liam had wanted it shorter, so Noel had disagreed on principle ("If you don't argue with Liam he gets upset"). Four years later, Liam has got his way. The poppy STAY YOUNG, meanwhile, was first ear-marked to be "the Digsy's Dinner" of Be Here Now, until Noel wrote Magic Pie and dumped it. Stay Young wound up on D'You Know What I Mean?, and could have been another A-side if its composer had actually liked the song. But he doesn't. (Audiences, who have more sense than songwriters, all love it.)

But we end with a track that Noel Gallagher is definitely proud of. In fact he regards THE MASTERPLAN as his finest piece of work. Even Liam now wishes he'd sung it himself. The writing came easily, inspired in equal measure by a Japanese hotel corridor and a good, relaxing smoke. "I'm the best lyricist in Oasis, is how I like to say it," Noel shrugs. "But to me this sums up your journey through life. All we know is that we don't know." Is it, we might wonder, sung to Liam? ("Please brother let it be") Again the answer is No.

"We're all brothers and sisters," says Noel. And so we are, and so are Oasis whether named

Gallagher, McGuigan, White or indeed Bonehead. They're brothers and they're tryers, all five. They try for themselves and they try for the rest of us. No wonder God loves them.

[mikeywayarchive]

altpress: Our latest fan poll is here. What’s the best Oasis song of all time?⁠

Check back for the results next week

[Aug 30, 2024]

[ailichi]

this interview was so lovely. it was really nice to hear Noel talking about watching the Knebworth clips for Supersonic and realising just how Much guitar playing he was doing and how good it sounded (‘Liam was pinching me arse during the guitar solo, and I didn’t miss a note, I was fuckin’ unbelievable’). it sounds like he’d kind of forgotten how much he enjoyed being able give all his attention to the guitar, and not worry about singing. this was three years ago, way before reunion talks, and it sounded like he missed it a little, musically-speaking. he also mentioned that he didn’t like playing stadiums or arenas on his own — that he missed having Liam’s aura to carry those gigs, and would rather do multi-night theatre bookings, if he’s doing solo stuff. I think he’s a really good frontman, but of course the vibe is different, that’s only natural. obviously he’s got more artistic freedom with High Flying Birds, and it’s good Oasis split up and took a long break where the two of them proved to both each other and themselves that they’re great independently. but Noel really has the best of both worlds now. he’s friendly with Liam, who he clearly still loves, again; can do the Oasis thing for like a year or two and get his cool £6m per concert or whatever; can still have his own studio and own record label for his own thing + will be able to keep making solo records; will not have to listen to people wrecking his head forevermore about an Oasis reunion because he’s definitively answered the question, etc. and he can probably make it up to Paul Weller somehow.

[lonely-soul-02]

"So basically what you're saying is you love me and it's a great song?" Noel Gallagher

"I suppose it's saying that there is no masterplan." Noel Gallagher

[eyefeelthebeat]

I don't know what it is that makes me feel alive I don't know how to wake the things that sleep inside I only wanna see the light that shines behind your eyes

[picspammer]

Take the time to make some sense Of what you want to say And cast your words away upon the waves

[rastronomicals]

8:42 AM EDT September 6, 2024:

Oasis - "I Am The Walrus (Live)" From the album The Masterplan (November 2, 1998)

Last song scrobbled from iTunes at Last.fm

File under: Beatles covers

[talesfromthemightyi]

Watch: Noel Gallagher and the High Flying Birds at Abbey Road

Back in July, Noel and the group were due for a few tasks at the famous Fab Four studio, Abbey Road. While there, they filmed the music video for the single, "Open the Door, See What You Find".

Two and possibly more performances were also recorded, which are below:

Going Nowhere

The Masterplan

Noel was also interviewed for his time there at the studio. Which you can also check out here.

The performance and interview are inadvertently in recognition for the release of repackaged, remastered and re-released B-sides compilation, THE MASTERPLAN which recently celebrated its 25th anniversary.

You can purchase the 25th anniversary reissue of THE MASTERPLAN here.

[shakrrmakrr]

i have to be careful when i listen to the masterplan because it fully makes me go so fucking crazy. like underneath the sky into talk tonight into going nowhere into fade away is SO FUCKING CRAZYYYYY THATS ACTUALLY INSANE!!!!!!!!

[themightyng]

I can't stop watching this 🥹

Went to see Noel in Cardiff. He saw me wearing a Boca Juniors jacket and this happened! Still can't believe it. I love him so much 😭

Thanks you so much to thegirlwxrays (twitter) for the video 🫂

[todays-just-a-daydream]

had a stupid grin on my face for a solid 72 hours over oasis reunion fever. then saw the official logo and live ‘25 and ascended to another plane of reality. truly never thought about the title of this sideblog in terms of a reunion but i just looked up at it and it dawned on me.

yes today was a daydream. the whole last 4 days really.

im still in a daze trying to wrap my head around it being real. like i saw it coming everything was pointing to it. i could write a dissertation on how thematic analysis of the trajectory of noel’s 3 decades of songwriting alone showed it.

and yet my brain still is struggling to adjust to reality. so it’s defaulting to the lyrics stuck in my head:

play a simple game of genius and live to fight another day

build a bridge between us and i’ll swallow my pride

but i cannot find the shore can’t hear you anymore

come on i know you want more come on and open your door

in another world i’d catch you falling from the sky in another world we’d fly away

we’re throwing it all away at the end of the day

give me the will to carry on in a place where i belong

the universe will provide a guiding hand a crack of light

remember the dream that you’re keeping alive

what are you dreaming of?

love real love is all i’m dreaming thinking of

come on baby blue i’m waiting here for you

i see all that i will ever know i see all that i will ever be and it’s warm outside

every day every day we can make that change happen

all we know is that we don’t know how it’s gonna be

[slavicprincess1966]

liam: "𝓈𝓉𝑜𝓅 𝒸𝓇𝓎𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝓎𝑜𝓊𝓇 𝒽𝑒𝒶𝓇𝓉 𝑜𝓊𝓉𝓉𝓉𝓉 ✨<3"

me: *is literally on the fucking floor sobbing and wailing like a woman of shakespearean tragedy, mascara and eyeliner literally streamed all down my face*

[imtiredasfck]

underneath the sky again