Bono once named his favourite Noel Gallagher song: “Defiance is the essence of romance”
On the face of it, Noel Gallagher and Bono might seem like they represent wildly distinct elements of rock. The former is a hero of Britpop, a no-nonsense Mancunian who wrote working-class anthems for the masses, and the latter is often regarded as one of the most pretentious men in music, fronting a stadium-filling group who have long polarised the world with their increasingly vanilla efforts.
However, there’s also much that unites them. Of course, Gallagher is of Irish ancestry, as the surname heavily suggests, and much of his musical context comes out of punk, as does U2’s. While the Irish band might have moved far away from the scintillating post-punk of their early years, they were one of the most lauded bands around in their heyday. Naturally, the young Gallagher, who was deep into the hottest guitar music of the 1980s, was a big fan.
Gallagher has also previously named U2’s masterpiece, 1987’s The Joshua Tree – the moment they became a global behemoth – as one of his favourite albums of all time. This revelation goes a long way in explaining how his predilectionfor expansive sonics and big guitars emerged.
The former Oasis man told iTunes in 2015: “There’s not a lot you can say about it really. ‘Where The Streets Have No Name’, ‘Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For’, ‘With Or Without You, ‘Running To Stand Still’. If you haven’t got a copy you’re a knob… The end.”
The connection doesn’t end with Gallagher’s record collection and his Irish blood. His band, the High Flying Birds, have toured extensively with U2, which included the life-affirming moment of hitting the road for the 30th-anniversary tour of The Joshua Tree. Following what would undoubtedly have been a bucket list experience for the Britpop icon, he also revealed in a chat with Shuffle that Bono is “one of his dearest friends”.
He maintained: “He gets a lot of flack, but I fucking love him.”
Gallagher then revealed that despite the criticism they attract, U2 have kept it real throughout all their success. When many artists of their stature would have an expansive operation run by worldwide outfits, U2’s team still features only Irish individuals, a remarkable feat that demonstrates their commitment to staying true to their roots.
When appearing on BBC Radio’s flagship show Desert Island Discs in 2022, Bono returned the kind words to Gallagher and praised his unique songwriting ability. He picked the live version of ‘Dead in the Water’ live at RTÉ 2FM Studios, Dublin, the bonus track from 2017’s Who Built the Moon? as one of the songs to take with him to the imaginary isle.
Bono explained: “He has this thing, where the songs just take him wherever they want to take him. It’s a little bleak to be on an island with a song called ‘Dead in the Water’, but there’s some defiance in the song, and defiance is the essence of romance.”
Aptly, the host Lauren Laverne then asked Bono why he thinks U2 still has the same lineup after 40 years and immense success. His response provided an intriguing counterpoint to Oasis’ acrimonious split in 2009.
“We break up all the time,” Bono conceded before explaining that writing great songs is an arduous process comprised of your best friends heavily criticising your art. However, he said that they have stayed together despite the challenges because of the sense that there is always more great music to write and that, potentially, they still haven’t struck upon their ultimate creative vision.
He concluded: “If you’re gonna serve the song, you might as well do it with the people who understand you and can tell you to… I promised I wouldn’t swear on the BBC, and I’m not going to, but can just tell you where to go.”
It’s one thing having your friends criticise your work, but in Gallagher’s case, things took on a different dimension when it was his brother doing it. Blood might be thicker than water, but siblings have a tendency to annoy each other in ways that friends cannot. Alas, there’s still hope that Oasis may one day return and start a new, exciting chapter.
