The musician who gave birth to pop music, according to Noel Gallagher: “He influenced everything”
It’s hard to boil down the true essence of a great performer. While there’s a mountain of evidence to suggest its energy, charisma and a set of rhythmically inclined hip thrusts, there are more contemporary examples that point to the contrary. Somehow, as music has evolved, the lineup of rock’s greatest ever frontmen would have a kagool adorning Liam Gallagher standing right next to a smartly clad, knee-shaking Elvis Presley.
When Liam Gallagher and his brother Noel thrust British rock into new heights in the 1990s, they made no bones about the fact they were standing on the shoulders of giants. Between their covers of ‘Octopus’ Garden’ and ‘I Am The Walrus’ to Liam’s rotation of John Lennon-esque sunglasses, the Beatles’ influence on their career had clear footprints.
Referencing the iconic Liverpudlian four-piece, Noel once said: “They’ve definitely got the best tunes, hands down.” He continued, “In my record collection, they’ve got the greatest tunes by far. They influenced everybody who influenced everybody else, who influenced everybody that came and went,” Gallagher continued. “Their influence is absolute. I don’t know a single guy playing the guitar or writing songs that wouldn’t cite The Beatles as an influence.”
But naturally, The Beatles can only influence what came after them. As for what came before them? Well, all roads lead to Elvis Presley. Taking the concept of rock and roll from infancy to adolescence, he expanded the genre into a brave new commercial world. He took the sonic architecture built by the godfathers of blues rock and repurposed its live performance into something fresh, edgy, and provocative.
In fact, if you’ve traced the lineage of rock rebelliousness from start to finish, you’d find that Elvis Presley shaking his knees on stage set off a domino effect that allowed Liam Gallagher to pretend to shove a Brit award up his backside.
So it comes as no surprise that despite his general disdain for anything remotely animated, Noel lauded Presley’s influence to Last FM: “He influenced everything. Everything that came after Elvis, leading right up to now, it all goes back to Elvis.” He continued, “I would have said Lennon and McCartney, but they got it from Elvis.”
He’s not wrong, either. Long before the scruffy beards and flared trousers, The Beatles would rock up to The Cavern Club sporting slick-backed hair and collar-popped leather jackets in an ode to the king of rock and roll.
However, perhaps more important than the aesthetics was the rebellious underbelly within both artists. The Beatles indeed carried Elvis’s musical torch and fanned the flames into something much larger. Still, they were only allowed to do so because the performances of ‘The King’ had forever stretched the limits of expressive sensibility.
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