Noel Gallagher’s “personal favourite” Oasis song
As proven by the incredible demand for tickets to witness their reunion, Oasis has stood the test of time. In their case, absence has made the heart grow stronger, and their back catalogue has continued to connect with each new generation of music fans.
Since Oasis last took to the stage, the United Kingdom has suffered six new prime ministers, and the cultural landscape is significantly different. However, one attribute that has remained consistent throughout is the nation’s shared love of Oasis.
For Noel Gallagher, the reunion will offer him the chance to travel back in time and celebrate his songwriting collection, which was made to be performed in stadiums.
While Liam Gallagher’s charisma made him the ideal frontman for their fanbase to live vicariously, Noel’s lyrics were the heartbeat of their success.
Gallagher’s way with words has always been his forte, and the universality of his lyrics made listeners believe the songs were directly about their own lives. The universal appeal attached to Oasis, whether how they dressed or the meaning of their music, catapulted the Mancunians at lightning speed from toilet venues to the bright lights of Knebworth.
For a few years, every song that Gallagher wrote seemed to be a hit, and Oasis churned out B-sides that most bands would have made their lead single.
Their debut, Definitely Maybe, single-handedly changed the musical landscape, turning them into icons. The momentum only continued to grow with What’s The Story (Morning Glory), and, unsurprisingly, Noel’s favourite Oasis song is from that period of their career.
As their primary songwriter, Gallagher has a different connection to Oasis than fans, but his choice of favourite is an opinion many share.
Noel made the revelation when he appeared on the Australian TV programme The Project. “It’s either got to be a toss-up between ‘Wonder-‘,” Gallagher said before stopping himself halfway through his answer after having a sudden change of heart. “I mean, ‘The Best’ — I don’t know, but the most famous are ‘Don’t Look Back In Anger’ and ‘Wonderwall’. They are the ones that everybody in the world seems to know. Whether they are the best? I don’t know. Everybody would have a personal opinion on that.”
He added: “My personal favourite probably from the Oasis lot would be ‘Supersonic’, which was our first single, and because it was written, recorded and mixed in one night. So that holds a special place in the canon, but, I tell you, ‘Don’t Look Back In Anger’, because when I play it every night, it brings the house down. That song means a lot to people and means more than I’ll probably ever understand, honestly.”
In light of the tragic Manchester bombings in 2017, ‘Don’t Look Back In Anger’ became a unifying anthem for the city during its darkest hour. Therefore, it is now under the stewardship of the people of Manchester rather than those who birthed the song into the world.
On the other hand, ‘Supersonic’ still belongs to Noel, which is why it’s his personal favourite. The track epitomises everything that made Oasis great, and it’s also a mark of their brilliance that it only needed one evening in the studio to create.
Although Liam didn’t write ‘Supersonic’, he brought it to life with his vocals and cherishes it immensely. On one occasion, after being asked about his favourite lyrics of all time, Liam answered: “I need to be myself, I can’t be no one else, I’m feeling supersonic, Give me gin and tonic.”
While ‘Supersonic’ isn’t known worldwide like ‘Wonderwall’ or contains the emotional heft of ‘Don’t Look Back In Anger’, for Noel, it represents the most exhilarating period in his life. The memories attached to creating the song are unparalleled within the Oasis universe, and ‘Supersonic’ is also a musical embodiment of his well-spent youth.
