The song that made Liam Gallagher cry
Liam Gallagher is famously stony-faced and a notoriously tricky customer to impress. The frontman isn’t somebody who wears his emotions on his sleeve, but surprisingly, a song by Scottish indie band Travis once pulled on Gallagher’s heartstrings so intensely that he was reduced to tears.
The two bands spent time on the road together when Oasis were the hottest property in Britain following the release of Be Here Now, and Travis were the new kids on the block. No band had been as successful as Oasis in the UK since the 1960s, and it was eye-opening for Travis to witness this first-hand.
Travis had released their debut album Good Feeling that same year, it had been met positively by the press and charted in the top ten, but the record didn’t make them household names. Understandably, touring with Oasis had intimidating moments, but they saw a softer side to Liam.
“We supported Oasis on the Be Here Now Tour in 1997, and it was like supporting The Rolling Stones they were so big back then,” Healy told the crowd before performing their track ‘Luv’ at London’s Royal Festival Hall in 2018. “I was walking backstage and Liam Gallagher was sat there in his round shades and he goes, ‘You come here’. So I went over and he goes, ‘Play me a song'”.
Healy continued: “I was really nervous and I just picked up my guitar and started playing this next song. I couldn’t even look at him I was so nervous. When I finished playing the song I looked up and there were tears streaming down his face”.
‘Luv’ was unreleased at the time of the tour, but it went on to appear on Travis’ sophomore album, The Man Who. It was a record which elevated the Scottish group’s status and allowed them to headline Glastonbury Festival alongside David Bowie and The Chemical Brothers.
Making Liam cry wasn’t the only notable incident Healy had with the Mancunian on tour. In an interview with NME in 2021, the Travis singer recalled being asked by the Oasis singer to impersonate him after Healy’s bandmate, Dougie Payne, revealed it was the frontman’s party trick. “It’s like the spotlight is on me and I suddenly launch into this impersonation – and I realise it sounds more like Jimmy Savile,” he recalled.
Healy added: “Liam’s face is just emotionless as I’m as I’m going: ‘Ere’ fuckin’ ‘avin it!’ It was almost like the light dimmed and my band started receding. There was about a minute of silence and Liam just said, [deadpan] ‘That’s not me’, and took his glasses and hat back”.
Have the tissues at the ready, and listen to ‘Luv’ below.
