The “one major regret” of Noel Gallagher’s career
The purple patch of Noel Gallagher’s songwriting career in the middle of the 1990s made him an unstoppable force. Everything Gallagher wrote seemed to become a classic track, which is still revered 30 years later, and naturally, the Oasis hitmaker believed this run would never end.
During this period of creativity, Gallagher was so caught up in the moment that he didn’t even contemplate tomorrow. Consequently, when a song would arrive, he didn’t consider whether it should be saved for a future Oasis album and gladly gave them away as B-sides when they deserved much more attention. Although that decision hasn’t affected the legacy of his songs, Gallagher would have gone about his business differently if given a second chance.
While Gallagher holds no significant regrets about the first two Oasis albums, by his own admission, Be Here Now failed to meet his expectations. As previously widely reported, the Mancunian group lost themselves during the recording process while over-indulging in the rock and roll lifestyle.
Although this was enjoyable at the time, those cocaine-fuelled sessions impacted the sound of their third LP, which is unapologetically self-serving. Many songs on Be Here Now are considerably longer than necessary, which can make the record overstay its welcome. Furthermore, the record was a drastic sonic departure from their previous efforts, and their B-sides collection, The Masterplan, is much more aligned with the sound of those two iconic Oasis albums. Hence why, in another world, Gallagher would have made The Masterplan their third record and found a home for the Be Here Now tracks as B-sides.
Reflecting on this part of his career, Gallagher said in an interview with Martin McKenzie-Murray on Substack: “The B-sides album The Masterplan should have been Be Here Now, and Be Here Now should have been a bunch of B-sides. But how that came about was, Morning Glory was blowing up and the singles market then was fucking insane – four B-sides to a fucking single. I was always being phoned on the road: ‘We need two more songs’. And so, I’d go away and write two songs, and they’d be ‘Talk Tonight’ and ‘The Masterplan’.”
Later in the conversation, Gallagher further explained why it’s the only significantly wrong decision he’s ever made from a career perspective. He added: “The Masterplan would have been the perfect third album. But what’s done is done. And it’s the one major regret I have in my professional life is I wasn’t aware enough. I was on drugs at the time. But at that time, I didn’t write shit songs. I never wrote B-sides. Every song I wrote for about three years was a classic. Everything.”
Gallagher continued: “So, you go with it. You never know when it’s going to dry up, or level off. What’s going to happen in five years, ten years. I’m living in the moment. It’s just another song. But as time goes on, these songs are elevated into iconic status. But the songs are still around. That’s the beauty of it.”
While The Masterplan would have been a more fitting successor than Be Here Now, Oasis’ legacy is still immaculate, and there is no need to rewrite history. Additionally, Be Here Now marked a new dawning for popular culture as Britpop met its demise.
