Originally released in 2010, Oasis re-released their singles collection Time Flies… 1994-2009 in time for their much hyped reunion tour. Bringing together all 27 UK singles in non chronological order, for the first half of the two disc album, it barely takes a breath as it spits out hit after hit, anthem after anthem. While the current tour concentrates on the band’s mid 90s heyday, the singles collection spreads it’s wings to include the singles taken from each of the band’s five albums.
Appropriately, the albums starts with their first single “Supersonic”. The track that announced the band to a legion of indie rock fans is still one of their best. Peaking at #31, it was there next singles that kept climbing the charts before finally hitting #1 in the UK with the last song to feature first drummer Tony McCarroll, “Some Might Say”.
For the first 2/3rds of Time Flies…, later singles rub shoulders with early classics. Songs like “Stop Crying Your Heart Out” and “The Hindu Times”, not to mention “Lyla” and “Go Let It Out” are nearly as anthemic as anything in the band’s lengthy cannon. The Liam Gallagher penned “Songbird” stands out as a simple laid-back tune. Two non-album singles also appear: Released in late 1994, “Whatever” was the first track the band released after their debut and making it’s first album appearance, “Lord Don’t Slow Me Down”.
One of the things that made the band beloved by their fans was that the B-sides were as good as the A-sides. Because of that, several of their most popular songs do not appear like “Acquiesce” and “The Masterplan”. The inclusion of these would make for a better album, instead listeners get to re-discover the nearly 10 minutes of “All Around The World”. Several later singles appear at the end, like the compiler gave up trying to mix the eras together and because of that, the foot gets slightly taken off the gas. By just sticking to just the singles, Time Flies… 1994-2009 offers several selections other than the usual batch of tracks that would otherwise have made appearances.
For rock music, 2025 is the summer of Oasis with Noel and Liam Gallagher returning for reunion shows that are sold out across the world. Early in the week they announced a 30th anniversary edition for their sophomore album, (What’s the Story) Morning Glory? With just a few unplugged versions of songs included, the lackluster offering will still be purchased by diehard fans of the band. Back in 2014, the band released a jam packed three-disc version of the album that is filled with B-sides, live versions, and rarities.
The first single released from the album in April 1995, “Some Might Say” was their first to reach to the top of the UK charts and last to have original drummer Tony McCaroll before being replaced by Alan White. Britpop mixed with a glam rock stomp, it’s an instant singalong classic. Harder in sound is opening track, “Hello”. It’s no surprise that this was the first song the band played at their first reunion show in Cardiff on July 4th. At that show, it was followed a few songs later by the darker, “Morning Glory” and its line, “All your dreams are made/When you’re chained to the mirror and the razorblade”.
All classic songs but it’s the ballads from this era that carry the day, all three of which closed the first reunion concert. With first album Definitely Maybe being the fastest selling debut in the UK at that time, it was a cult classic for anglophiles in other parts of the world. It was the single “Wonderwall” that broke the band into the North American mainstream. The beginning acoustic guitar line has been copied on several other hits for other bands before Liam’s rough voice comes in to sing the sweetest love song, appealing to both the girls and bricklayers in equal measure.
In the past few years, the Noel sung “Don’t Look Back in Anger” has nearly eclipsed “Wonderwall” in popularity. It has become a soccer stadium knees up for the punters while also sung by those in mourning. It’s become a standard that people can turn to at various points in their lives. Nipping at the heals of those two songs is album closer, “Champagne Supervova”. The skyward looking song takes on a celestial vision of life, one that also contains the inspiring yet nonsensical lyric of “slowly walking down the hall/faster than a cannonball”. Caught between a ballad and anthemic rock song, the seven-minute epic is one of their finest.
Following the same template from the Definitely Maybe deluxe edition, disc two is mostly devoted to that era’s B-sides. It’s these songs that helped cement the band’s legacy, with several becoming live staples and just as popular as the A-sides. Sung as a duet, the amped up “Acquiesce” with its line, “Because we need each other/We believe in one another” has always sounded like Noel singing to Liam, though he would never admit it. Left off the album due to Stevie Wonder wanting a major cut of sales, the Noel sung “Step Out” is lifted by a terrific chorus.
Like the album itself, it’s the major ballads that rightly grab most of the attention, both sung by Noel. Dismissed at the time by Liam as sounding too American, “Talk Tonight” is an acoustic track that details the night that Noel disappeared from the band on a tour of the US before returning several days later. It was a feature of Noel’s live acoustic set on tours throughout the 90s. Hailed as a classic from the jump, “Masterplan” is another of what Noel does extremely well – a song stuck between ballad and anthem. The string laden verses is matched by a banger chorus.
The last bit of the second disc and third feature the rarities including the vinyl only “Bonehead’s Bank Holiday”. Originally it was to be sung by guitarist Bonehead until a night of drinking to steady his nerves thwarted those thoughts. Instead, Noel takes the lead on the frivolous sing along. Another rarity appears in the Noel sung version of The Beatles’ “You’ve Got To Hide Your Love Away”.
Further highlights include a demo version of “She’s Electric” where further comparisons to The Beatles are warranted and a fuzzy live version of single, “Roll With It”, famously held off of the #1 UK singles position by blur’s “Country House” released on the same day. The disc then closes with a spellbinding take on “Cast No Shadow” recorded at their famous 1996 Maine Road gig in Manchester and the Knebworth concert version of “Masterplan”.
Looking back, this was the apex of Oasis. The buildup from the debut to the group going supernova with (What’s the Story) Morning Glory?, all with the solid background of some of their most beloved B-sides that still form the basis of their live shows both as a band and as solo artists. More pop in nature, this is the sound of a band at the peak of their recording powers singing songs that have become rock and roll national anthems the world over.
1994 was a pivotal year for music. Artists who released notable albums include Green Day, Weezer, Hole, Soundgarden, The Beastie Boys, NAS, Notorious B.I.G., Jeff Buckley, Sloan, Nirvana, NIN, blur, Portishead, Manic Street Preachers, Suede, etc. On August 29th, one of the decade’s biggest albums was released by a new Mancunian band named Oasis. Lead by loudmouth brothers Noel and Liam Gallagher, the band’s debut album Definitely Maybe would become the fastest selling debut in UK history and land at #1 on the UK chart.
Oasis in 1994 was a mixture of UK guitar based bands up until that point. The base was 60s British rock, with a punk attitude infused with 1990s British lad culture. First track, “Rock N Roll Star” laid down the band’s intent, the first of several songs that have lived on for 30 years through concert setlists. Noel has regularly said that the band’s first single, “Supersonic” is his favourite Oasis track. “Live Forever” has long been a feature at the end of concerts for both Gallagher brothers on solo tours while fan favourite “Slide Away” shows a loving heart beneath the bluster.
For its 20th anniversary in 2014, the band released a deluxe edition that features an additional 2 discs of b-sides, singles, live tracks, and rarities. The Noel Gallagher acoustic track “Sad Song” appears, a song that had only appeared on the vinyl version of the debut. The second disc contains one of the band’s fiercest early songs in “Fade Away” along with their live cover of The Beatles’ “I Am The Walrus”. The second disc closes with the single “Whatever” released in December 1994 and went to #3 in the UK singles charts. The b-side “Half the World Away” is the last track – it would later go on to be the theme song to British show The Royale’s as well as covered in a popular John Lewis Christmas advert.
The third disc contains an acoustic version of the band’s second single, “Shakermaker” that cheekily adds a verse from the Coca-Cola 70s advert jingle, a soundalike song that landed the band in legal trouble. The psychedelic swirl of “Columbia (Eden Studios Mix)” appears with a snarling live version of “Cigarettes and Alcohol” before closing with the strings only mix of “Whatever”. Thirty years on, Definitely Maybe remains one of the classic UK rock albums of all time. The deluxe edition is a must have reminder of how things were in 1994 as Britpop started to take flight.
At the end of his barnstorming sets at Knebworth in 2022, Liam Gallagher brought out John Squire to perform the Oasis classic, “Champagne Supernova”. From there the stage was set for the two to collaborate on an album of songs that Squire was writing. The Gallagher/Squire team have done a fine job of picking out the singles as those are the best on the album. “Raise Your Hands” has a stomping beat with much riffing and a catchy chorus. “Mars to Liverpool” has a very lad aware lyric of “Jesus Christ, about last night/I can only apologize” and the duo channel their vintage selves on the five-minute lead single, “Just Another Rainbow”. The most Stone Roses sounding track is the heartbeat of the album and the one truly great song.
Those three tracks are surrounded by similar sounding ones that are less memorable. “I’m So Bored” has a punk rock attitude without the snarl, “You’re Not The Only One” adds some barrelhouse piano to the sound, and the whole thing ends with “Mother Nature’s Song”. The latter being a downtempo one with mostly basic rhyming lyrics but still somehow manages to breakthrough to be a decent closer. Hardly life changing stuff from the older lads but a solid enough listen for those pushing 50 and beyond.
5. Bob Dylan – Self Portrait (Album): Everything I had ever heard about Bob Dylan’s 1970 album, Self Portrait was how terrible it was. It was with these ears I went to listen/review for the first time and was pleasantly surprised by the album. Not a lost classic by any means but songs like first track, “All the Tired Horses” and his unique cover of “The Boxer” keeps things interesting. While his 60s albums need to be front and centre, this one can happily play in the background.
4. Madonna – Oh Father (Song): A song that I’ve liked since the early 90s, “Oh Father” is an odd track in Madonna’s career. Appearing on the Like a Prayer album, it is one of the worst performing singles of her career. Regardless, the dramatic ballad is a show stopper of emotion that climaxes with the powerful line – “Maybe someday/When I look back, I’ll be able to say/You didn’t mean to be cruel/Somebody hurt you too”.
3. Liam Gallagher – Knebworth 22 (Album): It was a significant triumph for Liam Gallagher to headline the historic Knebworth Park over two nights in 2022. The album souvenir released a year later left out a few tracks but hit all the highlights. The album plays like a greatest hits of Liam’s career with a few surprises like the inclusion of Oasis album track, “Roll It Over”.
2. Ghost – Mary On A Cross (Song): This track from at 2019 was discovered through a youtube search after listening to the gang at Sea of Tranquility argue about the merits of Ghost. I’m sure it’s a track that metalheads can’t stand but I played this endlessly for months. The catchy melody and clever lyrics turn the track into an anthem, one that gets amped up by the crowd in the youtube clip.
1. The Damned – Life Goes On (Song): The end of 2022 was not the best time of my life but coming across this track by The Damned helped through many cold nights in early 2023. The song from 1982 tells the listener that “life’s a con” and the only answer is “to go on and on and on”. Through the doom and gloom, the line “but always remember/this is the happiest day of your life” is a beacon of light.
The Light Appears 