[0:01]First, we've got two of the biggest brothers in rock. Now, we would have liked to have brought you this interview in full, but unfortunately, the Gallaghers and Saturday mornings just don't mix.
[0:13]So, what we've got is we've got some edited highlights. Here's what happened when I flew to Orlando to catch up with Oasis.
[0:41]We come here because people buy the records and you're all right. They respect bands more for being musicians.
[0:49]Now, you've described the new album, Heathen Chemistry, as the second best album that you've ever done. Do you think you'll ever write one as good as Definitely Maybe again?
[0:57]If anyone's going to do it, I'll do it, but I'm 35. You can't write songs like rock and roll star, live forever when you're my age. You know, because it would just be I'd be faking it. You know what I mean? I I when I was writing Live Forever and Supersonic and that, I was 21.
[1:12]It was about life on the dole and if I start writing songs like that, people would just see through it immediately. You can only write about what you've Do you honestly believe that though, as a songwriter? Can you only No, I'm lying.
[1:23]No, no, but do you know what I mean? Do you have to be feeling something at the time to write? I've got to be honest. I've got to I can't write songs about being young and unemployed and being 21, because I'm not, you know.
[1:32]I can't write a song about me being 29 and very good-looking. Well, you know, well you're writing about yourself, so it doesn't matter, does it?
[1:38]Is Oasis democratic or do you have the final say or? Well, these lot would say I don't, well, you know, Truthfully, Noel. Truthfully. I well, they drop it all on me.
[1:50]I've got to make all the tough decisions, right? All the things about like, you know, should we get tea or coffee for the studio or we should have toast or beans on toast for the studio or Digestive or chocolate ones. Oh, well, they'll drop that on me because that's important. You know what I mean? God, I'd freak him out about biscuits, you know what I mean?
[2:07]And what's the relationship like now between you guys? What's it like now? That's really good, man. I think it's the best it's ever been. It's never been that bad. It's like, you know, you have an argument about something that last 15 minutes and then the repercussions will go on for the rest of the year.
[2:22]You know, that's there's only two people ever get it, and that's me and him. Now, another thing, when you when you're promoting, doing promotion for the album and stuff, always people ask you about different bands and always Right, now right. Listen, let me just let me just say. People of England, this is the way it goes in every interview. We're going along here, nicest move, talking about Oasis. And she just goes to let me just Can I just say something? Can I just say something? I want to say on this What do you want to talk about? No, listen. Let me just say. I was in an interview the other day, like. girl from who's doing an interview.
[2:48]Some girl about me. She's gone, George Michael was in here last week, and he said, I'll use everything. He slagged people off when you have a record out. Now, right, I don't see I I don't Let me just no, let me just let me just say something.
[2:59]So I turn out just for the sake of me on a day off, we made kid. I just went, Yeah, of course we do. We've got a little black book. Me and I kid. So we go. Now, we only get interviewed when we've got records out. That's why I'm saying. To understand George. You know, it's like when you have a record out, you know, as long as it lasts in the charts. The 30 seconds it's interesting for. That's when you get interviewed and that's when we get interviewed, and it just so happens that we both have records out at the same time.
[3:25]Lesson number one. Carry on. So, I've got to ask you, what happened with James from Star Sailor? I don't know, you know, I was just, you know, being there, trying to talk about like, you know, peace and love to all men and all that, and then he comes out and he taps me on the shoulder, right? And I went, Right, bitch. I went. Right. So, I says, Yeah, I come here. I says, You ever interrupt anyone's interview again, and you'll be going home in an ambulance. And you're lucky that I'm going on stage in about three minutes time because I'd be chasing you down there like some mad bull. So if I'd have come off stage, and obviously, they weren't there when we come off.
[3:55]And if they would have been, I I would have I would have got them. Well, the funny thing was, he was going, I paid 100 quid to see you up me and Pop Stars. That is the man.
[4:06]And he made them. Simon Cowell was in a band, he'd be in this band, because he tells it like it is. I always knew he was going to be the geezer. I was like that guy, man, he's having it. So it's like I said the other day, it doesn't matter how much talent you've got. You have to have a little bit of talent, but if you've got more passion than anything, you will be you will get there.
[4:20]So, what do you think they should do? Do you think that the charts? you know what? Good luck to him, man. Because if some kid's working at Tesco's, and he sounds like, um, you know, always wedding, you know, and he starts to make a million quid by acting like, you know, by doing all this malarky and doing all these dance moves on top of the props. I'd do it, because it's better than working at Tesco's, but don't call it music.
[4:45]Pop stars to The judges on it. jelly. Oliver always. How can jelly always ever tell I'm going, you're rubbish. If that was someone to vote, she ever she ever turns around and went you're rubbish, I swear to God. Oh, well, I don't think you hit that note so hard, and I think you should go away. When did she start coming from Newcastle?
[5:05]She's not from Newcastle. She's from Yorkshire. Okay. What do you think about people um bands like S Club Juniors? And I was in Olympic Studios, right, mixing this album, and there's a bunch of irritating little kids in the canteen, right? Doing all them stupid dance moves. And I've come downstairs and I've gone, Who are all the kids upstairs? I'm in a band with five people. The other four all went, Oh, that's S Club Juniors. How do you know that? Oh, well, you know, they don't tell you, don't they? It's like, Hold on a minute. When did you lot change? What did you don't? Did I miss a meeting here or something?
[5:36]All of them, you know, Prince of Darkness. S Club Junior, isn't it? Oh, so what did you think of them, then? Well, they're irritating, though. I quite like them actually. Do you know what my two-year-old daughter said to me the other day?
[5:54]This is Nowhere that you like this. I was playing my guitar at the at the bottom of the stairs, and uh she she was sort of she was dancing to music and I and I said, You like music? And she said, Yeah, so who's your favorite? She went, Kylie.
[6:08]I was like, Put that bottle down and get to bed right now. I live for the day of opening the door very aggressively to my daughter's boyfriends. You're going to be in so much trouble, aren't you? What do you want? Yes, she is. Well, what do you want? Come in.
[6:28]Liam, you wrote songbird for Nick, right? Was it easy to write? Oh, yeah. I don't think so, because the tune's pretty easy itself, but I never actually wrote the words down on a piece of paper, just sort of come out.
[6:40]But it was when I first started sort of like, when I first met her, we weren't really seeing each other, you know, and I sort of I just felt, you know, I felt like 17 again, you know what I mean? Because it was obviously over with my ex-wife and I just thought, Right, you know, I'm going to get into this dating game.
[6:57]So then, you know, we just started like dating, seeing each other and that, and then I won't see her for ages, and then I'd see her again, and it was like that. So it's pretty easy. And that was it. And I'll still do that. I'm not bothered if I never write another song, because I'm I'm quite happy singing them, and that's my first thing. He's been a singer instead of been caught about writing some song.
[7:20]And you still because you've got this fleet of cars, and all you used to do is drive them up and down the driveway. Have you learned yet? What happened is I was um, I was taking driving lessons in this Nissan Micra. I remember you pulled it. You pulled the garage outside the school, didn't you?
[7:31]Yeah, yeah. But that wasn't that wasn't the reason why I stopped. The reason why I stopped, I had this driving instructor who was 35 stone, right? And she put a hand on me one day while I was driving along, and I was like, Ah! What she I'll tell you what she done one day. We were driving around this council estate in Slough. And uh, she said, Can you just pull up here? So, I pulled up on the curb expecting a lecture about, you know, three-point turns. Her mom came out. She drove me to her house. Come and meet him.
[7:58]I'm sat there in this Nissan Micra, the big red line on the top of that. Hello. Oh, can I have your autograph? I'm a bit busy now, love, but, you know, maybe next time. Did you enjoy doing things we part for a starter? I loved it, yeah. Yeah, it was good. Really, really good.
[8:14]It should have been a bit more nervous. It was because they were really important gigs, but we didn't realize that till the Monday morning after. Why were they so important for you? We don't have to piss about. You know what I mean? We'd like to do the big, big, big, big gigs, you know, because it defines us as a band. And playing after all them groups. Every band on that bill was amazing, you know what I mean? To go on after them and the reaction that we got. You can do flashy videos and do amazing marketing campaigns, but you you can you can almost entice people to buy your records, right? But you can't fake it. To to the crowd of especially the crowd that comes to our gigs. The people that come to our gigs is as real as it gets, and they would see through us in a minute if we started disappearing up our own ass.
[9:00]It was it was just, you know, again that'll define our year, you know what I mean? With them gigs and we and we keep doing them once every two or three years. Gigs have always been received well. Gigs always been great. The album's never get received well, I don't think. No. I mean, I mean I always been I always been slagged off. I do remember Morning Glory getting universally panned in England. You know, the Enemy gave it six out of 10. And funnily enough, the Enemy I they've written that big book about us, you've seen it in the press. Yeah, I've seen them. Well, they've rewritten all the reviews for the albums, have you noticed that? Have they? Yeah. They were getting nines and stuff like that. We get nines and You know, so they like they they sort of like rewrite it to, you know, to readjust. I mean, I Nobody's ever liked our music anyway, apart from the people that buy it. But anyway, yeah, the gigs not I don't think we've ever done really I don't think we've not done any really, really bad gigs.
[9:46]Well, there was a unique one the second night of Wembley, we'd have to say, wouldn't you? That was great, mate. Why I didn't say it was bad. I said it was it should have been exactly where I was stood and it was fucking having it. If the new album hadn't been so well received, would you have called it a day? It was it well received by only well received by only well received by the fans and that. The critics say it's rubbish and we should pack it in. Heathen Chemistry. Everyone I read that said they were bad. I've got loads and loads of of different people have written it up, and it's got really good write ups. Can I can I just can I can I just put some We're signing a new record deal this time next year. Are you? So, let's get let's get this straight. We ain't going anywhere. So, there'll be another six albums. So, anybody at the Enemy and Mojo and Select. Is that still going? I think it was Q actually. Q or whatever. Get your head around it, man, because we're in it for the long run, and we always were, you know. You haven't been to. You sort me fuck off. I've taught you how to play guitar. Oh, yeah, fuck you. I didn't hate him here. Have you heard him? I thought So all of a sudden at 29, you just went, Where are you? Of that?
[10:00]Take your glasses off. Tell the truth. I'm telling you take your glasses off. No, because I'm not lying. I'm not lying either. But he's never taught me anything. I've gone over I've gone, I think the prince in the pod. I don't want to say here the songs, it was like, Yeah, I don't think so, mate. You're lying there. That's what I said. That's what I see. Do you ever do solo stuff? I don't know. I I'd prefer him. I'd prefer him to be involved with him anyway. And the rest of the So you love him, really? Well, no, he doesn't. But I have I often I often, you know why, don't you? I often think I fucking make his records good. That would be our records. Is that not my records, are they? Are they? No, they're not my records. You're the one that gets paid for all the money. Put it all in, don't you? If I got fucking paid all the money. I'll come, you're the one that's like a fucking boy band. Hey. Fuck off. I'm having a right old ball even when I've had a it yeah, even when it's been rubbish and nightmare and I just want to go. It's been great, you know what I mean? And the thing is, no matter how good it's been for us, for you, it's been twice as good. Because if it wasn't for us, believe you me, the British music scene would have died a fucking long time ago.
[12:02]Because you can if you look back to 1994, all the bands, everybody that's putting records out now that was putting records out before 1994, they were shit before we come along. If we done one thing, it was we changed we we moved the goal posts, and we said, Listen here, mate. Number 23 in the charts and playing Oxford's Zodiac Club ain't fucking good enough anymore. It's now number ones and number twos, and it's going to America and giving it some, and we dragged the British music we dragged English guitar music out of the gu. And it's as simple as that. And you might not like the music and, you know, you might think we're a pair of arrogant fuckers or whatever you, but, you know, you still love it.
[12:35]A lot of people write that certain album because they know it will sell that amount of copies, and it you know, they're writing it just for the sake of that. Well, they're literally in it for the cash. They're writing an American album, so it'll break the American market or they're writing this and that for that, and it's like, that ain't what it's about. You have to write. You sound quite surprised that people are being it just for the money, cut. Well, from what you said about being a songwriter, and only to feel some
[13:02]What do you mean? Well, I can safely say that we're probably as real as it gets, you know, but if I I find it quite amazing that you would sit there and think, Well, God, do you think people are really in it for the money? Of course they are. Did you think? We think it just runs like any other business. Of course it does. Do you think there'll be still be a place for Oasis in the future? Because you've got your new wave kind of bands coming from, like, the Hives and the Strokes and the White Stripes. We're Oasis. We just do what we do, what we've always done, and the place will come up, was. And I'm not I don't want to be in the scene. I never wanted to be in the scene. I don't I'm not about being in the scene. We know we're not being Brit Pop. We're just Oasis in a band, and We weren't new wave. We weren't new wave before we were Brit Pop. And we're just going to keep continue to do what we do. If people like it, they like it. If they don't, they don't. It doesn't really matter. 30 next year. You know what I mean? And I still have it with anyone. He's 30 this year. Oh, yeah, yeah. It's so it's you know, but I I'll still started already. Is there anything that you changed? No, I wouldn't change anything. I wouldn't change anything.
