Noel Gallagher

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Noel Gallagher (2012)

Noel Thomas David Gallagher (born May 29, 1967 in Burnage , Greater Manchester , England ) is a British rock musician . Until August 2009 he was the main composer, lead guitarist and, behind his younger brother Liam Gallagher , the second singer in the rock band Oasis .

At the height of Oasis' success in the mid-1990s, Noel Gallagher was the central figure in the Britpop movement. He is known for his open, sometimes controversial remarks and for bickering with his brother Liam.

On August 28, 2009, Noel Gallagher drew the consequences and announced his final exit from the band, which resulted in the separation from Oasis shortly thereafter.

On October 17, 2011, the first album of his solo project Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds was released .

Gallagher's life before his popularity

Gallagher was born in Longsight, Manchester, to Irish Catholic parents Thomas Gallagher and Peggy Gallagher (Sweeney), who had moved to the UK from Ireland in the late 1950s. Therefore, Noel has British and Irish citizenship. He has two brothers, the older Paul (born January 11, 1966) and the younger Liam (born September 21, 1972). He grew up in Burnage, a working-class neighborhood on the outskirts of Manchester .

Gallagher shared his room with Liam. His father was an alcoholic and violent towards his sons. Noel Gallagher felt the most violent paternal abuse, while Liam was the most protective of his mother because of his younger age. This fact contributed to the fact that the two brothers have had a tense relationship with each other since childhood. Because of their discomfort for their father, he and Paul both developed stutters. Gallagher's mother hoped in vain for her husband to get better before she finally left him with her sons. The time of their departure is unclear; the information on this varies from the beginning to the middle of the 1980s.

In his youth, he and his brothers skipped school and often made acquaintance with the police because of theft. At the age of 13, he was sentenced to a six-month suspended sentence for robbery in a local store. During this time he, who was a hooligan at the time, learned to play the guitar on his own. At the age of 15, Noel was expelled from school for throwing a bag of flour at a teacher. As teenagers, the Gallagher brothers had limited contact with their father in order to get construction jobs through him. When he left his father's construction company, he took a job with another construction company that was given to British Gas . After sustaining a construction injury, he was offered a less physically demanding job in the company's warehouse, giving him time to practice guitar and write songs.

In 1988 Noel Gallagher began work as a roadie for the band Inspiral Carpets , to which he had previously unsuccessfully applied as a singer. When he returned from a USA tour in 1992, he was amazed to find that Liam had joined an (unknown) band called Rain as a singer. This consisted of some colleagues of the brothers, including the later Oasis members Paul McGuigan and Paul Arthurs. A concert at Rain quickly convinced Noel Gallagher of the band's lack of artistic ability, but also of Liam's charisma as a front man. Because of Noel Gallagher's ability as a songwriter, Liam persuaded him to join the band. Gallagher agreed on the condition that he would become the sole head of the band and composer. Rain was renamed Oasis at Liam's endeavor . This name comes from the venue of a Stone Roses concert in Swindon , which was shown on a poster of Liam.

A short streetside
Cranwell Drive, Burnage, Manchester, where the Gallagher brothers used to live (pictured 2011).

Career and songwriting

The quick rise to a superstar

Oasis' first two studio albums were artistically and commercially extremely successful, granting the band superstar status in the UK as the new Beatles. The second album (What's the Story) Morning Glory? became after Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band the most successful studio album in England to date. Gallagher was considered the most brilliant songwriter since John Lennon and Paul McCartney . At that time he was lavish with his work: Many supposedly successful songs ended up on B-sides . He believed that he could practically compose hits on the side.

Luxurious lifestyle

In addition to his role as a composer and musician, Gallagher was known for his luxurious lifestyle. Due to the copyrights to his songs, his income was around twice that of the other band members. So he bought a “fleet of vehicles” comprising several luxury cars, because in his opinion this is a good form for a rock star. He never got a driver's license (he dropped this plan when he found out that the theoretical driving test was in existence). In an analogous manner, he had a swimming pool built without being able to swim. He called his house in an upscale London neighborhood Supernova Heights . He named his two cats Benson and Hedges, based on his favorite brand of cigarettes . His guitars, of which he now owns more than a hundred, often enjoyed their own first-class seat on his air travel.

The artistic and commercial slump

Oasis' third album, Be Here Now (1997), was the most anticipated in Britain's musical history. It also replaced Michael Jackson's Bad (1987) as the one that sold the fastest there. The ratings were initially positive. After the initial waves of enthusiasm had smoothed out, the euphoria increasingly gave way to negative criticism. The album was now viewed as a severe artistic setback. The lack of musical development, excessive, inflated overproduction, the long duration of several songs as well as a lack of lyrical depth up to superficiality and senselessness were criticized. Gallagher himself came to this assessment in later years and found the cause of the persistent excessive lifestyle of the band members, who were spoiled by success, with the associated alcohol and cocaine consumption. Accordingly, he said that because of his constant intoxication he could hardly remember his production work in the studio for this album.

The following circumstance impressively underlines Gallagher's change of heart: While the setlist of the Be Here Now tour (1997 to 1998) was completely changed and largely originated from the new album, it was (practically) completely ignored on all subsequent tours. The same applies to the best-of album Stop the Clocks , from which Be Here Now was completely excluded. After the hysteria surrounding the Be Here Now launch, Oasis became increasingly quiet, and the band lost their previous status as superstars.

Aiming for a comeback, Gallagher took a break before his next work, Standing on the Shoulder of Giants (2000). During the production time, he ordered strict drug abstinence. Ironically, Gallagher experimented with psychedelic elements for the first time on this work. However, the result was received even worse than its predecessor. Years later, Gallagher was also critical of this album. In a newspaper interview in 2011, he said it was a mistake to even record the album. At that time he had no inspiration and only wrote songs so that he could go on tour. Even then, the prevailing view was that Gallagher had "shot his gun" and was already starting to recycle his own early work in his search for inspiration. Only the two follow-up albums, Heathen Chemistry and Don't Believe the Truth , were welcomed more friendly again.

Other band members as composers

Oasis' first three studio albums were written musically and lyrically exclusively by Gallagher. Oasis' first song not composed by him is Liam Gallagher's Little James , which appears on the fourth studio album Standing on the Shoulder of Giants (2000). However, it is considered a musically and lyrically weak first work. Noel Gallagher later announced that he had approved him for the album solely out of consideration for his brother. On the subsequent work Heathen Chemistry (2002), however, only around half of the songs are by Gallagher. In addition to contributions by the guitarists, three songs are by Liam, including the single Songbird . Even so, Noel Gallagher remained Oasis' primary composer.

Exit at Oasis

In September 2008 the seventh Oasis album Dig Out Your Soul was released , on which six compositions by Noel Gallagher were represented. During a promotional performance at the V Festival in Toronto on September 7, 2008, Gallagher was knocked to the ground with full force by a spectator who had stormed the stage. He broke three ribs and had to stop the concert. Because of this incident, the following concerts had to be canceled as well.

On the regular tour for the album, Gallagher announced on August 28, 2009 that he was leaving the band for good. This was followed by renewed disputes with his brother Liam before a concert in Paris, which was canceled.

Liam Gallagher then announced the end of Oasis and founded the new band Beady Eye with the remaining members . Meanwhile, Noel Gallagher started a solo career. The live album The Dreams We Have As Children was recorded on March 27, 2007 in London's Royal Albert Hall and released on March 15, 2009, before his departure from Oasis. The concert was intended to support the Teenage Cancer Trust. Noel Gallagher's concrete plans were initially not known after the oasis was closed.

Solo career with Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds

On July 6, 2011, Noel Gallagher announced at a press conference that his first solo studio album would be released on October 17, 2011 and would be titled Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds . This is also the name of the live band Gallagher goes on tour with. Besides Noel Gallagher, the band members are Jeremy Stacey (drums), David McDonnell (lead guitar), Mike Rowe (keyboard) and Russell Pritchard (bass).

On July 25, 2011, Noel Gallagher published the video for The Death of You and Me , the first single of his solo debut, on the website of New Musical Express magazine .

Immediately after its release, the album reached the top of the British album charts and made it to number eleven in the German album charts . At Metacritic , Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds achieved an average score of 69 out of a possible 100 points.

Noel Gallagher gave the first German concert in a new formation with the High Flying Birds in the Palladium in Cologne on Sunday, December 4th, 2011. This concert was recorded by WDR for broadcast in the Rockpalast . On December 7, 2011, Gallagher and his band were guests on the Harald Schmidt Show and played the song If I Had a Gun .

In March 2012 Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds came to Germany again and played concerts in Hamburg, Berlin and Munich.

Gallagher's second solo album was also announced at the press conference on July 6, 2011, as a collaboration with electronics duo Amorphous Androgynous . On February 29, 2012, the first song together Shoot a Hole into the Sun was released as the B-side on the single Dream On . At the same time, Gallagher announced that the original release date for the joint album could not be met and that it will probably only appear in 2013.

On February 27, 2015, Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds' second album, Chasing Yesterday, was released .

Influence on Gallagher's musical composition

The Beatles are considered Noel Gallagher's greatest role model. Other influential bands considered T. Rex , the Rolling Stones , Slade and the Kinks . Among the bands of recent history are the Smiths and the Stone Roses . Johnny Marr of the Smiths in particular is considered one of Gallagher's musical idols. Similarly, Paul Weller , with whom he is close friends, be a role model in terms of songwriting.

Private life

Relationships and fatherhood

Gallagher married his girlfriend Meg Mathews on June 5, 1997 in Las Vegas . The marriage was divorced again in 2001. Their daughter (* 2000) lives with their mother. Gallagher has been married to Sara MacDonald from Scotland since June 2011, with whom he has two sons (* 2007 and 2010).

Cocaine addiction and withdrawal

Gallagher was addicted to cocaine for years . In the aftermath of Be Here Now , drug-induced panic attacks became more common. These served as inspiration for the song Gas Panic on the follow-up album Standing on the Shoulder of Giants . After a year of recurring panic attacks, Gallagher attempted withdrawal on the advice of his doctor. He did this successfully alone in his holiday home on Ibiza . According to his own statement, he himself was surprised at how much easier than expected his undertaking turned out to be and on June 5, 1998 he renounced illegal drugs. He had a comparatively poor memory of the period from 1993 to 1998 because of his drug use at the time.

Controversy

Like Oasis in general and his brother Liam Gallagher in particular, Noel Gallagher has always been a source of controversy. In contrast to Liam's case, they are usually of a purely verbal nature. The most controversial of these are listed below in chronological order:

  • In 1994 Gallagher left Oasis' US tour when Liam changed the lyrics to insult Noel Gallagher and the Americans.
  • In the mid-1990s, there was a pronounced, highly stylized rivalry between Oasis and the rival Britpop band Blur . In 1995, in an interview with the Observer , Gallagher expressed the wish that Blur members Damon Albarn and Alex James might contract the HI virus and die of AIDS ("catch AIDS and die"). A little later, he issued a public apology.
  • Gallagher's 1997 visit to Prime Minister Tony Blair's seat of government was not well received by everyone. Blair had previously flirted with his preference for Oasis several times during his election campaign. Liam Gallagher turned down the invitation.
  • In a 1997 television interview, Gallagher equated drugs with drinking tea ("taking drugs is like drinking a cup of tea in the morning") and claimed that most British MPs use heroin or cocaine . The trigger was his displeasure with singer Brian Harvey's dismissal from boy group East 17 due to his admission and positive comments about ecstasy use. There was an outcry in the media and Tony Blair announced his "friendship" with the Gallaghers. Gallagher later dismissed his testimony with a laugh and admitted to having been under the influence of cocaine himself in the said interview.
  • During Oasis' European tour in Barcelona in May 2000, while drunk , Liam Gallagher insulted Noel's then wife Meg Mathews in an obscene manner and questioned Noel's paternity of his daughter Anais. Thereupon Noel knocked down his brother and got out of the remaining continental European tour. He rejoined the band for later performances in the UK.
  • Gallagher described the demonstrations against the war in Iraq as "a bloody waste of time" as they were completely useless.
  • Gallagher canceled Oasis' planned participation in the international charitable rock concert Live 8 on July 2, 2005, while at the same time criticizing what he believed to be a useless event. In parallel to this event, Oasis played a concert at the City of Manchester Stadium .
  • The appearance of US rapper Jay-Z as headliner of the Glastonbury Festival 2008 was called a style break by Gallagher. It was also said that the appearance of a hip-hop star would break a longstanding tradition. It is simply wrong to let a rapper appear at a guitar rock festival - and as a headliner at that. Jay-Z responded by appearing on stage with a guitar and singing the Oasis hit Wonderwall .
  • In August 2011, it became known that Noel Gallagher had been sued by his brother Liam for libel and defamation. Noel had claimed a few weeks earlier that Liam had to cancel an Oasis performance at V Festival 2009 because he was too drunk. According to Liam Gallagher, however, the real reason was a doctor-diagnosed laryngitis.

Discography

Oasis

High flying birds

swell

  1. Britain's Most Outspoken Rock Star (en) . In: Esquire , November 5, 2015. Retrieved February 12, 2017. 
  2. Oasis for Charlestown (en) . In: The Mayo News , January 13, 2009. Retrieved February 7, 2019. 
  3. a b "Oasis". Behind the Music , VH1 . 2000.
  4. a b c d e Harris, John. Britpop !: Cool Britannia and the Spectacular Demise of English Rock . Da Capo Press, 2004.
  5. Noel Gallagher admits to football hooligan past | NME . January 6, 2009.
  6. Simon Hattenstone: Interview: Noel Gallagher talks Oasis past and present . In: The Guardian , December 6, 2008. Retrieved June 28, 2009. 
  7. This is cited at many sources, including an interview with VH1's Behind the Music (2000), Russell Brand on 1 Leicester Square (2006) and Oasis: In Their Own Words (1996)
  8. Noel Gallagher Concedes 'Be Here Now' Is 'Too Long' ( Memento from September 10, 2012 in the web archive archive.today ) on spinner.com from June 3, 2010.
  9. Noel Gallagher: “Oasis should never have made 'Standing On The Shoulder Of Giants'” in NME from September 12, 2011
  10. Noel Gallagher assaulted onstage in Toronto in The Guardian on September 8, 2008
  11. Noel Gallagher describes stage attack in BBC News of March 24, 2010
  12. Don't Look Back in Anger: Noel Gallagher announced his departure from Oasis in Spiegel Online on August 29, 2009
  13. Noel Gallagher debuts first solo single 'The Death Of You And Me' in NME on July 25, 2011
  14. Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds on Metacritic
  15. ^ Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds: Cologne, Palladium - December 4, 2011
  16. Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds in Die Zeit, February 28, 2012
  17. ^ Noel Gallagher in Munich: Don't Look Back in Anger in Süddeutsche Zeitung of March 12, 2012
  18. ^ Noel Gallagher unveils first track from Amorphous Androgynous sessions in NME from February 29, 2012
  19. ^ Noel Gallagher: 'Amorphous Androgynous collaboration unlikely to be out until next year' in NME of February 15, 2012
  20. ^ Brother Liam not invited: Noel Gallagher got married on n-tv on June 20, 2011
  21. ^ Noel and Liam Gallagher: Bruderzoff in court in Süddeutsche Zeitung of August 19, 2011

Web links

Commons : Noel Gallagher  - Album with pictures, videos and audio files