Noel Gallagher: "I'm not brilliant at any one thing - I'm just good at being me"

I caught up with Noel at the Palais Theatre in St Kilda, to talk about fame, songwriting, and Manchester City.

May 19, 2022

(Originally published January, 2012, Fairfax Digital, TheVine.com.au)

Nick Holt | 19 May, 2022

OASIS is one of Britains most prolific music exports. They conquered stadiums in both hemispheres, sold an estimated 70 million records worldwide and were cited by Guinness World Records as the most successful act in the United Kingdom between the years 1995 and 2005.

A decade at the very top — which is extraordinary given the volatile relationship between brothers Liam and Noel Gallagher.

Sadly, it was that volatility which eventually became the catalyst for the final denouement of one of England’s great stadium rock bands.

On August 28, 2009 the band announced the cancellation of their concert at the Rock en Seine festival near Paris, just minutes before it was about to begin. The next day, Noel announced the cancelation of Oasis.

Both brothers went onto start new projects, almost immediately.

Liam's Beady Eye was a slow burner, while Noel's High Flying Birds has enjoyed soaring heights of success.

Noel’s debut record reached number 2 on the UK charts and he was nominated for an XFM New Music award.

On top of that, he also received the NME Godlike Genius award.

I caught up with Noel at the Palais Theatre in St Kilda, to talk about fame, songwriting, and Manchester City.

How's the tour going?

Great.

And the Big Day out crowds?

They've been great, too; boringly-fucking-great. It's been really good every night. I don't know, it's a strange thing; the gigs pass me by in under a minute because I'm up there doing it.

Is the solo experience easier?

I'm enjoying it more than I thought I would. I thought I'd be stressed out about it, but it's been very, very easy.

I haven't had any nerves whatsoever - apart from playing on TV shows. I don't like doing them. In fact, I fucking hate them.

Apart from that, I've been strangely calm about it all.

Was it daunting starting from scratch again?

Not really, because when you're doing it, it's a gradual build up to the first gig. From recording the first song to doing the first gig, it's a gradual step and you grow in confidence with the record you've made and the band you've put together.

So when it comes to the first night, it's just the next step. I don't allow myself to think about things that much.

I always used to think of the big picture in Oasis, like, where it would be in five years from now? What's this going to look like in Wembley Stadium? For this, I don't look too far ahead. Maybe if I did it would have been more daunting. I take it one step at a time.

Were these High Flying Birds’ songs were always going to come - whether it be with Oasis, or as a solo act?

Well, I think I only wrote a few of the songs on the album while I was a solo artist. I'm always writing songs. I'm writing songs right now - well, not this fucking second, but I'm writing on the road.

The songs I'm writing now might be on my next record or they they might be on an album three years from now. It just depends what I feel like when I go into the studio.

'What a Life' and 'Broken Arrow' I wrote while I was a solo artist...I don't really write from that perspective, you know? I just write songs all the time. The songs I'm writing now may not be for the solo stuff, or I might form a band next. Who the fuck knows?

I've noticed that your lyrics have become more and more emotional over the years, and less circumstantial.

Yes. Although, I can still write a healthy dose of nonsense when I want to. The best lyrics are the ones that you mean.

Some of my best words, I think, are on more obscure tracks from the b-sides. Instead of trying to write big stadium rock anthems I try to write what I'm an expert about. And what I'm an expert about is life in the big city. I live in the centre of London and I know what it's like.

I try to let my words speak to the listener, rather than speak about me. I don't really want people listening to lyrics about me. I would rather open a window and shine a light on a part of you that you didn't see.

There are melancholic elements within certain Oasis songs, yet that are still quite upbeat.

For my mind, one of the best Oasis songs is one of the saddest and uplifting songs, and that's 'Some Might Say'. It's a great chest beating air thumping anthem, but if you read the words it's almost like you're trying to find redemption from something.

“The sink is full of fishes”?

Yes. Although, that doesn't mean a great deal, there is a sadness to that. Maybe it's the Irish in me, I don't know. What can I say? People perceive words differently and the listener is king.

It's not up to me to define what my words are about, because that would spoil it for you. You have to work out for yourself what the song means, don't try and work out what it actually means, because that spoils it.

Who really wants to know what was going through Leonardo's Divinci’s mind? That's the beauty of the Mona Lisa. I mean, who is she?

So it's about the power of ambiguity?

Absolutely.

You mentioned 'What a Life' before. It's an interesting track. Is this the 80s Mancurian disco-kid in you?

Well, that song started off one way and ended up another way. It was just fucking about and experimenting in the studio really. I wasn't trying to make any grand statement with it at all.

The way that I do it acoustically when I do acoustic gigs is great, but vastly different. The song works both ways, but I was never writing it as a song that people can dance to.

If I'd gone the distance and didn't like it, I would have just scrapped it, but I think it's fucking great. It's been my biggest hit song in about 6 or 7 years. Probably since the Importance of Being Idle.

I want to briefly discuss two very important topics: Manchester City Football Club and Karl Pilkington.

(Laughs) OK.

I lived in Manchester for a few months in 2006. I had a job as a barman at a cricket club. On my first day the boss said to me: "I only have one rule: If you work at my pub you're a Man City fan, if not you can fuck off'. I didn't have enough money to fuck off, so I took the first option.

And look where we are now boy.

Can they hold on?

I think that we are the best team in England, and the best team always wins the league.

Balotteli? [Manchester City forward]

Fucking great. I love him, he's my...I love him. I'll kiss him on the mouth when I see him. Even if he wants me to or not, he's getting a fucking kiss.

This bar owner was also an Oasis fan. Your music seems to speak to the average bloke.

Well, it's not art school. It's from the soul. I won't try and convince you that I am in anyway a brilliant guitarist, keyboardist, singer, or lyricist. I'm not brilliant at any one thing - I'm just good at being me.

I don't think of myself as gifted even though I have a gift. It's just what I do. I don't believe in bullshit. 'Live Forever' is no better when it's being played in a stadium by a rock band, than when you're sat on the couch at home, playing it on your acoustic guitar.

And that's the beauty of great songs. There's not a lot of bands who can just bust out their songs and play them. Muse for instance...

Play me the Knights of Cydonia on a fucking lute. You know what I mean?

So, I think that your guitar work on Freelove Freeway with the great David Brent was your most poignant work to date. What are the chances of a duet with Karl Pilkington?

(Laughs) Nil. I know Karl. He's a fucking top dude.

Does he have a head like a fucking orange?

(Laughs) It is pretty round, seriously. I don't want to say it's like an orange, but it is pretty round.

I want to talk about fame vs success.

Do you ever worry about whether it is your fame that is drawing attention, rather than your body of work?

It depends on how you perceive it. You can't have success without fame. I don't mind fame and I like being famous. I don't chase it though. I don't go to film premiers and all of that. I turn down lots of TV work, too.

“I couldn't give a shit if I wasn't famous; as long as I was successful. Money changes everything, and if I could choose one of the two it would be success. But fame, I don't have a problem with it. It's got me in many a fucking high-class restaurant... free drugs, free flights, free shit all over the world.”

I'm not in any way under any illusions that my beautiful wife would have given me the time of day if she wasn't intrigued as to who I am. Obviously after that, I wooed her and we fell in love; but if I was just a shit-kicker walking up the street, I mean...have you seen my wife?

Yes I have.

You know what I mean then? Fame is good. But it's how you perceive it. I don't even perceive it as a necessary evil. It's a fucking good laugh, man. I've got nothing to hide. I don't give a shit about what people say about me, or what they write about me. I know who I am. The end.

Finally - I wasn't allowed to discuss your brother, Liam, with you today. But I am allowed to discuss Liam Neeson. And i have a couple of questions about him.

Ok...

Would you say that Liam Neeson's new movie isn't nearly as good as the movie he was previously in for all those years?

I haven't see The Grey, but I heard it's taking a lot of money in the states. The last one I saw of him was where he loses his fucking memory.

Do you think Liam Neeson and his estranged brother, Neil, will ever get back together and star in one final movie?

[Publicist intervenes]

You're being psychedelic aren't you?

A little bit.

Well, you'll have to ask Liam that question. Or better yet, ask Neil if you meet him. He's supposed to be a nice guy.

He is a nice guy.

- Nick Holt