4* of 5

Neal Snowdom


ON TOP FORM: Liam and the gang30/06/05

AS HOMECOMINGS go, it was loud, proud and heart-warming.

The Burnage brothers Gallagher may have been away from their heartland for some time, but they made up for that with a show that proved last night that absence makes the heart grow fonder.



In the build-up to our heroes arrival, the PA blasted out great Mancunian songs of yesteryear to little acknowledgement from the crowd.

But when Liam Gallagher strutted on stage in a Reni-style hat, shades and gangster-style pinstripe suit, the sell-out crowd went wild at the slightest lift of his tambourine.

The opening blast of Turn Up The Sun followed by chart topper Lyla and over-looked oldie Bring It On Down stoked the fires of the crowd perfectly.

But it was the potent double of Morning Glory and Cigarettes And Alcohol that saw both crowd and band finally loosen up.

The last time Oasis played at the home of their childhood heroes, Manchester City, it was 1996 and the venue was Maine Road.

Highs and lows

In the intervening nine years, both City and Oasis have had more than their fare share of highs and lows, hirings and firings, and in-house squabbling. Being a fan of either has been a frustrating roller-coaster.

From the 1997-98 sinking feeling of Be Here Now and relegation to football’s third tier through to the current storming returns to form that have seen Premiership credibility matched by critical and commercial adulation afforded latest offering Don’t Believe The Truth, it has been eventful.

Like their sky-blue idols, Oasis had no trouble filling the City of Manchester Stadium last night – this was the first of three sell-out shows.

From the epic Little By Little to the heart-wrenching version of Live Forever that marked the show’s halfway point, this was a stadium master class in crowd pleasing, rabble-rousing rock.

Come 10 pm, a heart-felt, emotionally raw version of Wonderwall was followed by an epic Champagne Supernova. Few bands could play such classics mid-set but Oasis have a back catalogue to do just that.

So when we finally left after a crowd sing-along of Don’t Look Back In Anger and a powerhouse version of The Who’s My Generation, we had further evidence, if ever any was needed, that we were being re-visited by rock’s aristocracy.

Neal Snowdom, Manchester Online