I don't think he's on the same level as Lennon/McCartney or Bowie.

But definitely on the same league as Weller, Robert Smith or Morrissey/Marr. And although it's a bit early I think Turner will end up on that league too.

Worth noting that at Tramlines my mate who has not seen either Gallagher came.

He hasn't really listened to Noel's new album fully, but he's got a good taste in music and good knowledge. He prefers Liam's but was looking forward to seeing Noel live.

It blew him away.

Maybe it was the crowd, maybe it was the fact that Noel was so up for it and it's not the plodding, dad-rock Noel of a few years ago.

My mate - after a Beautiful World had finished - just said 'he's rock and roll, proper rock and roll'.

And yeh, for the first time probably this tour I realised what Noel meant about WBTM being his most rock n roll album in a long time. Because rock n roll isn't about the fur jackets or the shades or the drugs. It's about the spirit of doing whatever you want and having the conviction to follow it through, and then pulling it off. And both Liam and Noel have done that, both to varying degrees of success throughout their respective careers. But at the moment, I think they're both at the top of their game and we live in a great time to be Oasis fans, reward for sticking by them in the period preceding and following their break up when tbf they'd become a parody of themselves.

It's a very interesting question. It's fantastic to see both Gallaghers in the higher echelons of the charts, continuing to sell out gigs and produce great material. I think that both genuinely enjoy making music and the creative process which makes it even more accessible to us all (including the new generation of fans), aside both their characters and personalities. I think back to Liam's interviews in Hampstead Heath or in a pub in Highgate as examples - the biggest rock 'n' roll star of his generation who you could easily bump into in the street or down the pub, yet in today's world is a stark difference to the heavily guarded, somewhat reclusive manufactured 'stars'. Ultimately, as bt95 eluded to, we are the biggest winners here, as we get double the albums, double the gigs and double the experiences to enjoy.

As to Noel's legacy, I think the 2 big markers one can immediately cite are Stop the Clocks and Supersonic (the film). In Stop The Clocks, there is a compilation that showcases much of Noel's artistry: every track on the album is a massive, popular classic that many a non-follower would instantly recognise, and that's notwithstanding that over half of Oasis' discography is not included. There have of course been other big and good bands and songs since Oasis for example of Coldplay and the Arctic Monkeys. But it is difficult to imagine a more powerful modern day body of life-affirming work than Noel’s, and for me that puts him much closer to the likes of Paul McCartney and John Lennon, Ray Davies, Johnny Marr, Freddie Mercury and Paul Weller – it’s that ability to unite people through music and create a commonality, no matter what the lyrics might be, whether that’s solidarity via Don’t Look Back in Anger, uproar via Cigarettes and Alcohol or love via Wonderwall. Those same attributes are there through the post Oasis days too, with the likes of If I Had A Gun, Riverman, While The Song Remains the Same and Holy Mountain. At the same time, a latter day track like Dead In The Water strikes me for 2 reasons: one, that he can still write this kind of song in an environment where he is seemingly so content and happy with his family, wife and life in general is testament to that innate ability of his to quiet melancholy but defiance, a trait that runs through many of his songs like Half The World Away and Shout It Out Loud, and two, that he can so readily forget it, since he nearly didn’t put it on the album. The further enticing prospect for us fans is that Noel has said he has plenty of these kind of songs in stock; we can only hope they see the light of day.

I think Supersonic served as the perfect fillip to the Noel, indeed Oasis, legacy. It came at the right time, just perhaps at the point where Oasis could have gone out of the public conscious and been replaced with the modern guises of Beady Eye and the High Flying Birds. What Supersonic did was unabashedly celebrate all that Oasis stood for and showed everyone just how they became the biggest band around. It was beautifully and uniquely crafted, and managed to draw in a whole new audience and give them that experience of what the last heroes of music were all about. As a side note, I love the bit where Mark Coyle speaks about Noel taking on a different persona when he is in a recording booth – that when he is in it, he reaches out to his emotional side – and yet when he’s back out, he’s calling you a twat – from 2min 25sec on here:
From a personal perspective, his impact on me has been immense – he and Oasis inspired me to pick up and learn guitar, and instil a confidence that says not to give a fuck most of the time but which also says no-one has to hear you play or being the best in ability: just play (and write) for yourself. I’m sure I’m not the only one who feels the way I do.

Will it inspire a plethora of new bands that cite Noel as a key reference? Personally I doubt it , not because of Noel or the music, it’s just that to me, that doesn’t seem the way things are done nowadays as we are bombarded in the main with anodyne, flavour of the day pop, which will sell/stream by the truckload, but will we be remembering these songs in even 2 or 5 years time? I’m not so sure.
Overall, I think if one were to create a chronological timeline of great British songwriters, Noel’s name would rightfully sit alongside fellow greats.

Noel’s legacy will be this forum, where people will argue about Liam’s voice, complain about the cosmic pop of Who Built The Moon and slate Heathen Chemistry / Mike Bruce / David Sardy for all eternity.

X

Radiohead have quite a few hits. Creep, High and Dry, Fake Plastic Trees, Karma Police, No Surprises, to name the bigger ones.

They bore me

Radiohead evolved. Oasis did not. Oasis shined very very brightly between 1995-1996. They were soon eclipsed by Radiohead. The back to back efforts of Ok Computer and Kid A put them on every magazine around the globe. Ranking at the top of many album of the year lists.

Pretty much every American band of the last 20 years has said Radiohead were a huge influence on them. I'm sure its the same for many British bands as well. I was never totally impressed with the UK bands of the 00s that came up via Oasis, I mean is that it?

Radiohead were once a extreme guitar band. Dare I say they even rocked harder than Oasis in the mid 90s. Compare The Bends to Morning Glory. Their guitars were at eleven. Oasis went more laid back (which is fine) but people always consider Oasis the rock Gods of British music of the 90s but in 1995, Radiohead out did them in that regard. Even Ok Computer rocked harder than Be Here Now. Lazy and loud guitar solos weren't gonna match what Jonny Greenwood was doing.

Bottom line, some people like them, other do not. But enough people like them to merit Thom being in the same league as Noel. For me Noel never got back to his mid 90s hey day. That is a shame.

I agree judging the merits of a songwriter on its hit singles is a bit narrow minded. Songwriters like Alex Chilton, Elliott Smith, Stuart Murdoch, to name a few, are some brilliant songwriters than never had hits.

On the Oasis/Radiohead subject though; I love both bands, but I think one has got a special treatment and the other not. For me they BOTH released 2 masterpieces and that's it. Post OKC Radiohead stuff is held in way too high regard by the critics, and I say that while I love KID A and most of Amnesiac.


On the "who is the best songwriter of his generation" subject, except for Noel and Thom, I would like to also cite Elliott Smith, Stuart Murdoch, Billy Corgan, Stephen Malkmus and Jason Pierce.

I mean Noel wasn’t exactly singing about drinking champagne from stripper’s boots post 1997. SOTSOG is a very dark and dreary album. Force of Nature, Just Getting Older, Probably All In The Mind, The Importance of Beig Idle, Part of The Queue, Lord Don’t Slow Me Down, most of DOYS songs. I wouldn’t say he was being much different than Thom in those years for song subjects.

A lot of mundane life circumstances creeping into Noel’s body of work.

He's in the second tier, I'd say. Below Lennon / McCartney above Ray Davies. I don't really know who else would be in his tier... MAYBE Weller, but I'd say that Oasis had far more hits and socially defining tunes than The Jam ever did (though I am a 90s kid, so I wasn't there for The Jam)