BACK in 1996 I saw Oasis at Maine Road, former home of their beloved Manchester City. Rather predictably, the Gallagher brothers had a row on stage and Liam walked off in a strop. He did, as we knew he would, eventually return to the mic, with his defiant Manc swagger.
It was all panto. When the brothers finally went their separate ways in 2009, with Noel quitting the band after a backstage brawl, it was textbook rock ‘n’ roll feuding. But not quite the end of the panto.
Just as Liam always returned to the stage amidst those fraternal hissy fits, an Oasis reunion was always going to happen. “The guns have fallen silent. The stars have aligned.
The great wait is over,” came this week’s rather pompous announcement confirming that Liam and Noel Gallagher are getting back together for a 2025 tour, marking the 30th anniversary of their chart-topping debut album Definitely Maybe. Have the brothers finally mellowed in middle age? Is the tour a last hurrah of belting out hits like Cigarettes & Alcohol and Rock ‘N’ Roll Star before they get too old? Or perhaps the prospect of raking in an estimated £400 million is enough to put their differences aside. The reunion has of course thrilled the band’s legion of fans, many of them now mid-lifers, excited to re-live their heady Britpop youth.
Nostalgia plays a huge role in pop culture and we punters lap it up. And for the acts it’s not just about the pay cheque - it’s about rocking out again while they still can. Led Ze.