Entertainment
Anticipation of Oasis reunion is huge – and it’s a long way from the band’s modest debut
It all began in front of 20 people at a club called The Boardwalk. Tickets were £3 each. It was a modest debut for what became one of the biggest bands in British music history.
The news that Oasis is expected to return to the stage 34 years after that first gig in Manchester has created the greatest buzz of all in their home city.
The band has teased that an announcement is coming on Tuesday morning after weeks of growing speculation about comeback gigs next year.
For a band that has sold 75 million records worldwide – making them one of the best selling ever – the anticipation is enormous.
And in Manchester, where murals and artwork still pay tribute to the band’s place in the city’s cultural fabric, the expectation is huge.
Noel and Liam Gallagher in 1994. Pic: Paul Slattery
Like most fans, Chris Green wasn’t at The Boardwalk in October 1991 but he did see early Oasis at Manchester’s Academy three years later, just as their debut album had become the fastest-selling in history.
He has been a fan ever since.
Of the reunion, he said: “It matters because they’re a big part of our culture. I’m old enough to have been there first time around but the second time around what has surprised me is that my kids and my grandkids are saying ‘Dad, we’re going to see Oasis next year’.
“For us in Manchester, when they went global, with the look, that football terrace look, to see local boys doing that and taking us along with them and making unbelievable stadium anthem rock music was just amazing.”
Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds perform in 2017. Pic: Reuters
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The fractious family dynamic of Noel and Liam is almost as famous as their music and the band’s ultimate split in 2009 came as no surprise.
Rumours of a reunion have come and gone over the years but recently there has been a noticeable and very public softening in the brothers’ relationship.
Noel Gallagher and Meg Matthews seen arriving a the BRIT Awards Launch in 1996. Pic: AP
Veteran Manchester music journalist John Robb’s recent interview with Noel appeared to confirm the sense that they could be putting the band back together.
“They’re brothers, aren’t they,” he told Sky News. “At the end of the day no matter how much your brother annoys you, you still love your brother as well. So there’s a lot of sentiment and maybe Noel just felt like doing it again.
“People have wanted it to happen for so long and they’ve timed it perfectly, where everyone isn’t too old and everyone isn’t too young. it’s exactly the right time.”
Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds perform in 2017. Pic: Reuters
In Manchester’s northern quarter, Afflecks Place bazaar has long been a regular stop for Oasis fans.
The band hung around there in the early days, buying clothes and even once recruiting a drummer from its notice board.
The pair performing on the BBC’s Top of the Pops in 2002. Pic: AP
Alistair Hall runs the Vinyl Resting Place record shop on the top floor.
“I think there’s not a day goes by that we don’t get asked for an Oasis record or CD. The brand itself just seems to be constantly popular,” he said.
“I think because they’ve been broken up for 15 years it’s gathered a bit of momentum. There’s people growing up who have never heard them before and I think the nostalgia thing plays a part. People revisit everything in a cyclical way and the vinyl boom has added to the snowball effect.”
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That is certain to gather even more momentum with the likely reunion – not least for the band itself, with estimates that the comeback shows at Wembley and in Manchester could net tens of millions of pounds.
It is a long way from that October night at The Boardwalk.