Oasis

Oasis are an English rock band, formed in Manchester in 1991. Led by lead guitarist and principal songwriter Noel Gallagher and his younger brother Liam, they are one of the most successful and prominent English music groups to emerge during the 1990s. more...

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The Gallagher brothers are the only remaining original band members from when the band were formed in 1991. The present line-up is completed by Gem Archer (rhythm/lead guitar and songwriting) and Andy Bell (bass guitar and songwriting). Zak Starkey, the son of Beatles' drummer Ringo Starr, is the band's current unofficial drummer.

Musically and lyrically, they cite bands from the British Invasion such as The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Who and The Kinks. They also cite Led Zeppelin, The Sex Pistols, The La's and The Stone Roses as key influences.

With the success of their critically acclaimed debut album Definitely Maybe and its 20 million selling follow-up, (What's the Story) Morning Glory?; coupled with a rivalry with contemporary band Blur, Oasis became one of the most successful and prominent English bands of the mid-90s and one of the leaders of the Britpop movement. The Gallagher brothers featured regularly in tabloid newspaper stories, and cultivated a reputation as both bad boys and a band of the people. At the height of their fame, their 1997 third album Be Here Now reached #1 in the UK charts and also became the fastest-selling album in chart history, with almost half a million copies sold on the first day alone. Oasis have sold more than 50 million records (including singles) worldwide.

Having survived the loss of founding members and sustaining support from their loyal fan base, Oasis have managed to outlast many of their Britpop contemporaries. In 2005, the Guinness Book of World Records declared Oasis the "Most Successful Act of the Last Decade in the UK." A band known for its arrogance about its success, Liam Gallagher once declared "We still are the most important band in the world, and we'll be the most important band in the world until I say so."

History

(1991–1993) Early years and breakthrough

Oasis evolved from an earlier band called The Rain, who took their name from a 1966 Beatles B-side. The Rain comprised Paul "Guigsy" McGuigan (bass guitar), Paul "Bonehead" Arthurs (guitar), Tony McCarroll (drums) and Chris Hutton (vocals). When McGuigan invited school friend Liam Gallagher to join the group, Gallagher accepted, and quickly pushed for the band's name to be changed to Oasis. Although there have been many theories on where Liam got the name from, he got it from an Inspiral Carpets tour poster which was in his and Noel's bedroom. One of the venues on it was the Oasis Leisure Centre in Swindon.

Oasis first played live in August of 1991 at the Boardwalk club in Manchester. Noel Gallagher, who had heard of Liam's involvement when he phoned his mother whilst on tour in Germany as a roadie for the Inspiral Carpets, came to watch his younger brother play. A few months later he was invited to join the band. Although he had been critical of them, he agreed, with the provision that he would become the band's sole songwriter and leader, and that they would commit to an earnest pursuit of commercial success. Oasis under Noel Gallagher crafted their musical approach to rely on simplicity: with Arthurs and McGuigan restricted to playing barre chords and root bass notes, respectively, McCarroll playing basic rhythms, and the band's amplifiers turned up until the sound distorted, Oasis created a sound "so devoid of finesse and complexity that it came out sounding pretty much unstoppable."

Read more at Wikipedia.org