Noel Gallagher Is Nervous About Fronting His Own Band

When Oasis finally broke up in 2009, few were caught off guard. The love-hate relationship between brothers Noel and Liam Gallagher had been documented to death, so when Noel announced he was quitting the band, most of us just shrugged and got on with our day.

And while some might have raised an eyebrow that it was Liam who was the first to release a solo album, it was pretty much a matter of time before Noel whipped his out, too. Which he finally did this week with Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds.

Gallagher's fans were given a chance to preview and review the album last week, from Gallagher's website (www.NoelGallagher.com). The responses, as one might expect, ranged from the effusive ("This album should further cement Noel Gallagher's position - as if it needs it - as one of Britain's pre-eminent songwriters") to the extremely effusive (Noel has "retained the key elements of greatness that has given him idol status amongst millions exemplified ... A superb piece of work").

But ask the man himself, and his self-review is pretty to the point. "Well, I think the album is really good and I hope people like it," Gallagher said over the phone from London. "Other than that, I'm not really feeling anything about it."

No, Noel Gallagher isn't always the most effusive of people when it comes to interviews. You get the feeling that if he didn't have to speak to the press, it wouldn't bother him at all. In fact, he would probably celebrate that fact down at the pub.

The album is a bit of an eye-opener, in terms of the songs that Gallagher has produced. While songs like If I Had A Gun and Dream On bear some resemblance to Oasis material, others like The Death Of You And Me, (I Wanna Live In A Dream In My) Record Machine and Everybody's On The Run, complete with strings and choir, are about as far removed from Oasis as an earthworm is from an Autobot.

"The Oasis sound, whatever that was, was made up of five people," explained Gallagher. "The sound that I've got now is my sound. And you can hear elements of 'my sound' in Oasis, that's in terms of sound. In terms of songwriting, I wrote all the songs, so that sounds similar, I think."

He continued: "I don't really analyse it that much. It's for you to analyse, not me. I just do it. That's not to say you shouldn't analyse it. Analysation is good sometimes, but I don't think it's my place to try and analyse stuff like that."

We are starting to understand why the man doesn't like giving interviews.

While some have speculated that the track The Death Of You And Me is about the breakdown of his relationship with Liam, Gallagher expressedly stated that it is not. "No, no, no. It's about the death of a relationship between the one man and his surroundings."

And seeing as we are on the topic of Liam, no, the critical praise heaped on Beady Eye's album - that would be the album put out by his brother and the other ex-members of Oasis - earlier this year didn't affect his recording process one bit.

"I never go into the studio worrying about what anybody else is doing," said Gallagher. "I never even go into the studio and worry about what I'm going to do. I've already decided whether I think (the songs) are good or not. So it doesn't really bother me in any way. I just do what I do and hopefully people like it. And yeah, that's it really."

For Gallagher, the biggest challenge wasn't in the studio - it was getting back on tour. "Yeah, because I've never really fronted a band before," he explained.

What, is the speak-his-mind songwriter nervous? "I am, a little bit. Yes. I'm not nervous for me. I know I can do it. But I'm nervous for other people's expectations. Do you know what I mean?" said the 44-year-old musician.

"If people are going to expect another, you know, f***ing rock 'n' roll band, then they're going to be sadly disappointed. I'm not Mick Jagger. I'm not Liam Gallagher. I'm not Richard Ashcroft or Ian Brown or any of that lot. It'll be interesting to see what people think."

Of course, you have to wonder why Gallagher would even bother with all this. After all, he could probably live off the royalties he earns, having written some of the most recognisable stadium rock anthems of all time.

"Well, I've never lost the sense of wonder in writing music," he said. "I could retire if I wanted to, but that'd be boring. What would I do? Sit around the f***ing house all day and watch football? Which is great - but if you've got the chance to work, you should work. Because there's going to come a time soon enough in my life where I won't be able to work, and I'll miss it."

As for his legacy, Gallagher had this to say: "I'd just like to be remembered for my songs. Otherwise for what, my f***ing handsome good looks?"

Source: www.todayonline.com