FEATURE:
Oasis’ Definitely Maybe at Thirty
Inside the Epic Live Forever
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I am looking ahead…
to 29th August. That is when Oasis’ amazing debut, Definitely Maybe, turns thirty. There are some anniversary editions that you can buy. A white marble two-L.P. edition is well worth having. There is also more options here. It is going to be exciting to mark one of the most important albums of the 1990s. One that launched Oasis to the rest of the world. I have already written about Definitely Maybe. I am going to cover it again before 29th August. I wanted to use this opportunity to spotlight the most acclaimed and loved songs from the album: the sublime and epic Live Forever. Often cited as the greatest Oasis song ever, it is the third track on Definitely Maybe. I often wonder why it was not chosen as the closing track. It would have been a perfect way to end. The ending track of Definitely Maybe is Married with Children. There are some interesting and insightful features that talk about the story behind Live Forever. How it was this response to the downbeat and often depressive music coming from U.S. Grunge. American Songwriter looked inside the classic Oasis song earlier in the year:
“Noel Gallagher wrote “Live Forever” as a response to the negative and depressing messages of grunge music, which had come to dominate rock music stations and label rosters in the early ‘90s. Gallagher singled out Nirvana’s “I Hate Myself and Want to Die” as a song that particularly motivated him to put a more positive message out into the world. Specifically, Gallagher said, “I can’t have people like [Kurt Cobain] coming over here, on smack, f—ing saying that they hate themselves and they wanna die. That’s f—ing rubbish. Kids don’t need to be hearing that nonsense.”
With “Live Forever,” Gallagher wanted to express his gratitude for getting to have another day to be alive. In the song’s verse (which is repeated three times throughout the song), Gallagher emphasizes how he is focused on the possibility of each day, rather than worrying about other people’s affairs. And then he goes on to articulate that he can find beauty anywhere, even in things that can be painful.
Maybe I don’t really wanna know
How your garden grows
‘Cause I just wanna fly
Lately, did you ever feel the pain
In the morning rain
As it soaks you to the bone
In the choruses, Gallagher continues to espouse his positive outlook. In the second chorus, he asserts that there are reasons to be happy, even if we don’t get what we want. Having life turn out differently than what we hoped for just gives us a reason to be curious about how things actually did turn out.
Maybe I will never be
All the things I wanna be
Now is not the time to cry
Now’s the time to find out why
One part of Gallagher’s message is open to interpretation. He finishes up the second chorus with I think you’re the same as me / We see things they’ll never see / You and I are gonna live forever. Given that Cobain was a major inspiration for Gallagher’s lyrics, one has to wonder if this was a direct appeal to the Nirvana frontman—for him to understand that he, too, could find joy and wonder in life.
Even though Gallagher took issue with Cobain’s lyrics and song titles, he was a fan. And if these lines were directed at him, then the Oasis guitarist is saying he feels a kinship with his fellow rock star. Then again, Gallagher could have been speaking to grunge musicians—or any musicians—in general and encouraging them to appreciate what they have. Or maybe he was addressing all of us.
Nirvana was not the only band that influenced Gallagher when he was writing “Live Forever.” The melody that begins the verses was adapted from The Rolling Stones’ “Shine a Light.” Specifically, Gallagher borrowed the melody that Mick Jagger sings for the line “May the good Lord shine a light on you.” He eventually developed it into the slightly different melody his brother Liam sings: “Maybe I don’t really want to know.”
The Impact of “Live Forever,” Which Started It All
If not for “Live Forever,” Oasis may not have ever existed in the form that we have come to know. Noel Gallagher was the last member of the Definitely Maybe lineup of Oasis to join the band, and it was “Live Forever” that convinced the existing members to accept Gallagher as a member and as their songwriter.
“Live Forever” was the first Oasis song to place on Billboard’s Radio Songs chart, peaking at No. 39. It also reached No. 2 on their Alternative Airplay chart and No. 10 on their Mainstream Rock chart. It was the first Oasis single to place in the Top 10 of the UK Singles Chart, as well. Definitely Maybe, then, would peak at No. 58 on the Billboard 200 and No. 1 on the UK Official Albums Chart.
Oasis would go on to have even greater commercial success with their follow-up album, (What’s the Story) Morning Glory?, and their Top 10 single “Wonderwall.” Sometimes, songs don’t get enough credit for the role they play in catapulting an artist into the public’s consciousness. “Live Forever” certainly played that role for Oasis, and it bears some of the responsibility for the mammoth success of “Wonderwall.” It remains one of Oasis’ most popular songs in its own right”.
Released as a single on 8th August, 1994, it is a perfect opportunity to celebrate Live Forever. Thirty years after its release, this amazing and stirring anthem is still inspiring people. Its messages might have fitted more into the political and music scene of 1994. Its optimism against the backdrop of today might seem jarring or ineffective. I want to come to this feature, and their insight of Definitely Maybe’s standout track:
“The melody is inspired by Shine A Light by The Rolling Stones. The song can be found Exile on Main St. and is, most likely, written in reference to Brian Jones’ struggles. Noel drew inspiration from the chorus part: “May The good Lord Shine A Light on You.”
Allegedly, Noel Gallagher composed parts of the song using John Squire’s Gretsch G6122. The Stone Roses guitarist. Producer Mark Coyle was a roadie for The Stone Roses and lent the guitar to Gallagher.
The songwriter later told Q Magazine that he was convinced he’d written a classic from the time that the song was finished. Noel Gallagher presented a fully composed Live Forever to the band for the first time in early 1993 during rehearsals. The band was in awe of it. Guitarist Paul “Bonehead” Arthurs reportedly confronted Gallagher about the song being an original composition. “Maybe I just wanna fly” remains one of the most enduring phrases in pop music.
Oasis reaching the musical mainstream
Noel Gallagher later said that writing Live Forever finally gave him a life goal. The group would soon achieve great commercial and critical success. Oasis, particularly brothers Liam and Noel, would earn a reputation for their confidence and outspokenness.
Part of the iconic music video was shot in New York’s Central Park. The cover of the CD single shows John Lennon’s childhood home, 251 Menlove Avenue. It was bought by Yoko Ono who donated it to the National Trust.
The song has had an enduring legacy. In a poll conducted on Oasis’s official website, this song was voted Oasis’s best song. Also, in Q magazine, in October 2008, Liam Gallagher stated that this song is his favorite Oasis song. In a 2018 Radio X poll, Live Forever was voted as the best British song of all time. To claim the title, Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody, and Oasis’ won Don’t Look Back In Anger were beaten by this epic track.
It was a time when Gallagher could seemingly do no wrong. Non-albums singles like Acquiesce or Whatever would chart highly. The band was playing Britain’s biggest arenas. And, even Oasis bootlegs of the brothers’ bickering, could elicit the public’s attention. The rise and fall of Britpop, maybe, can be charted through the Manchester group’s evolution.
And, its writer, Noel Gallagher has not yet tired of hearing the song. In 2011 he talked about how the song measures up to music’s greatest compositions”.
Before finishing up, I want to come to a feature from PASTE. It is interesting reading about how Live Forever has changed people’s lives. Rather than writing about the song in terms of its chart success – it reached ten in the U.K. and was a success in the U.S. -, people talk about how it personally affected them. Such is the power and depth of Live Forever. For me, at the age of eleven, it was a big moment. I had not really heard anything like it. A moment of uplift in a music scene that was lacking this sort of pomp and optimism:
“For me, one of those songs was Oasis’ “Live Forever.” Though I didn’t hear the song when it came out on August 8, 1994 (I would’ve been -2 years old), when I encountered it in my early teens, it was a much-needed lightbulb moment. I hadn’t yet developed my passion for music at the time. I was mostly listening to what everyone else my age was listening to, which at the time, meant whatever T-Pain or Sean Kingston song happened to be popular for that month.
After stumbling on the band’s music videos on YouTube, I quickly became obsessed. I didn’t come from a family that was interested in music. I’d love to say that my parents played original Beatles, Stones and Coltrane records around the house or even that I raided my sibling’s collection of Paramore and My Chemical Romance CDs, but I can’t. All the music that I became enthralled by in my teenage years was stuff that I had dug up on my computer in solitude.
As a teen, my perception of rock music was that it only consisted of two categories: classic rock like The Beatles, Bruce Springsteen or AC/DC and whatever angsty bands were popular in the 2000s like Green Day, Panic at the Disco or Blink-182. Though I’ve since come to appreciate those two styles of rock, I had no connection to them as a teen. Classic rock was just music that boring parents listened to, and the whole pop-punk and emo thing wasn’t for me. Growing up in Ohio in the ’00s, I soon realized that most people in the states were much more interested in albums like American Idiot than an English band like Oasis who most considered past their prime.
I hadn’t heard a band like Oasis before. Liam Gallagher’s voice was gritty and rough but not so much that he couldn’t carry a beautiful, moving melody. People compared his voice to a mix between John Lydon and John Lennon and I always loved that idea of his edgy-meets-emotional vocal style. The band dressed in denim, sunglasses, button-down shirts and fancy parkas and jackets. They didn’t have ripped jeans. They weren’t dressed in all black with crazy hair or piercings. They looked cool but relatable, and even though tons of British people dressed just like them, to me, it was as if they had been transported from Mars.
“Live Forever” was the third single that the band released from their 1994 debut album, Definitely Maybe. For me, the song partially symbolized my disillusionment with a lot of the pop-punk that was coming out at the time, much of the same way that it represented the split between American grunge and Britpop in the ’90s. Like pop-punk, grunge often felt angsty to the point of self-destruction while Britpop was charming and uplifting. By 1993, Nirvana had become worldwide sensations and they released a track called “I Hate Myself and I Wanna Die.” I never was drawn in by these kind of lyrics as a kid, even if I really did hate myself and want to die. I had low self-esteem and no sense of self, but I thought if I listened to lyrics like that, it would just make those feelings more real. Instead of facing those feelings head on, I wanted to fast-forward past those dark thoughts to a time where I was happy and sure of myself. Britpop, Oasis and “Live Forever” were the antithesis of this kind of tortured rock star that was mythologized in other genres.
When I heard Liam Gallagher sing lines like “Maybe you’re the same as me/ We see things they’ll never see/ You and I are gonna live forever,” it was motivating and empowering. Despite the band’s constant fighting between brothers Liam and Noel, they were the last band to sulk or feel sorry for themselves. Their unshakeable self-confidence (or arrogance) was exhilarating, and it was everything I needed to hear as a shy teen. The song continues with the idea that all you had to do was dust yourself off and you could take over the world: “Maybe I will never be all the things that I want to be/ But now is not the time to cry/ Now’s the time to find out why.”
It was one of those songs you could listen to and strut down the street with your head held high and your chest puffed out. Even though I probably looked like an idiot, I felt like I had the whole world in the palm of my hands. When Noel Gallagher’s first melancholy guitar solo hits, it cries out like a siren and makes you remember that things aren’t always so happy-go-lucky, but when Liam’s vocals return, everything is okay again, and you’re back on cloud nine.
One of the reasons the song is so encouraging and believable without being preachy or cheesy is because of the Oasis brothers’ story. The Gallaghers came from a poor family in working-class Manchester, born to Irish immigrants and the sons of an abusive, alcoholic father. If two poor, foul-mouthed boys from Manchester could take over the UK and the rest of the world with their music after a meteoric rise, why couldn’t I at least have some confidence in myself that I could be somebody and achieve something great if I worked hard? Oasis were one of the first bands I loved and without them, I’m not sure where I would be right now”.
On 29th August, Oasis’ Definitely Maybe turns thirty. Before that, on 8th August, the album’s third single turns thirty. It was released after Supersonic and Shakemaker, I think this was the biggest release from Definitely Maybe. Still regarded as their creative peak. I hope that it gets plenty of radioplay on its thirtieth anniversary. I am going to end with the acclaim and critical reaction to Live Forever:
“While Oasis' first two singles, "Supersonic" and "Shakermaker", were modestly received, it was "Live Forever" that "got the world's attention". "Live Forever" became Oasis' first top-ten hit, reaching number ten on the UK Singles Chart in 1994. In 1995, the song charted in the United States, reaching number two and number ten on Billboard's Modern Rock Tracks and Album Rock Tracks charts, respectively. Noel Gallagher commented on the praise given to the song: "People said to me after 'Live Forever', 'Where are you gonna go after that?' And I was like, I don't think it's that good. I think it's a fucking good song, but I think I can do better."
"Live Forever" has garnered additional acclaim years after its release. In 2006, "Live Forever" was named the greatest song of all time in a poll released by Q; the song had ranked ninth in a similar Q poll three years prior. In 2007, "Live Forever" placed number one in the NME and XFM poll of the 50 "Greatest Indie Anthems Ever". Pitchfork labelled the song as Oasis' best-ever track and said of the song: "It's an honest, aspirational sentiment just as the photo of John Lennon's childhood home on the single's sleeve is an honest, tasteful exhibition of fandom." The music site went on to praise the song for its 'fearless optimism'. On 2 April 2018, Live Forever reached number one on Radio X's Best of British poll. On 5 April 2021, "Live Forever" reached number one on Radio X's Best of British 2021 poll. On 10 April 2023, it reached number one for the third time”.
A tremendous and rousing song, it is hard to believe that Live Forever is thirty. I remember it being released into the world and the excitement around the song. To this day, it remains hugely played across radio. I will write more about Definitely Maybe ahead of its thirtieth anniversary on 29th August. “Maybe you're the same as me/We see things they'll never see…
YOU and I are going to live forever”.