Artist Profiles

Brothers at Arms – Noel and Liam Gallagher

randydafoe16 Comments

We all know the great album Brothers in Arms from Dire Straits, but sometimes those brothers are “at arms” rather than in them. In this part of the mini-series with Max from PowerPop he talks about the brothers that formed the band Oasis.

The feud between the Gallagher brothers, Noel (left) and Liam (right), of the British rock band Oasis is one of the most toxic in music history.

Their volatile relationship has been marked by public spats, physical altercations, and a war of words in the media. The brothers have different personalities, with Noel often seen as the more reserved and serious musician, and Liam as the more volatile and outspoken lead singer. The Gallagher brothers are cultural icons in the UK, known as much for their music as for their childish spats.

“Wonderwall” (1995)

Noel was born on May 29, 1967, and Liam was born on September 21, 1972, in Manchester, England. The Gallagher family faced a troubled home life, with an abusive father, which led to their mother Peggy eventually leaving with her sons. Both got interested in music in their teens. Noel worked as a roadie for The Inspiral Carpets, which gave him insight to the music industry and songwriting. In Liam’s teen years he got interested and formed a band called The Rain.

In 1991, Liam’s band, The Rain, was struggling when Noel joined after returning from touring with The Inspiral Carpets. Noel agreed to join only if he could take creative control. The band was renamed Oasis, and with Noel as the principle songwriter. In 1994 Oasis released their debut album, Definitely Maybe, which became the fastest-selling debut album in the UK at the time.

“Don’t Look Back in Anger” (1995)

In 1996 Liam pulled out of an MTV Unplugged performance at the last minute due to a claimed sore throat, forcing Noel to perform alone. Liam then heckles Noel from the audience. In 2000, Noel temporarily quits the band after a backstage fight with Liam but then returns. In 2009, Noel quits the band after another backstage fight with his brother. Noel cites his inability to work with Liam as the reason. Oasis was done but the fighting kept going. Their documentary Oasis: Supersonic in 2017 consists of the brothers insulting each other in separate interviews. They moved the show to Twitter in 2018 with Liam blaming Noel of blocking an Oasis reunion. Liam also accuses Noel of not being allowed to see his niece. Liam then insulted Noel’s wife…and the hits just keep coming to this day.

It’s a shame because Oasis was one of the UK’s biggest bands.

16 thoughts on “Brothers at Arms – Noel and Liam Gallagher”

  3. Thanks Randy! More than any other set of brothers….they are determined to not to get along. Ever watch the Dr Seuss “The Zax”? One going north and one going south and they won’t budge…this is pretty much it.

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  4. I know I’ve said this before, which I feel compelled to reiterate after reading this post. While I ignored Oasis when they were big, I’ve since come to dig their music, but I really don’t have much time for all the self-inflicted drama. Dudes, just get over it, once and for all!

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  6. A sister-in-law of mine is a big follower of Oasis and the Gallagher brothers, and I’ve learned a lot about their longstanding feud from her, too. “Shame you boys can’t get on,” their mum might say.

    The same SiL made a photo compilation of our family’s dedication of a brick in my parents’ names in a park to the music of “Let the Be Love” and it’s quite a lovely combination.

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  7. Rockstar drama! Hilarious to see these guys still swinging at each other. Those first 4 oasis albums were good rock records. That documentary was a good watch.

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