oddly and unusually, that is a note perfect introduction for this post. a little while ago, as in when this what i write of was imminent for release, look you see, the artist (or artiste) in question did indeed host Pick of The Pops on Radio 2, so as to celebrate his birthday and plug this new release.
and the new release being plugged or promoted on the radio, and written of here, was or is the improbable, quite unexpected "best of" Noel Gallagher and his High Flying Birds.
no, or very little, disrespect is meant by the use of terms improbable and unexpected. whereas in the past i have openly questioned how openly Noel is about it all being all the money, two factors caused me to do that "eyebrow raise" thing. one would be that this Noel solo venture had existed for a decade or so now, which sounds longer that it feels. the other was that they mostly exist in this strange time and space era of "streams", and so in terms of traditional, maybe now old fashioned actual sales, neither Noel nor anyone else really has "greatest hits" any more.
yes, as is the modern trend, this "best of" or greatest hits has been released on tape, or cassette if you like, too, and i purchased it. also yes is that it is presented in the greater good and glory of Commodore 64 mode. no, i do not have the tape any more. as it happens, William has heard one or two of the songs what Noel Gallagher has done on his own and liked them. since he is enjoying building a tape library, it is his.
the dawning of Noel Gallagher as a solo entity was something of a turning point for me and my devout dedication to bands and musicians what i like. usually, or the norm, was for me to pledge allegiance to them what i liked, purchasing their records once they had departed whatever band they were in that i liked, a lot. this was true of the first solo album (or if you insist the High Flying Birds) from Noel, but not the second, or third. i wasn't particularly taken with what i heard on the first, and the elements released of the next two failed to register an interest.
it wasn't really, i don't think, a bland "oh it's not as good as Oasis" thing. by the end, Oasis were nowhere near as good as Oasis; that last album what they did might as well have been called "contract obligations". rather i just found it a trifle bland, or that whatever it was Noel was writing, singing and performing of right then didn't really register with me. yeah, i am sure he lost a lot of sleep over the fact that he didn't catch the imagination of a random, questioning fan.
enough of what was heard on the releases from the second and third albums under the guise of the High Flying Birds, as well as the recent vinyl and download only "EP" things, said that if any sort of compilation was released then it would be an autopilot purchase, and so here we are.
something, or a bit, of a frustration is that the "standard' two disc set of Back The Way We Came, for that is the name of this set, does not include one of the finer moments from his EP indulgences. the song Wandering Star, a semi dalliance with a Christmas song, is absent. my understanding is that one could obtain that on the "deluxe" three (3) disc set, but there was no reasonably priced combination on his web thing that let you get that version and the tape. also, much of the third disc looked like it would get played once, at best, so it seemed excessive to purchase for the one song which might, if i remembered to do so, get played once a year. if Noel did not believe the song was worthy of being on the "main" two discs of this retrospective, well, that's that.
on this, or that, note, there seems to be no technical reason whatsoever, at all, for this being a two (2) disc set. from what i recall of it being on the stereo, the length of each of these discs is so that one disc would have housed the whole lot, or would have if some further fat was trimmed. like, for instance, either of the two "new" songs, or the one live thing on it. unsure on the who, what or why of this being forced as a minimum of a double disc release, but it is done now.
quite easily the best aspect of this release, and i mean absolutely no slight or disrespect with this, is the linear notes. when speaking of music, his own in particular, Noel is always fascinating, interesting and something that you could listen or read to for ages. well, i could, and can. to no longer avoid the tired, almost obligatory comparisons, whereas Liam is pure rock, he who wishes to throw teles from hotel rooms, get banned off of airlines and deported from ferries, Noel has always sought, even from the relative young and early age from the start of his musical career, to be an elder statesman of rock.
the notes ooze pride in what he's done. which is not out of character for him, of course, but we do live in a time where artists tend to downplay stuff. no longer, true, does he declare that he has written some of the greatest songs of all time, but even then the perpetual, presumed permanent endurance of a, for example, Wonderwall or Don't Look Back In Anger suggests he was right back then. but, his enthusiasm and passion for speaking of what he's done, beyond "yeah this is great", is infectious.
but the actual music? well, it never dips below "average". exactly how far it goes up and above beyond average is, as with any musician, down to personal taste. his solo career has, for me, seen some songs come along that are truly great, that yes, do stand or sit comfortably next to his well known most popular works from the past. that this far down the road he can produce songs like Everybody's On The Run, What A Life, In The Heat Of The Moment and one which i really like, Black Star Dancing, means that i shall forever give any Noel Gallagher release a chance.
pretty sure that the "volume one" aspect of this set is either contractually obliged or just banking on optimism. if Noel can keep banging out tunes than never dip below "acceptable" for another ten or so years is not under question, just if he can do so with the frequency and volume (size) to justify, quantify or fill another retrospective set. one suspects he shall give it a darned good go.
should one throw in Beady Eye, oddly it is probably (i am not counting) that Liam has done more music than Noel since Oasis. for some reason, though, i don't think Liam's Greatest Hits will be out any time soon. unless he comes up with a really witty name for a set which takes the p!ss out of the title Noel has given his...........
be excellent to each other!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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