Noel Gallagher ‘can’t believe’ younger generations are listening to Oasis: ‘Reenagers now don’t really have anything like that anymore’

1 June 2023

Noel Gallagher “can’t believe” new generations are listening to Oasis.

Noel Gallagher ‘can’t believe’ new generations are listening to Oasis

The High Flying Birds frontman, 56, who joined as the group’s fifth member in the 1990s before its break-up after a blazing row with his younger brother Liam, 50, in 2009, said he was astounded when interviewer Vernon Kay, 49, told him his daughter had been listening to the band’s first album ‘Definitely Maybe’, released 30 years ago this August.

Noel, who has sons Donovan, 15, and Sonny, 12, with his estranged wife Sara MacDonald, 51, as well as model daughter Anaïs, 23, with his ex-wife Meg Matthews, 57, said: “It’s a real privilege when these anniversaries come round and kids are still into it, for something that we kind of, we created that sound. “You know, it wasn’t thought out, we were the real deal, we were just a bunch of guys who created this noise and the songs are great and it’s still going.

“I can’t believe it, it’s still going.

“It’s unbelievable... a lot of it is to do with kids that are, teenagers now don’t really have anything like that anymore and, I guess suppose like we did looking back to The Beatles and Stones and stuff like that so it’s a bit of a shame – not a shame, ‘cause it’s great for me obviously – that no one really came along to take our place if you like.”

When Vernon asked Noel if he takes success for granted he insisted: “No, no, no, no, no I don’t take any of it for granted.

“I don’t even – I don’t take the songwriting or, no – none of it. You know, we’re going out on tour.

“We still put everything into rehearsing and everything into making the records as good as they can be. That’s all you can do, try and make it the best that it can be… I don’t have any other interests outside of music and football, not really.... other than that I don’t collect anything, can’t drive, I’m not interested in it, so this is what I do.”

Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds performed for Radio 2’s ‘Piano Room’ at 11.30am on Thursday (01.06.23), which can be streamed on BBC Sounds and BBC iPlayer.