May 1988:

On the 29th, Noel and Liam see The Stone Roses and James play an anti-Clause 28 benefit at International 2, Manchester. It is here that Noel meets Graham Lambert of Inspiral Carpets.

Mark Coyle and Phil Smith are working for The Stone Roses.

December 1988:

On the 21st, Noel auditions for Inspiral Carpets as singer at The Mill Studio, Ashton-under-Lyne. The band have lost Stephen Holt. He goes on to form the Rainkings.

He sings versions of the Inspirals songs "Joe", "Whiskey" and "Keep The Circle Around" and the Stones' "Gimme Shelter".

Noel doesn’t get the gig, but the band like him. Instead the job goes to Tom Hingley, formerly of Too Much Texas.

May 1989:

After breaking his foot at work Noel gets in touch with Graham Lambert and is offered the role as instrument technician and roadie. He also takes on occasional roles: selling merchandise, undertaking soundchecks and participating in the occasional interview.

It is during this period that he moves out of the family home and into a flat with his then girlfriend. Noel and Louise Jones set up home in a flat in India House, Whitworth Street, Manchester.

Over the next couple of years he tours the world. He also gets the opportunity to improve his guitar playing skills, and to learn to play bass guitar, farfisa organ and the drums.

Working alongside Mark Coyle who sorts out the Inspirals' live sound, Noel records 4-track demos of his early compositions.

summer 1989

Alan McGee unknowingly meets the future saviour of his record company. The Creation Records founder and co-owner attends the Reading Festival. There he meets an acquaintance, Louise Jones, who is in attendance with Noel.

summer 1990:

Liam and Bonehead separately go off to see The Stone Roses seminal outdoor gig at Spike Island.

early 1991:

Bonehead on guitar and Guigsy on bass form a band called The Rain with a singer called Chris Hutton. Later Tony McCarroll joins on drums.

After early rehearsals in the cellar of Raffles Hotel the band plays a few gigs, including one at Squire's Wine Bar, Didsbury. Going nowhere the band splits and Liam is brought in on vocals. Whilst on tour Noel hears of this from Peggy.

After Liam joins it is decided to change the name of the band. Finally, they settle upon the name "Oasis". The new band starts rehearsals at Grove Cabaret Club, Longsight and the Redhouse, Ancoats.

Meanwhile, Noel is interviewed for the first time. Stella Blackburn, a freelance writer, talks to Noel about life as a roadie with Inspiral Carpets. The piece is not published until April 1997, when it appears in Select magazine.

August 1991:

On the 18th, Noel-less, the newly named Oasis play their first gig at Manchester Boardwalk sandwiched between The Catchmen and Sweet Jesus. They play a number of songs including "Take Me", "Alice" and "Reminisce".

Noel goes along to watch. Despite considering the performance and the songs to be "shite", he sees a future with and for the band. He turns down their offer of the manager’s role, but tells them that if he plays guitar, they can play his songs, and will become famous.

They soon start rehearsals. Gradually these build up to six times a week, and the band moves in to Room 4 of the Rehearsal Rooms in the basement of the Boardwalk venue. Here they share space with the likes of New Fads, D-Tox, Houndogs With A Tumour and Sister Lovers.

Note

[At this point memories have become confused, and there seems to be some conflict about Noel's role in the next two gigs. In his book tracing the origins of the band, Paul Gallagher suggest that the Noel-less band play a gig on the 19th not at the Boardwalk, but on an outside stage at the Granada TV Studios as part of the Granada Festival. He asserts that Noel's first gig was on the 15th January 1992 at the Boardwalk.]

[Using the official version, however, the story continues as follows.]

October 1991:

On the 19th, begging a favour from promoter Lynne Hamnett, the band play their first gig as a five piece with Noel at Manchester Boardwalk. They are reported to have played a cover of a house song, "Take Me", "Columbia", and an acoustic song called, "Acoustic Song".

autumn 1991:

Prior to an Inspiral Carpets tour to America, Noel gets the sack along with the rest of the road crew. He receives a £2000 pay off.

Having more time on his hands, Noel vows to improve band discipline and drives the band hard in rehearsal at the Boardwalk club; and writes new songs.

A demo is recorded by the band at Abraham Moss Studio in Cheetham Hill, Manchester and sent out to local media types. It is played by Signal Radio DJ Craig Cash and Key 103 DJ Pete Mitchell. So bad was it, that Noel later denied having played on it.

December 1991:

Chris Sharratt, the music editor of 'City Life', discovers a copy of the band’s first demo tape.

He reviews it in the magazine’s Christmas double-issue, writing: "Oasis go for the dramatic build-up here [on "Colour My Life"], first acoustic guitar, then pattering drums and bass, then vocals. A bit nasally in places, sort of like Dermo from 'Northside' but with a cold. In fact, the whole song is in that 'Northside' vein. The second track’s ["Take Me"] more urgent and weird, sort of Inspirals on psychedelics. Interesting, but I’m not excited."

early 1992:

In search of a deal, Noel approaches Tony Wilson of the Manchester-based Factory Records, and the man who launched Joy Division. Wilson declares the Oasis sound "too baggy". Despite the alleged interest of Phil Saxe at the label, nothing comes of a proposal to include Oasis on a compilation of local bands.

spring 1992:

The 19th April sees the band outside Manchester for the first time, supporting The Ya-Yas and The World Jones Made. At Dartford Polytechnic they are chased out of the venue by antagonised punters.

Continuing to display their songs in public, the band play a handful of gigs, all in the Manchester area to next to no-one, though it is believed that Phil Saxe, A&R at Factory Records attended the gig at the Hippodrome, Middleton on the 20th April. It is during this period that the band record a second demo. This time Mark Coyle is drafted in to engineer the session at the Boardwalk rehearsal rooms. The demo includes a formative "Rock’n’Roll Star". A copy is passed to Macca, the manager of Northside, and Catherine Elleray, manager of Intastella, both of whom visit a rehearsal.

Steve Cowell of 'Uptown', a local lifestyle magazine, interviews Guigsy and Noel, though the band receive only a brief mention.

June 1992:

The first major news coverage of the band occurs on the 12th when the 'Manchester Evening News' predicts great things for the band in a full page article by Penny Anderson in 'The Word' column.

It is also around this time that their first photo session takes place with Peter Walsh at an intersection of five Victorian railway bridges above a canal basin in Castlefield, Manchester. Noel had met Walsh during his time as a roadie.

September 1992:

On the 13th the band is ignored when it plays at The Venue, Whitworth Street alongside Skywalker, Jealous and Machine Gun Feedback at a fringe event at the annual ‘In The City’ festival. Allegedly present are national radio DJs and music industry representatives.

It is at this time that Alan McGee comes inadvertently into contact with Oasis. McGee travels to Manchester to see his friend Debbie Turner, vocalist with Sister Lovers. While visiting the Boardwalk Rehearsal Rooms he spots Oasis' backdrop logo.

Noel also contacts Tony Griffiths about recording at the Dock Road studios in Liverpool.

November 1992:

Fresh confidence is exhibited at the band’s final gig of the year at the Boardwalk on the 22nd supporting The Cherries and Molly Halfhead.

The band play "Columbia", "Take Me", "Must Be The Music", an untitled song, "Better Let You Know", "Whatever".

Future "Word" presenter and Paul Gallagher-book collaborator, Terry Christian attends the gig. He thought them "awful". Yet Oasis are beginning to gain a name for themselves. Once again local radio DJs are present, as are employees of 'Red Alert', a plugging agency based in the city.

The year ends with Red Alert allowing Noel to use their office facilities for promotion purposes, and sending out semos on the band's behalf.

• Contents
• Chronology - index

c 1998 Andrew Turner

aturner@interalpha.co.uk

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