Oct 7, 1997

Concert Review

October 7, 1997 at Hammerstein Ballroom, New York
-------------------------------------------------

  Oasis was there then!  In their first headlining show 
in America since last year's disaster, oasis was "mad 
fer it!"  No stage props, no amazing light show, simply 
oasis doing what they do best, blowing the roof off.
  
  After the opening act, Fun Loving Criminals 
(interesting pairin with oasis), the stage was set.  
Nothing extravagent, just the instruments and stage 
lights.  The crowd's vibe was great and everyone waited 
in suspense.  The room darkened and the opening piano 
fro "Be Here Now" blaired and our boys stormed the 
stage.  Liam was clad in all black (sweatpants?, black 
t-shirt and a leather jacket) while Noel came out in 
bagy jeans and a Verve t-shirt (who happened to be at 
the show).  The band exploded into "Be Here Now" and the 
crowd was rabid.  The show maintained its high level 
through "stay Young" and "Stand By Me" but as soon as 
Whitey pounded the opening of "Supersonic", the crowd 
went wild.  Liam was even urging the crowd to "keep 
f**king moving" which we did.  A scary moment arised 
when a bunch of balloons landed on stage.  Fearing the 
band would react negatively, I held my breath.  But Liam 
seemed entertained and started to kick the balloons as 
if they were soccer balls. "Do You Know What I Mean?" 
was even better live and it was also dedicated to the, 
as Noel put it, "The next best band in the world, the 
Verve".  Noel broke into his solo set of "Magic Pie" and 
"Don't Look Back In Anger".  Before playing "Magic Pie", 
he told the crowd to "calm down, calm down. I know, I 
know, I know I'm a genius."(a bit cocky).  "Don't Go 
Away" and "Wonderwall" sounded great electric and there 
was a bit off confusion befor "Champagne Supernova".  
Noel had started playing the opening to "Ciggarettes & 
ALcohol" when he caought himself and started playing the 
right song.  The new solo during Champagne Supernova" 
was great as Noel and Whitey really assaulted the song 
with a high furious pace.  "Fade In/Out" (an o.k. track) 
was amazing.  Noel was even surprised with the version 
saying, "Wow, that was a great f**king version."  "All 
Around the World" had a good Noel solo and concluded 
with the band leaving the stage.  After a minute of 
crowd cheering, oasis came back on and blasted into 
"Acquiesce".  A great version of the song concluded with 
Liam trashing his mic and amps as Noel sang the final 
verse.  The band left and ended the amazing night which 
will not be forgotten by anyone who was there, then.

-by Pete Gruca

Set List
--------
 1) Be Here Now
 2) Stay Young
 3) Stand By Me
 4) Supersonic
 5) Some Might Say 
 6) Roll With It
 7) Do You Know What I Mean?
 8) Magic Pie
 9) Don't Look Back In Anger
10) Don't Go Away
11) Wonderwall
12) Live Forever
13) It's Getting Better Man!
14) Champagne Supernove
15) Fade In/Fade Out
16) All Around the World
17) Acquiesce
Check out a clip of Roll With It from the concert.