OASIS, Lad Culture & Why It Mattered.

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Many thanks, JH.

[@JamesHargreavesGuitar]

Pre-order my new EP here: hargreavesrecords.bigcartel.com/product/flying-through-the-noise-ep

[@JohnSmith-id8kz]

I'm from a southern state in the US and I felt what you were saying so strongly. The stone roses were also a part of that movement and they mean so much to me. Keep up with what you're doing

[@ryanmclaren850]

Spot on bro good times

[@Navigatortrue]

You do need to remember that Wikipedia is run by left-wing University graduates who hate the poor.

[@silversuit66]

Being a bullied working class English immigrant to Australia in the mid 90s. Alienated. This music saved me and gave me the confidence to stand up.

[@JamesHargreavesGuitar]

🍻🍻🍻 The power of music right there

[@scottblack9213]

Lads that listen to Guitar Pop also respect women. There were as many women as there were men at those gigs and clubs and the women were confident, strong and empowered by the music. Women didn't have to conform to "Barbie stereotypes", they wore what they wanted, went out and had a great time - with their girlfriends, met fellas and enjoyed music. Never any trouble. What a glorious time. Glorious.

[@JamesHargreavesGuitar]

Well said

[@boxingjerapah]

Much as I'd like to agree, and it WAS my experience in the mid/late 90's ... but by the time 2000's came around (Finsbury Park 2002 gigs is a good example) it was not a place that a girl/young woman would feel safe.

[@scottblack9213]

@@boxingjerapah something about Finsbury Park gigs that bring out the worst crowds ever - Madstock and New Order felt like a "firm casuals" day out rather than a gig.

[@signoguns8501]

Yea, agreed. The art sene was actually very diverse back then. Listening to people online in 2024, they make out like it was no better than the 1950s, but like you say, women were just as involved in 90s art scenes as men were. Rave, britpop, grunge, whatever... all featured prominent and influential female artists. Music, TV, movies, games, everything, featured a diverse cast of people, of minorities and working class and women, who all featured in starring roles. But they never made a big deal out of it, never made a show of how diverse they were. It was totally organic and natural.

[@lemsip207]

I remember at the time the working class were meant to be only into hip hop and rap not guitar bands such as Blur, Suede, the Manic Street Preachers, and Oasis and women were supposed to be only into dance and pop music. Dance is a stupid name for what should be called techno but is now called EDM. The bosses who employed us felt threatened by it. They thought guitar bands were only for college students and school kids and that we should be out clubbing every weekend trying to get a boyfriend or girlfriend and then get married to them. But people also meet each other at rock concerts and music festivals. I went along with this for a while and got back into guitar bands as a reaction against this. Imagine the furore at work when I did. Whenever I mentioned one of the above bands at work because they happened to be in the news at the time I would be met with stony silence. Yet I wasnt yet into their music. I would be asked to go out clubbing with other women I hardly knew and they were still pushy even if I had plans to go to the cinema instead. I could have said something like "OK I will go with you to a night club but don't get offended when I request a song by Van Halen, Guns and Roses or Blur to be played there." They hadnt even bothered to ask what music I liked first. I kicked up a fuss when I went off peak to an ice skating rink and all I heard was EDM instrumental music as that was what the staff liked and would hear in the local night clubs then and on holiday in Ibiza. During peak sessions when the kids were off school they played the latest chart hits and classic hits with a mixture of genres.

[@cjxo]

Really enjoy your videos. This one especially hits home. Working class “lad” from the USA 🇺🇸 in the 1970’s. Springsteen grew to mean everything to me for these exact reasons. When oasis came along I was older, but grew to absolutely love the Gallagher Bros and their music. Still do to this day… Keep up the great work and I’ll be supporting you~your label…. Cheers

[@nikobellic339]

Springsteen is anything but supportive of the working class 😅 man poses as your average joe but he literally makes millions off of that very fallacy

[@cjxo]

@@nikobellic339 you’re young. He was a different man in 1980

[@limonene9522]

Same for me. ! But in Australia

[@sjewitt22]

Springsteen is quality, he does stuff with unions etc.

[@j.gcoffey8169]

Springsteen is truly self made , he grew up dirt poor.

[@barrycullen]

"All my people right here, right now!" beautifully captures the mindset of the era. We felt untouchable

[@ogabugabedj1977]

After discovering lad culture, it teaches me to be yourself, don't care what others think because they always wanted to bring you down. Great video mate👍

[@jimilove7773]

LOve OAsis and Liam/Noel solo......Growing up in USA in the 70's/80's that is what KISS gave us!

[@ogabugabedj1977]

@@jimilove7773 you're very lucky, i wish i had cool experience like you 😓👆

[@livinghere1972]

''it teaches me to be yourself"' but don't a lot of them act the same?

[@ogabugabedj1977]

​@@livinghere1972 Well yeah actually if you think about it, but its doesn't matter if we act the same.

[@fullbeans983]

"I need to be myself, I can't be no one else" will resonate with me forever.

[@robertp-i4065]

Scottish lad with a beaten up guitar here and I very much appreciate the message you are sending, keep doing what you're doing ❤️

[@JamesHargreavesGuitar]

Will do 🍻🍻

[@DKH1103]

Interesting, though I think your case is a bit overstated. I was born in London in the 60s, and there have always been non-southern voices on TV and wider media, some of them drawing audiences of millions in the days of only 3 or 4 channels. I’m thinking of Cilla Black (from the 60s to the 90s), Michael Parkinson (must-see prime time TV in his heyday), Coronation Street, Z-Cars, Softly-Softly Task Force, Ken Loach (Kes and many subsequent films), Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads, The Liver Birds, Bread, The Royle Family, When The Boat Comes In, Reeves and Mortimer, Alan Bleasdale (Boys from the Black stuff, GBH), Billy Connolly, Jasper Carrott, Max Boyce, Auf Wiedersehn Pet, Coronation Street, Cracker. I don’t watch much TV now, so I’m less familiar with the TV of the current millennium. As for music, there was certainly a Manchester explosion in the 90s, but there have always been non-southern bands. In the 70s Slade (Birmingham) were massive. The 90s also saw the rise of Manic Street Preachers, followed by various other Welsh bands. So I dare say it’s true that some parts of the UK are under-represented, though bear in mind the population of London alone is more than that of Scotland and Wales combined, but I don’t think it’s true that non-southern voices in the media can be dismissed as ‘exceptions’. What I think happened in the sixties was an explosion of working class voices in the media, from all over the place, and that’s what has been gradually dwindling ever since.

[@Davehatessocialists]

Yeah, atrocious beginning. Totally false. He mentions Monty Python 'having' to sound southern. News for u video presenter matey....not all southerners sound like oxbridge knobs. That was their own affectation adopted of their own free will. The guy barely has an accent himself anyway, wtf??

[@lemsip207]

That was in the 60s, 70s and early 80s but by the mid 80s the tide had turned against the Welsh, the Scottish and the northern English. It went all New Romantic and then yuppie. But Simple Minds were very much Scottish. There was a Glasgow indie or post punk scene with bands like the Gang of Four in the 80s but it wasnt mainstream.

[@chrisvanuden]

Thank you so much. Your analysis applies to The Netherlands as well.

[@JamesHargreavesGuitar]

Thanks for your support Chris :) Yeah I've been amazed by how many people have related to this from other countries as well! Pretty cool

[@TianCrash]

I'm from colombia and we all here have the conception that all europeans are rich, and even though, yes, you'll just never be as poor in the UK as you can be in latinamerica, and even though uk doesn't have a drug cartel war and an internal armed conflict (despite The Troubles) as most of us latino contries do, i came to understand that being poor is poor, and poverty is poverty no matter the country, misrepresentation is harmful and empowerment idols and working class heroes are needed, no matter if you are a comuna kid in Bogotá or a working class lad in northern england. such amazing things oasis have accomplished. you are a great person, your message transcends boarders, oceans and cultures, may working class live forevah!

[@j.gcoffey8169]

An empty belly is an empty belly ,

[@ravenstrange8466]

As a person who Doesn't live in the UK, I am so influenced by the UK music scene for most of my life. I am honored to be a fan and subscriber of a true lad. From one Lad to another, Cheers.

[@conformitatisosor]

Love your channel. Got really sad when you said you were not able to see Oasis live during the 90s. I have to be very grateful for my dad, who took me and my brother to a Oasis show in Rio in 1998. I was 14.

[@chicomendez2671]

Thats a good father!

[@amyhayutin1738]

I was a teen in South Texas in the 80’s. Loved Stevie Ray Vaughn. Saw him, Santana, Eric Johnson, Joe Satriani back then in Austin. This is a brilliant, informative video. Thanks for the pitch about independent music, so important! Long live rock!

[@frommetoyou1981]

I was 16 brought up on a council estate working class, I nicked off work for the 1st time to go and see oasis at wembley arena 18.12.97. It was great being around in the 90s following every oasis release, being a 'lad' and being influenced by bands and guitar music. It was a great era and a great time to br growing up. Oasis meant the world to us.

[@DukesMusic84]

As an American teen in the 90s I was absolutely in awe of the scene in the UK. The nationalism, the lad culture, the us against the world mentality, and the incredible music of #Blur & Oasis. I wished we had a scene like that and still do.

[@pistolpete3587]

Oasis has brought me to many positive places. They brought me to you and you in turn bring me stories, background and interesting insights: from the use of outros (ya that's why I love Columbia so much!) to potential literary inspiration for NG's lyrics and now relivant class and regional differences in the UK. James, I find you a master communicator, teacher and sleuth. You keep this up laddie and I will cross the pond to tip a pint or six with you. Respect

[@danrl9710]

This is so spot on, James. Best video you’ve ever done IMHO. So important, especially now that we find ourselves back in a vanilla era of ‘manufactured consent’ (Chomsky if you didn’t know!) As usual, well done and thanks for speaking up on behalf of ‘working class heroes’!!!

[@thecatsmarracas4784]

Enjoyed your content man, but for those of us who are a wee bit older there was The Fall, Joy Division, The Smiths and to an extent the Bunnymen representing the working class Manchester lads in popular music. By the time Oasis came along bullshit celebrity culture was being sold to us by a much more sophisticated media machine.

[@thomaskilroy4573]

The problem with that is that even though The Smiths and Joy Division were working class northerners, they weren’t “ordinary lads” if that makes sense. People like Morrissey and Ian Curtis were far from the type of normal lads you’d see out at the pub on a Saturday night. They were Urban Poets and geniuses, but really, the only *real* lads that came about before Oasis were The Stone Roses. And even then, Oasis were much more in the vein of the everyman bairns that you’d find representing the common people.

[@malcomgladstone]

quite James is mixing up working-class culture with thick culture... JOhnny Marr is working class he hated lad culture, so did the Roses . Also loads of working clas bands came from the south , The Specials, Massive attack etc . The truth is the working class are pretty much the same up and down the country .. The north is just more working class so those bands speaks to working class, London tends to be more middle class now.. so speaks to that element , I do not think James actually gets the working class which is why he doesn't understand Mark E Smith and Ian Brown

[@lemsip207]

There were a lot of 60s bands from Manchester who I never realised were from there. Such as Freddie and the Dreamers and the Byrds. But Morrissey was unashamedly Mancunian.

[@ChainNonSmoker]

I'm sorry but The Byrds are from Los Angeles, California, not Manchester for that matter. Very influential band obviously, especially Gene Clark's guitar playin' who both influenced and got its influence from british pop/rock. You must've got them mixed with Herman's Hermits, Bee Gees or The Hollies who all are bands from Manchester.

[@catmink]

These videos are fucking amazing! I’m so glad that there is someone making some real and authentic content about this era. You really have hit the nail on the head here. As a young lad from Post industrial Barnsley growing up with literally fuck all hope or anything to aim at, Oasis were like Gods to me! I have gone on to achieve success in life and I can’t over emphasise how important Liam and Noel were in helping me achieve that. I have told many people over the years that Oasis was as much about mindset as the music and they really didn’t get it. Unless you lived through the golden years of 94-97 Oasis then you’ll never truly appreciate what they really meant, especially to people growing up in more deprived areas of the UK and the hope they brought. Thank you for making these videos and keep up the great work 🙏

[@freedomiseverything2682]

You are a real legend. This is fantastic. You are an inspiration James.

[@jakestephenson7007]

Fucking love your videos mate. You've inspired me to go for it, to fully commit to the dream of making it. Hopefully one day me and my band will sign with Hargreaves records ;). Keeping making the world a better place and #takebackthecharts

[@JamesHargreavesGuitar]

Rock and roll! Looking forward to hearing your stuff 👍👍

[@musicaladdiction4147]

I am exactly the same mate born in 81 from Glasgow never saw anybody speak normal even Travis who’s drummer is from my scheme doesn’t sound like me and Morning Glory was the first cd I ever purchased the band just spoke to me and I am a super fan like you I learned guitar because I saw ma pal play wonderwall and thought I can do that now I have managed to acquire all cds the full Japanese collection all sealed with obis and nearly all the promos British and American spent a small fortune but worth every penny and I have learned a lot from your videos about behind the scenes stuff and got to see them once in our National stadium

[@simontunnicliffe2107]

Travis, another great band. The Man Who - great album. Saw them live in New Zealand when I lived there in about 98 supported by Breathe (not a bad kiwi indie group, sounded bit like Manic Street Preachers - kzbin.info/www/bejne/pp2pdJ2wlLmkmck). I'm from Stoke-on-Trent in Staffordshire and the capital city of Staffordshire is Stafford. I was shocked to learn a couple of years ago that Fran Healy was in fact born in Stafford just 17 miles up the road from me.

[@Mitikinho]

Speechless, I'm almost in tears, dude you deliver content, and I see it in your voice tone how you feel about all of this amazing stuff you're telling us, got a new sub

[@JamesHargreavesGuitar]

Thanks so much and welcome :)

[@thecharlestonesband]

Truer words never spoken James. Still here playing rocknroll music in 2021. Lad music from italy x

[@shaf621]

Great video James, while I'm a South Asian myself I do empathise with the working class a lot as I grew up in a flat, while having free school meals in my primary and secondary schooling years. With regards to the music I was into, I always found myself inclined towards rock music as I thought it was the coolest thing around at the time especially given the movies/TV shows I used to watch like Spider-Man, Batman, X-Men, Power Rangers, Scooby Doo, Jackie Chan Adventures, Pokemon etc. Unfortunately I was born in the late 90's ('97) so I never really got to experience Oasis in their hey day, but during my pre teen years my mum got me into Oasis and since then I became a massive fan of them, to the extent that they show up on my Spotify Wrapped year in year out. The problem is that, because of my music tastes I feel alienated from my community as most South Asians are into rap/r&b music whereas I'm more into alternative rock, they would make fun of me by calling me a 'coconut' or a 'white boy music sympathiser', like it was completely ridiculous. I'm into rock music because I genuinely find it compelling and great to listen to, the lyrics and instruments used in those songs sound a lot better than what you'd find in mainstream pop/rap songs. Over time I started to ignore what other people thought and I felt good about listening to rock music, it's something that helps me stand out from the crowd. You could even argue that Oasis inspired me to feel comfortable about being into rock music with Supersonic, 'I need to be myself, I can't be no one else'. Ultimately while I still appreciate other genres of music, rock music to me remains as number 1.

[@JamesHargreavesGuitar]

Thanks so much for sharing that 👍👍👍 Be yourself - and like what you like 🍻🍻🍻

[@liamfitzgerald7217]

Ngl, most of what you said was the exact same as me. I'm Irish. I was a fortunate to be brought up in a house that me parents owned. That opening line to Supersonic is pretty much the way to be in life.

[@shaf621]

@@liamfitzgerald7217 Yep exactly, it's such a great line because of how much it can mean to someone. We all value our own unique tendencies and habits, it's what makes us special. Being original is one of the best things you can do in your life.

[@lemsip207]

The same attitude was among white people too. Guitar bands were seen as only for school kids who were outsiders and not in the cool crowd and students. In most working class jobs and on council estates you were seen as weird if you were into rock music or Britpop. If female you weren't seen as a nice compliant girl unless you were into dance, r and b or pop music.

[@reccerat4446]

Lad culture goes back much further one could argue, from the Oasis days, back into the 80's and the football lads, to the Scooter boy scene and even back to The Jam era, even punk. The sentiment and feelings around the lyrics from Weller to Noel are inextricably linked. It's not just the tune/beat it's all sung with the truth in the lyrics and that's what makes it what it is.

[@lemsip207]

Oasis were inspired by the Jam who in turn were inspired by the Who.

[@WilliamLithgowGuitars]

Great stuff. I was born in `69 and already started playing to heavy rock etc but the rise of Oasis and the BritPop Lad Culture had thousands of guys a bit younger than me picking up guitars. If you could already play a bit you became a sorta teacher and got many a free line! If anything it chilled out a lot of ex football casuals etc! GREAT TIMES!

[@callum5915]

Videos like these make me love Oasis even more! Thankyou for these videos James, they are top draw and are always spot on!

[@nbctheoffice]

This was very enlightening as someone who was born in the U.S. Great commentary. Cheers for being almost done with your Master’s!

[@neonatalpenguin]

I broadly agree with what you’ve said here, James. But I don’t think ‘ordinariness’ is necessarily a trait we should prize in our musicians. Ed Sheeran’s whole schtick is being an ordinary guy who looks and dresses like a member of his own audience, but his music is so utterly nondescript and generic, that many members of his audience could fill in for him with no real loss of quality. There were a lot of guitar bands in the late-2000s who wrote dull repetitive music about how crappy their 9-5 jobs were (I’m thinking of bands like The Ordinary Boys or The Fratellis). I’m not sure how worthwhile that kind of thing is. Some philosopher once said, “freedom is a very good horse to ride, but you have to ride it somewhere'. If the working classes ever do take back the charts, I want them to do something extraordinary with their ordinariness; to make music that shows us the world through the lens of their lives and interests (the way that The Smiths, Pulp, The Manics, The Kinks or The Arctic Monkeys did). I wonder if one of the reasons why ‘lad culture’ gets such a bum rap is because its loudest representatives tend to have very little to say beyond “I want to get drunk and get laid”. There’s so much emptiness in modern music. I want the British working classes to be an antidote to that, rather than a continuation of it.

[@jimmima121]

You've articulated something that's been on my mind for ages, better than I could have! I do think a lot of working class guitar music, particularly towards the mid-late 2000s, was caught up in exactly that. Very limited musicality with very little to say beyond "tales of every day British life to get pissed to". The Enemy spring to mind. You need more than that, hence Arctic Monkeys getting as big as they did. Or The Streets. You can paint that picture of working class life with originality, too. But there's still a mentality, I think from within working class circles (especially in terms of music) that broadening your sound, tastes, influences, style etc. is synonymous with 'forgetting where you came from'. Alex Turner wrote Tranquility Base. Not everyone's cup of tea, but the criticism thrown at it was it was just a lad from Sheffield who'd gotten swept up in his own ego trip and a band that had completely forgotten their roots. Why? Working class people can't like Stanley Kubrick movies, Serge Gainsbourg, dystopian novels etc. and draw influence from such things? Does it only resonate and stay true to its roots if it's "lads with guitars and tunes" and nothing beyond that? Strange 'stay in your lane' mentality. Almost conditioned to think that everything beyond what's familiar and what we've grown up around is frivolous or pretentious.

[@SonarFates]

Having grown up in the 90s I too am an Oasis fan, as you rightly say they connected to the working classes, however, I do feel it was of its time (and a bloody great time it was). If we're strictly talking about working classes then our escapism has continually evolved throughout the centuries- from running off to sea, to riding cafe racers, to rock n roll, to rave culture, to KZbin and Instagram. Personally I'm more interested in where that piss poor rebel spirit will manifest next, than to try and recreate what has been before, as the majority in this country we could do much better than that. Just my thoughts, keep up the good work with the channel pal, you're doing a cracking job.

[@sb6482]

the point about streaming is key really, for any alternative music. if you pay £10 a month for apple music or spotify then its a really difficult argument to say spend that money on one album purchase instead. because of the streaming distribution model, its hard to see an act going supernova now like oasis did

[@InGrindWeCrust2010]

Maybe spend it to see a local band or buy some merch, though?

[@goldroversix]

Great channel, i think some late 70s/80s bands represented the working classes too, The Specials, Madness, Squeeze, the TwoTone label, Ian Dury, Elvis Costello, UB40, they all made records with a protest or social commentary theme

[@michelecuoghicostantini7653]

Hi James, i want to thank you for the explanation, I'm from italy and i was lucky to lived here the same movement ( not with the same proportion but in Bologna there was a place were we listen brit pop music contemporary with uk ) , sure isn't the same in uk but believe me i breath the same air. I want to thank you also for the videos about the Oasi, the procees of creation and i'm convinced that we lived a great music era since the 60's with great bands and great music. Now I'm following the Pastels , Afflecs Palace and Vega Rally . Thank you James for all

[@sscp7788]

Absolutely spot on. I was born in 81 so was lucky enough that my teenage years had oasis as the soundtrack. Fkn immense memories. Hopefully bump in to you at Knebworth Mr Hargreaves 😉

[@1878Originals]

I think the impact of The La’s doesn’t get spoken about enough.

[@clouseaux]

You're so earnest James. Some day I'll buy you a pint. Especially true if you come to Seattle. All of the venues Oasis played here in the 90s are now gone, but that just adds to the legend. Mega.

[@waggytailsolo]

I was born in 1971, so am a similar age as the original Oasis line up and was 22 when I discovered the band, listening to the radio. The moment I heard them something changed. I still remember it clearly 28 years later. I knew they were different and special. A group of young men I could identify with and who I felt a connection with because we could have been sitting next to each other at school. I grew with the band, saw them live twice (1997 Be Here Now tour and in 2009, at one of their last gigs). In a nutshell, they made me feel a way about myself I had not felt before. They connected me to the 'Lad' that is inside all of us and brought out an energy that I still feel every time I listen to an Oasis song. They are simply the most important band of my life and I will be eternally grateful for their contribution to British music and culture. Live Forever.

[@gorillaice1229]

This is happening all over the world, but it is high time we the people take whats ours back. Love your channel! Keep up the good fight!

[@GuitarAtoZ1]

You are the man James, Lad! Cheers for keeping the vibe that made our youth what it was alive on here 🤘🏻

[@rb4877]

Thank you so much for the honesty of your youth. It resonates... We all remember it..

[@uwu-jv2jn]

First time I've heard of it and it's interesting seeing as a foreigner. I feel things that empower working class young men often get subverted today by certain people into having a bad rep. As a young man who feels lost in the world only except when meeting with my bros and playing the music we love, i feel this is a beautiful video, thanks for uploading this

[@jeremymr]

Excellent video, learned a lot. I live in the US and there are some brilliant lesser-known bands here too, Purling Hiss being one of them. Rock n roll is very much alive. Because of streaming paying artists almost nothing, it's more important than ever to buy music when we can afford it. Glad you mentioned that. Looking forward to hearing the EP!

[@chriswatts9019]

Great video, I grew up in Leeds, and I had the same experience. It was music about me for the first time. The fashion, the great nights out and the music. Always hated the term brit pop, seems a demeaning middle class term. 1995 was so special and I'm glad I was in the middle of it!

[@mitchellfuentes03]

You're a spokeperson! you made me feel a lad even when I'm not even British also I see you've come a long way! your whole story must be awesome

[@barrilitomusic]

As some that learnt English as a second language with a proper scours accent and now living in NYC, most Americans think is either Irish or Scottish accent. Some people think that to have an English accent is to speak like a southern/Londoner and that that rule applies to the whole of England.

[@dingelberryhandpump7834]

I stand and salute you sir. You spoke the words that all us northerners feel

[@lucaspinto4154]

I’m a brazilian fan but it’s interesting to hear about the cultural impact of Britpop at the time

[@myfrequencies1912]

Morrisey (a posh sounding southerner) had the same problem; "....hang the blessed DJ because the music that they constantly play, says nothing to me about my life...."

[@lemsip207]

It was Morrissey who spoke to me first. I wish the Smiths had written and made Panic years before they did. He described exactly what I felt about discos but I didnt realise there was a hidden message about Jimmy Saville in it until recently. Back then you had to listen to the radio all day to hear the odd rock song. Pop, soul and hip hop was pushed more. Or watch Top of the Pops and sit through the dirge just to see the Clash, the Fall or the Jam. The Old Grey Whistle Test was a more serious music programme that promoted albums but it was on too late. Morrissey is very much a Mancunian though.

[@goosy9209]

absolutely brilliant stuff james, you’re a star & you’re honestly speaking for the silenced! 🍻

[@WoodyGamesUK]

It doesn't feel strange even outside of the UK, because people who were early fans of Oasis in 1994, everywhere in the world, could recognise the very same quality that you saw, even without speaking English (or not enough to appreciate the differences in the language and accent). I'm from France, and when I first heard Supersonic on the radio, I was completely fascinated by the authenticity in the sound and the way Liam was singing. Then I saw the album cover, and I could identify with the way they looked, which I couldn't with other rock bands until then. I didn't know much about the working class in the UK, but this is where I felt I belonged (because I did, just in another country).

[@bassisacalling]

Thanks for this. You really highlighted how a small group controls the narrative and conversation. It's the same here in the States, of course.

[@dsmith3351]

Respect to you . Couldn't agree more ! Love your videos

[@backstreetangels-k3z]

Though my musical tastes lean more towards hard rock/heavy metal, we're on the same page James, especially with forming d.i.y. record labels. I consider you a leading Oasis expert, as I've watched a good few of your vids to try and understand their whole story. Yes, people have to walk the talk when it comes to saving rock music, the hour is late... If I can help/support, let me know.

[@Scranman247]

It is amazing how things changed. From a time when northern performers used to have to hide their accents, we emerged into a time where people like the lead singer of The Kooks would fake a northern accent in their music to seem authentic.

[@garethrobinson5603]

Stone Roses, Inspiral Carpets, Happy Mondays, The Charlatans, The Smiths, New Order - all came before Oasis and gave it the real deal

[@sandyc5822]

What about the Stone Roses in the early 90s? Before britpop and suede

[@aboutthemetal8783]

This is why NWOBHM did so well in the 80s most ( not all) heavy metal bands from the UK didn't come from London ,apart from maiden and a couple of others , loads came from the Midlands and the north , I'm glad I was old enough to see the NWOBHM and the rise of britpop , although i would say the stone roses started the lad culture.

[@lemsip207]

Happy Mondays too. They took rave music and mixed it with rock music.

[@matthewrider5906]

I remember the first time a major special was done on this English band making so much racket, (and headlines!) called Oasis, who'd completely conquered the UK, & who'd just went quadruple platinum, 4+ million albums sold, in the US, they had to subtitle the special after so many folks called in complaining that they made Ozzy Osbourne sound like a proper linguist! Hehe!

[@ivanivan4899]

James, outstanding and soul video, as usual. You help me to understand much more about Oasis.

[@Conorguill]

Would love to hear you talk about the Irish immigrant link to all this. Mind-blowing how much post-war ‘British’ music was by those from Irish immigrant communities not least Oasis & the Beatles!

[@MeatMedia]

Hey James. Would love to hear what you think of the guitar bands coming out of England right now. For example, Shame, Squid, Dry Cleaning, Black Midi, Black Country New Roads ect. As a 20 year old kid in Australia I'm looking at the music scene in England as if it's leaps and bounds ahead of the music on Australian radio. There's still some awesome music coming out of Australia but it's never on commercial radio and quickly being phased out of "alternative" radio stations. If you haven't, listen to the first DMAs record "hills end". Great Aussie band keeping the Britpop dream alive

[@BobbyTreacle]

What a brilliant Documentary / Video. Absolutely spot on about Lad Culture. Also about the music scene and charts today… Shareholders Music

[@DragonsEyeTours]

Very well said James. On a slightly different note, I live in Australia and will be seeing Liam Gallagher perform next July at one of the biggest music festivals in the Southern Hemisphere, Splendour in the Grass. He is headlining the whole festival. I have been saying to friends that his performance will introduce many young Australians to his and Oasis music and who no doubt will become fans of the greatest band since the Beatles.

[@TheRplatts]

Absolutely spot on! I’d love to meet up sometime for a beer and talk all things oasis, iv been meaning to go up to that shop in Lake District that oasis shop, am from Leeds my self so not far at all! We should go for a beer man and talk all things oasis haha mad fer it

[@GT380man]

Seriously, please would you do exactly that? You’d have a laugh, James would do a piece & those of us thousands of miles from our roots due to the global fraud that is COVID-19 would get just a bit of real England to recall fondly.

[@MrKedab]

18 y/o in '94 - dove right into Oasis & Britpop. Dad a mod in the 60's. Made him listen to my music, he approved, i was set. It'll never happen like that again. What a time to be a teenager.

[@marktranmer2759]

Absolutely spot on James, love All your videos and can really relate to this 👍

[@stevemacaulay6415]

Great stuff, James. I'm a Mancunian in Chicago and I need some help getting some Blues legends over to the UK. You wouldn't have some advice, would you?

[@JamesHargreavesGuitar]

A very big catapult?

[@phgkeets12]

Saw this earlier in year and coming back to it as it’s another great video of yours James. It’s funny watching BBC News in the morning sometimes it feels like a London bubble. London isn’t the UK and I’m a southerner! I think you hit the nail on the head about the appeal of Oasis they we’re just ordinary people :)

[@ustheserfs]

in fairness these brave few predated Noel or Liam. Pete Shelley, Ian Curtis, Johnny Marr, Billy Duffy, Ian Brown, Jarvis Cocker all spoke with a distinct northern flare. They all assumed the character, antics and general demeanor as though you'd encountered them on the streets and tell you exactly where to get off.

[@bartpitt2991]

Love the passion you have while speaking about those times, I unfortunately will never fully understand being born in 2000

[@ClayAsbury122]

Good stuff. Love the channel. I read somewhere that when first starting out Devo chose to tour the UK because the British didn’t know that being from Ohio wasn’t cool.

[@raddimusmcchoyber3362]

This music told me: "You, you little piece of nothing from an estate no one cares about in a town no one cares about, you can have a bit of it. Of what? Of life. Of what's out there. You have to fight for yourself, and for other people like you though. It's easy to remember to fight for yourself, make sure you remember the second part. No one's gonna do it for you. Better get on with it".

[@RafaelPachecoRJ]

Mate, you perfectly described for the current generation what was not documented before and at the beginning of the internet age. I'm from Brazil, a "lad of Rio de Janeiro", in a place seen around the world as a land of tourism, beach, carnival...But there was none of that for us poor people at the time. And I also had to walk around in shoes that were bigger than my feet, strange homemade haircuts, and few food at home. Life was simple, and the only fun for a poor boy was playing football in the street and being able to contemplate the view from the window of my house, to see some life out there, that's when I don't have to bend down to protect myself from the shots of the narcotic war.. hard time. Then I saw on TV some guys, who even from afar of my dreams at the window, they just looked familiar, and they didn't give a fuck to anything else. Showing that life could have a little joy. That I could be myself if I carry on without losing hope ... I understood few words of English back then, was just a teenager, but I saw myself represented for the first time... That was Oasis! And life was never the same for me! I never felt alone again! It sounds cliché, but Oasis put color in my life. Thank you for being able to put it all in one video, so we can never forget where we came from, and why we love it so much! Cheers from 🇧🇷

[@extsaojose]

Eu moro em Portugal mas um primo meu Brasileiro que me mostrou Oasis! Acho que a banda sempre foi mais famosa ai no Brasil que aqui em Portugal, o carinho é diferente

[@TheNoSuchThingPodcast]

Yeah, whenever there is a typical English rock star in an American movie they all have the middle class London accent. Thanks for helping me out my finger on it

[@GT380man]

That’s for this cultural reason. In the 1960s to mid-1990s, Brits could go to art college on a modest student grant & with no fees to pay, for a couple of years. Generally these art college students were the kids of the middle classes. Very many prog rock bands met at art college or university. Not stamping grounds for working class lads. Obviously there were working class bands, but they were massively out thrashed by numbers of bands by the posher boys. The Stone Roses, The Las & Oasis were proper working class lads. So what I’m saying is not to contradict James, but additionally to point out a financial/cultural reason why rock & pop tended to be the preserve of those with standard accents.

[@theselector4733]

Hey James at the end of the video you gave encouragement to young "lads" to go for it. Whatabout the lasses? I think girls should also be encouraged to follow their dreams as well.

[@LisaBarstowMusek]

Thank you! Have been reading all the comments ready to post the same. I was an American "lass" who wanted to play drums in the 1970s. Told No No No. Finally saved my nickels and bought a kit at age 15 in 1981. Did I become a rock & roll star? No, but I felt like one as I grew more proficient. At almost 60, I still love guitar music, love learning more about it, love Oasis ... from a Bowie, Elton John, Rolling Stones generation but growing up on the Beatles every album, thanks to much older SISTERS. Yes...girls rock, even grannies!

[@JPWHUTV]

Good on ya lad! I'm around the same age as you and, in my life being a Surrey boy born in a middle class area, in a working class family, with a dad from Sunderland. I never was the stereotype of the county or London when I ended up working in there. I'm a working class Mod and changed my outlook on life, or acquiesced to the norm because the norm was, and still is, very boring. Us in the football fan community have the same stereotype as we're not all shaven head bovva boy wannabees, living that media stereotype. Alright, yes Liam got involved with our supporter as that famous ferry fight was reported as, but I think that was more a football clash, than outright yobs the. media reported us as. Our family have very little money growing up so I couldn't see any of my favourite bands until I was earning. But that was more OCS than oasis as their tickets were much cheaper at tha point. We're, like you, hard working, caring, affectionate, honest people that enjoy an occasional tizer, as delboy put it, but don't live anyone else's life. I may be well spoken but that was down to my dad trying to get the London out of my voice as he was told to get the maccam out of his by the army before the beatles hit, but my voice is slowly coming back since his passing. Love ya work man! All your content is top notch and I'd love to jam with you some time. Live forever!

[@TheMancMod01]

As a kid growing up in Manchester during the late 70s and 80s we didn't have a pot to piss in back then. I loved being slap bang in the middle of it all in the 90s , it was somewhere we felt we belonged. The music, the people and the places were fantastic.

[@keithhorler8938]

What a great video, James. You summed that up brilliantly!

[@eddysandland58]

Oasis have Style, Substance n The Tunes! Also being "Normal" Lads was The Icing on The Cake! Cheers James 🍻

[@Tcoldsteel]

I had the same feeling about accents when I heard Billy Bragg singing in the early 80s

[@dsmith3351]

Loved hearing your opinions . Could be the way forward

[@mrshifter5007]

Good points made, but don't think for a minute that everyone that lives in London is middle class. I'm Born and bred in London , English working class. That's a minority group down here now. You've forgotten bands like The Jam and Sex pistols, maybe from the south east and London but working class. I'm Enjoying your videos , good content.

[@JamesHargreavesGuitar]

Definitely - the London working class are mega. None of this is aimed at them 👍👍

[@mrshifter5007]

@@JamesHargreavesGuitar I'm safe then 😁👌

[@jasonsoutthere7733]

I'm an American, 40-ish who adores all things British,,,music, cinema, tele,,. stuff that average Americans don't know about or even understand. I get it!!! Most American artists who sing about hopping trains, haven't actually done it because it's a great way to get ones leg cut off, or get thrown in jail!

[@SuperGrimupnorth]

Happy Mondays started 80/90's lad culture.. in 87 they were gettin told 'you need a look, a style!'.. it was still Duran Duran era 😳 but they didn't, that started the music casual look which turned into Brit pop later on.. but it was the Mondays who really started all that. #facts

[@mickytheo6956]

Don't know how a got here but massive respect fella loved this

[@mcfcfan1870]

As an irishman we're still waiting for something like this

[@shredder9536]

You have Fomtaines DC although they're college arty types

[@sinnerboy6009]

Y’all literally have the greatest guitarist of all time ✌️💚

[@lastp6905]

@@shredder9536 Fontaines aren’t working class, they’re all carefully styled with put on accents

[@shredder9536]

@@lastp6905 yes and none of them come from Dublin city

[@antwan.]

i can promise you, anyone I knew and especially the cool boys, had oasis haircuts and dressed up to the 9s in expensive mod clothes in the 90s - we were all in

[@kvrt]

Glad to see an analysis of this topic! Long time watcher of your channel! My first comment here

[@jimmima121]

I don't know fully because I don't have first hand experience of a Northern English Thatcher-era upbringing, but didn't people get that "band of the people that talked and dressed like us" from The Stone Roses and The La's before Oasis came along? Minus maybe some of the 'laddishness' that went with it?

[@GT380man]

I made a similar comment too. Yes. I don’t think James is excluding them. I agree with you though that his own case is augmented by including The Las & the Roses, as well as Oasis.

[@coolvideos8864]

Oasis were certainly the lads back in the 90's. I think we were both at the right age at the right time for Britpop. It was amazing and we will never (IMO) have anything like it again.

[@markwalch6065]

Love Oasis. Love Deff Leppard too and their regional accents are strong just like Oasis x

[@LegsON]

Look up "Oasis, lad culture and why it mattered". They weren't about politics, but they were counter-culture for UK, like The Beatles and Sex Pistols. Their image and attitude was very unusual and refreshing. UK's youth related to them much more than to anybody else.

[@Crinkle65]

Incredibly well said James.

[@rebeldogno1]

Keep goin James, you speak our language. I’m a little older and was so fooking lucky to have the charlatans, inspirals, the roses, the farm et al all about the time I was leaving school in 1988. Oasis just carried on the good work I reckon. I have NEVER subscribed to a streaming service and never ever will. I always thought how do these guys get fecking paid. So I buy my tunes through the awful portal that is iTunes, I buy vinyl and walk around even to this day still thinking I’m Tim Burgess or Ian Brown, the same attitude, the same cockiness and the same ideals that makes me a lad. Fuck em all bud. In recent years I’ve cut out tv completely for lots of reasons but one reason is clearly and definitely the way the media just doesn’t portray me and my life in this god awful planet we live on. My only regret is that I can only like this video once. Love it bud.

[@jesterr7133]

I'll never forget the moment I fell in love with Oasis. It was their first MTV awards. They had been presented up to that point as this squeaky clean new version of the Beatles, and then the entire band gets out of their limo with beers in hand and passing a joint. They didn't give a fuck. That's when I knew they were different. Their personalities as people and as a band are very unique, and that's what makes them interesting. There wasn't anyone like them at that time.

[@themichael3105]

Well said, well f*kin' said, mate. Cheers. We were there. And we're still there.

[@chrisjwrites]

I don’t know how I missed this when it was posted. This is a balanced, well presented and clearly reasoned piece. The first half, if not all of this, should be a mandatory learning resource for sociologists and historians imho. Keep up the great work James. #takebackthecharts BTW Loving the Flying Through The Noise EP. 🎸🥁🎤🎸

[@thepillarsofcreation9170]

They especially don't want any ordinary working class bands or music in the mainstream, that has any political opinion that questions the people that run our country. Our trio band The Pillars Of Creation are all from council estates in Cardiff, Pontypridd & Mountain Ash, just for the record.