Oasis release live Belfast track for Supersonic anniversary
- Published
They played to 250,000 fans at Knebworth and sold out Maine Road twice, but 30 years ago Oasis rocked a much smaller stage in Northern Ireland.
The Manchester indie-rockers' debut single 'Supersonic' was released this week in 1994 and that song, recorded live at the Limelight in Belfast, has been re-released to celebrate the anniversary.
Rewind to September 1994, when Oasis' debut album 'Definitely Maybe' went to Number 1 in the UK Charts.
It was on that very same night, Sunday 4 September, that the band was making their Belfast debut.
As a celebration of the 30th anniversary of 'Supersonic,' not only have Oasis re-released the single on all streaming platforms, they have also released a rare live take of the single, captured on that night in The Limelight in Belfast back in 1994.
You can hear the full story of how this monumental night shaped up on The Stephen McCauley Show on BBC Sounds.
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Gigs were very different in the 1990s.
They were an undocumented snapshot in time.
A moment between you and the artist that when done right, lives forever.
In 1994, the foundations of the music landscape were shaking, as on the ashes on the American grunge movement a new guitar wave was rising, and all bets were on Oasis being the future rock-n-roll stars of 'Brit Pop'.
A few hours before the band took the stage in Belfast word came that their debut album 'Definitely Maybe' had gone straight into the UK album chart at Number 1.
Oasis guitarist Noel Gallagher remembers the night fondly.
"Limelight is now part of our heritage. There was a great buzz when the owner informed me we had hit the number one spot that night in '94.
"I'll always remember this place with affection. We had a party that night and the audience joined in. That was the start of our success story."
Brothers Liam and Noel Gallagher fronted Oasis
Gig goers remember guitarist Bonehead, with brothers Liam and Noel Gallagher, being amongst the crowd that night, signing autographs before the performance and talking to fans as they came in.
Liam even telling people to look out for the song 'Supersonic'. "It's deadly," he told them.
It was a night of anthems.
Tickets only £6.75
Anthems now of course, but as underground hits from the now number one debut album such as 'Supersonic', 'Live Forever' and 'Cigarettes and Alcohol' poured through the speakers in the small venue that night, rock and roll music changed forever.
David Neely was the booker and general manager for The Limelight in Belfast at that time and recalls that the doors opened at 19:00 for the 500 capacity venue - although thousands now claim to have been there - and that tickets were only £6.75.
"The Limelight show was the right venue, for the right band at the right time. The atmosphere was electric," he said.
For the hundreds who were there, this release provides a portal back to a certain specialness that gets lost seeing big bands in the vastness of stadiums.
For everyone else it was a Supersonic moment, recorded at a time when you could look into the whites of the eyes of the performers on stage.
It was you and them. No phones to block your view.
Despite it being an iconic night for both Belfast and Oasis, no one knew the gig was recorded that night, not even the audio engineer on the night.
However, this release does show at least some of it was recorded by the band, which split in 2009.