Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds [+Digital Booklet]

Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds | Format: MP3 Music

Product Details

• Original Release Date: November 8, 2011
• Release Date: November 8, 2011
• Label: Mercury Records
• Copyright: (C) 2011 Sour Mash Records Ltd. Under Exclusive License in the United States to The Island Def Jam Music Group
• Record Company Required Metadata: Music file metadata contains unique purchase identifier. Learn more.
• Total Length: 42:29
• Genres:
  • Alternative Rock
• ASIN: B005TD4GTO
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (56 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #11,559 Paid in MP3 Albums (See Top 100 Paid in MP3 Albums)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

54 of 60 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Don't Look Back... October 20, 2011

By William Kennedy

Format:Audio CD|Amazon Verified Purchase

The much publicized break up of Oasis and subsequent fueding over the last several months have done nothing to diminish the place of the band in the hearts and minds of legions of fans. The only question was: who will make music first, and whose will be better? Was Noel really the brains behind Oasis? Was Liam just the singer of his brother's words and melodies?

Liam and the rest of the boys from Oasis were the first out of the gate with their new band Beady Eye, and I think the album "Different Gear, Still Speeding" is a fantastic offering. Full of classic rock tunes and swagger. But, it is missing something, and that something is found on "Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds."

Noel has made it clear that he is a songwriter and does not want to be viewed as a guitar player or vocalist. That said, the songs are this album's strentgh. In fact, the guitar playing is beautifully understated which gives room for piano and strings.

The songs are what make this album special. The instantly recognizable melodies, song structures, and that inexplicable good feeling that comes from listening to a Noel penned tune. A good portion of this album is classic, and by that I mean no one else working in music today can write a song that feels timeless. All of Oasis' records, including the few that were sub-par, have these classic songs on them. Noel truly is the Paul McCartney of his generation.

Now, the bad news. This album is missing something vital, and that is the energy and aggression of Liam's vocals. Don't get me wrong, Noel is a competent singer, but several of these tracks beg for the younger brother's voice.

Secondly, the music is more subdued than I would have liked. It feels as though Noel knows he is not in a rock and roll band anymore and has put together a collection of mid-tempo tracks with not much to get your heart going. I'm not saying that it isn't energetic, it's just a different kind of energy.

Basically my conclusion is this: Noel is an amazing songwriter. Liam is an amazing singer. Gem, Andy, and Chris are amazing musicians. Together they were, in my opinion, one of the greatest bands of all time. Now that they've split it has become obvious what each of them brought to the collective.

I'm thankful to have albums from each side, but it only serves as reminder, a nagging thought at the back of my brain that wonders what they could have made together.

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars stunned--Noel sounds reinvigorated on this post-Oasis debut January 9, 2012

By Dave

Format:Audio CD

I was a huge Oasis fan from the get-go. The first time I heard "Live Forever" back in '94 or '95, I was not only hooked on that particular tune, but I felt an almost absurd level of excitement that Oasis would 'change the world', so to speak, and I could hardly wait to get my hands on the "Definitely Maybe" CD. Although I expected it would be great, "Definitely Maybe" took that a few steps further--it proved to be a monumental album that had a profound affect on me at that tender age. Oasis sounded like a sheer force of nature, and for all their admitted musical 'thievery', they still managed to sound completely fresh and distinctive with their blend of surging hard rock, psychedelia, and insanely catchy pop-rock hooks.

Over the course of their next few albums, along with their slew of fantastic non-album b-sides for which they became somewhat notorious for over time, Oasis explored different variations on their trademark epic sound, by and large to brilliant effect.

But more than that, Noel Gallagher continually revealed a penchant for not just purely acoustic driven numbers such as "Sad Song", "It's Better People", and "Angel Child", but also a relatively stripped-down balladic style where the songs had a distinct blend of melancholy and introspection, a style exemplified on songs such as "Going Nowhere" and "One Way Road". Perhaps tellingly, the official versions of all of these aforementioned songs feature Noel himself on lead vocals as opposed to his brother Liam who was always the 'main' lead vocalist for Oasis.

For me, 2000's "Standing on the Shoulder of Giants" is the last great Oasis album. In retrospect, it's sort of transition piece, as original members Paul Arthurs and Paul McGuigan left the group in 1999 and didn't play on the album, but Gem Archer and Andy Bell didn't come on board until after the recording was completed, if I understand correctly. Nonetheless, terrific Noel songs such as "Go Let It Out", "Gas Panic!", and "Roll It Over", plus Liam's deceptively charming songwriting debut "Little James", all seemed to indicate that the Oasis tank was far from empty.

However, when the whole 'second phase' of Oasis kicked in with 2002's "Heathen Chemistry", with Gem Archer and Andy Bell now fully integrated band members who even contributing some of the songwriting, it was the first real red flag that the magical Oasis formula was wearing thin. Most of the songs, although reassuringly Oasis-like initially, were starting to sound like second rate afterthoughts and leftovers, and in light of earlier triumphs, ultimately redundant and forgettable. It was probably in part due to the major shift in personnel that had occurred in the band that they began to sound slightly more polished, but that just made it feel even more as though one was listening to an Oasis sound-alike band. The fact that two of the songs, "Little By Little" and "Better Man", appeared on the album in weaker versions opposed to the better versions which had surfaced on the Internet prior the album's release, just added insult to injury and further gave the feeling that the band was suddenly losing it. Despite "Little James" and "Songbird", the increased prominence of Liam as a songwriter didn't seem to help much in the long term. In hindsight, it's almost as though, deep down, Noel knew his songwriting had dried up and that there was little to lose by letting other band members get their songs in. 2005's "Don't Believe The Truth" and 2008's almost maddeningly-mediocre "Dig Out Your Soul" proved that continuing to follow this band's music was a sadly unrewarding experience, basically just a pale reflection of past glories at best. The band who once seemed able to do little wrong musically now sounded like they were floundering to remain relevant. I was almost completely burnt out on them as far as their new output was concerned--it had gotten to feel like there just wasn't any point anymore.

I feel all of that preface is important. The abudance of extraordinary music that Oasis made shouldn't be underestimated, but the group really did become a shadow of its former self musically for essentially the entire '00s ("Standing On the Shoulder of Giants" was actually recorded in 1999). In other words, it really had been a long while since I've been excited about Oasis/Noel Gallagher as a currently active entity. I generally try to avoid sounding all hyped up and claiming a record to be a big 'comeback', but with "Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds", it's undeniable and truly justified--I didn't think Noel would have anything like this up his sleeve at this point. After listening, it's easy to suspect that maybe Noel really HAD been fed up with Oasis for quite a while, but considering that many, if not most, of these songs were actually written BEFORE the Oasis split, it makes the whole situation all the more curious. But this record seems to make it clear that there was a considerable amount of pressure going on with the last few Oasis records to try and make 'Oasis-sounding product', whereas with this record, Noel is just letting his muse take him where it will, and as a result, his brilliance has re-emerged.

Naturally, my expectations were initially low, and I just half-heartedly began listening to some of the tracks, figuring it would be more 'Oasis lite'. But nearly every song here highlights Noel's ability to create songs with a profound, all-encompassing feel that grab you instantly while maintaining their infectiousness upon repeated listens. Noel's vocals are almost uniformly breathtaking--he definitely underrates himself as a vocalist, and apart from maybe one or two songs, I didn't miss Liam's voice for a second. And I'm not joking about the infectiousness of the tunes--song after song is going to have you craving another listen.

The opening "Everybody's On The Run" instantly gives the impression that this is going to be a lot more than just more scrapings from the bottom of the Oasis barrel. The utter absence of lead guitar, mixed with the gorgeous orchestration and faint traces of choir, present a subtle but fascinating departure from Oasis' classic anthemic sound, the kind of thing that one might call 'growth' or 'maturity' as an artist, but in the best sense of the word. It preserves the suitably epic, albeit not overblown, feel that Oasis proved masters of time and time again, the kind of thing that cuts straight to the bone. Noel's impassioned, echo-slathered vocals simply soar, the minute-plus intro sets the scene marvelously, and altogether, this one of the best tracks he's ever recorded.

I'm actually surprised at how much Gallagher has to say lyrically here--it would be easy to assume that the lyrics, which even Gallagher himself tends to point out as being a weakness for him, would all be throwaways, but they aren't. You sometimes hear about how pop music is supposed to capture the 'tenor of the times', and although I can't speak definitely about how much the wealthy Noel really worries about the state of the world, this record seems to have been dropped at the perfect time--it feels strikingly relevant and in tune with the widespread concern and uncertainty going on these days. I already mentioned "Everybody's On The Run", a truly BELIEVABLE inspirational number, the kind of thing U2 would try to do but would only sound overblown in their hands. "Soldier Boys and Jesus Freaks", with it's wonderfully Kinks-y "Autumn Almanac"-style rhythm, is an intriguing, sharply-etched commentary of a highly religious family whose son dies at war. "Stranded On The Wrong Beach" seamlessly combines somewhat gentle and yearning verses with a defiant and totally infectious chorus. And even if the lyrics to "Dream On" are 'nonsense', his sly wordplay is still incredibly entertaining.

"If I Had A Gun..." is definitely reminiscent of earlier work, as you'll instantly think, "This is SO Noel-sounding" within the first ten seconds, but it's not a carbon copy by any means--the lyrics are beautifully-crafted--powerful and affectionate but not at all sappy--and along with the brilliantly-placed wordless vocals and subtle musical transitions, this is another absolutely terrific song.

Noel also scores with the uptempo "AKA...What A Life!", with its heavy drums, pounding piano, a frenetic guitar solo, an ominous one-chord-style groove, and a great melody.

At times the album becomes slightly generic-sounding, as on "AKA...Broken Arrow", but even here, the album is still memorably tuneful and remarkably enjoyable, with this particular tune being lifted by crisp acoustic guitar layers, tasty percussion, and bass work that really fills out the sound.

The deluxe edition includes two extra songs added on at the end, including the highly haunting "Let The Lord Shine A Light On Me", which has a "Dark Side Of The Moon"-era Pink Floyd quality about it--Noel's voice is actually a bit rough here and frustratingly buried in the mix, which perhaps explains its 'bonus track' status, but it's still highly worthwhile.

But the main album portion ends with the song that Noel said was intended as the album-closer from the get-go, and understandably so. "Stop The Clocks" has been floating around the Internet in various versions for probably close to 10 years, and it finally gets a proper version here, and Noel has simply nailed it. I suppose it's fair to say that it was worth the wait, because it would have been a shame had it been saddled on one of the last few Oasis records in an inferior version. Noel's vocals are, once again, exquisite, and one could hardly ask for a more fitting album-closer. This is once again one of the absolute best tracks Noel has ever done. Read more ›

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Noel's Record Machine November 7, 2011

By Anaximander

Format:Audio CD

For Americans who have not been paying attention to Noel Gallagher-related music (Oasis) since the heyday of the 1990s, now is a great time to listen again. With this album, Noel Gallagher has delivered a heartfelt, well-produced pop-rock album, packed with great melodies and interesting music. Most of the professional reviews of Noel Gallagher's first solo album spend too much time writing about the interesting backstory (and the whole Liam vs. Noel thing), which I find a bit unfortunate as it overshadows the great music here.

There's a variety of quality songs here, each reflecting Noel's melodic gifts. A few of the songs go for the epic feel of classic Oasis tunes [Everybody's on the Run,(I Wanna Live in a Dream in My) Record Machine and Stop the Clocks], except with strings and choir instead of electric guitar. On paper that sounds pretty silly, but it actually works, once you get used to it. A few other songs have an interesting Kinks influence [The Death of You and Me, Dream On, Soldier Boys and Jesus Freaks]. There's even a good ballad, If I Had a Gun, and a good quasi-dance tune, AKA What a Life! The music generally sounds something like a cross between The Importance of Being Idle, Falling Down and Part of the Queue from the last couple of Oasis albums. I am not a big fan of horns, but the modest use of them on this album works nicely.

Noel's voice sounds great through-out. I've always been partial to singers who actually write their own lyrics as they can often give the songs emotion and meaning that a more technically proficient singer might miss. The tone of the album is generally uplifting with a large dose of melancholy, reflecting Noel's vocal and lyrical style. The lyrics, while sometimes not Noel's strongest point, are generally good here. Even when the words are somewhat silly (as on Dream On), Noel's delivery, along with the music, make that silliness fun, not cringe-inducing.

Noel has even managed to leave a few of the more interesting songs off of the album - check out Let the Lord Shine a Light on Me, A Simple Game of Genius and Alone on the Rope on YouTube or elsewhere (such as the Deluxe version or Itunes version of the album). In particular, Alone on the Rope is a classic that should be on the album somewhere.

Some may not be satisfied with this album because it does not "rock" or they might miss Liam's voice. True, there are only two guitar solos on the album, and the ending of Stop of the Clocks is about the only time the band cuts loose. And while I like the production, I still enjoy the more stripped down demo version of Record Machine (again check Youtube) with its great baseline and more raw guitar solo. Still, this album is the most consistent set of Gallagher-penned tunes since Oasis' commercial peak, What's the Story (Morning Glory), though it does not rise to the heights of that album.