TRACK: Shakermaker
ARTIST: Oasis
ALBUM: Definitely Maybe
YEAR: 1994
PERSONNEL: Liam Gallagher, Noel Gallagher, Bonehead Arthurs, Paul McGuigan, Tony McCarroll
Oasis’ first album is loud, brash, bold, and has a swagger of a band that’s old beyond their years. They (well, Noel), knew exactly what he wanted, and went through one producer, then re-recorded it, and it still wasn’t right. Finally, they turned to Owen Morris, who did what he could with the recordings and mixes.
The result? A loud, brash, and bold album with a swagger and purpose (gee, didn’t I say that before?). How did they get that? Basically, they played live without soundproofing, and then Noel overdubbed about a skidillion guitars over the top. The mixes still weren’t working (too much of a good thing), so Morris got the tapes, reduced the guitar overdubs to about a quadrillion, made some dynamic changes, and viola, a damn fine record.
“Shakermaker” was the second UK single in the album, and hit #11in the charts there. But it’s a deep cut for two reasons. One, it didn’t go Gold in the UK, and second it was overwhelmed by “Supersonic” and “Live Forever”, especially in the US of A.
The track is loud (of course), and the dynamics of it are pile-driving, like you’re being pummeled by the sound of the band. Liam, as is his want, sings in a half-bored half-shout, which absolutely works for this track. When Noel plays his solo, he sounds like 10 guitars playing the same notes, behind an army of guitars and basses.
But as you listen, you probably recognize the melody, especially if you were in 1994. Seems that Noel nicked the melody to “I’d Like to Teach the World to Sing”, a Coca-Cola commercial song that played every 5 minutes on televisions all across the world. It’s a fine UK tradition to blatantly nick big pieces of song, (check out “Start” by the Jam vs. “Taxman” by the Beatles…) But this was pretty damn blatant. Oasis was sued and ponied up a cool half-million, but by then they could afford it. And then, they started to drink Pepsi!
This and “Supersonic” are my favorite cuts from the album since they’re so in your face and loud and noisy and have a rock-and-roll attitude about them. Oasis did get too big for their britches, and the sibling fights really derailed them, but early on they were the real rock-and-roll deal – way better than the mopey post-grunge white guys who Veddered about how bad their life was. And yes, I’m team Oasis over Blur, for sure.
Here they are at Glastonbury in 1994. It’s not as loud as the studio version, mainly because there aren’t 40 Noel’s on guitar. Oh, and Liam sings the jingle near the end. Cheeky monkeys.