Underrated Oasis: The Most Overlooked Song From Each Album

If you ask either of the Gallagher brothers about their songwriting, chances are they won't give a long-winded explanation.

"I know I'm not the greatest lyricist ever, but I'm not the worst," Liam told GQ in 2019. "I find it hard to say what I really fuckin' mean."

Then there's his older brother Noel, the chief songwriter of Oasis during their time together and one of the most prolific writers of the Britpop era.

"Two things can happen: with an easy one, you tend to think, 'Oh, it can't be that good — it was much too easy.' There's no way it can be good," he told Music Radar in 2011. "And then on the other side of that, with the song that you have to rewrite and go over, you have to really believe in it. I know I have to reassure myself that a song is good, because it's just too easy to give up and say, 'Fuck it. I'll just write something else.'"

When one thinks of Oasis' hits, some obvious titles come to mind: "Wonderwall," "Supersonic," "Don't Look Back in Anger," etc. But there's a number of hidden gems buried within the band's seven studio albums. We're taking a look at the most overlooked song from each below.

Definitely Maybe: "Slide Away"

In the very early days of Oasis' rise to fame, Noel didn't own that many guitars. Around that time, he asked Johnny Marr, formerly of the Smiths, if he could borrow a back-up guitar. Marr did him one better and gifted Noel a 1960 sunburst Gibson Les Paul that he had bought from the Who's Pete Townshend and used on several Smiths recordings. "When I got that guitar," Noel later recalled to Gibson, "I swear 'Slide Away' seemed to write itself." It's a classic Oasis song, with a big chorus and a heavy rock 'n' roll base, but it often gets overlooked for bigger hits like "Supersonic." Oh, and it's also reportedly Paul McCartney's favorite Oasis song — is there a higher compliment than a Beatle's approval?

(What's the Story) Morning Glory?: "She's Electric"

Obviously, "Wonderwall" is the song that most people remember from 1995's (Whats the Story) Morning Glory? But several songs later there's "She's Electric," a springy number that features some adorable rhymes, falsetto bits from Liam and an ending that clearly borrows from the Beatles' "With a Little Help From My Friends." "It was the first song we wrote for the album," Noel told NME at the time. "It's like a Small Faces song or something by the Kinks."

Be Here Now: "Fade In-Out"

If you've ever wondered what it might sound like if Oasis wrote a Western-esque cowboy movie number, look no further than "Fade In-Out." It's not cheesy country, though, and actually sounds more like something that might appear on a Rolling Stones or Black Keys record — bluesy and dense. And believe it or not, that's Johnny Depp playing slide guitar on the track. Depp wasn't in the studio himself, but instead sent a cassette tape of his part to be put on the finished Be Here Now song

Standing on the Shoulder of Giants: "Where Did It All Go Wrong?"

Here's an adept lead vocal performance from Noel. "Do you keep the receipts for the friends that you buy?" he asks in "Where Did It All Go Wrong?" "And ain't it bittersweet you were only just getting by." Noel would later tell Uncut that this was one of "the most factually correct [songs] on the record because [it's] about certain real people who I know, but who, obviously, remain nameless." Hindsight, the message appears to be, is often a painful lens to look through.

Heathen Chemistry: "She Is Love"

One usually associates Oasis with a pretty sturdy, straight-forward rock sound. So when there comes a song like "She Is Love," bright and acoustic-guitar driven, it's a refreshing moment. Noel penned the song about his then-girlfriend, Sara MacDonald, a love note he somehow got together in all of about 10 minutes. "In the past I've definitely shied away from using the word 'love' in songs," he said in 2002, "but I'm an older gentleman now — I'm 35 — so I really couldn't give a toss if people think it's soppy. That song's real, and it's how I feel about her."

Don't Believe the Truth: "Turn Up the Sun"

After several years of Noel serving as Oasis' primary songwriter, contributions from the other perfectly apt members began appearing on albums more consistently. In fact, bassist Andy Bell's colossal "Turn Up the Sun" was the opening track to 2005's Don't Believe the Truth. "The songs I wrote back in Oasis...I'm very proud of them," Bell said in a 2023 interview, "and [Liam] gave them everything vocally, he delivered them with total commitment every time, it was amazing. I think that 'Turn Up The Sun' was the best thing I wrote for Oasis..."

Dig Out Your Soul: "I'm Outta Time"

"Here's a song / It reminds me of when we were young / Looking back at all the things we've done / You gotta keep on keeping on." This is an awfully fitting opening few lines for a song Liam penned for Oasis' very last album, 2008's Dig Out Your Soul. "I'm Outta Time" samples one of the very last interviews John Lennon gave before his death in 1980, and serves as a beautiful separation between the first and second half of the album, with heavier material on either side. "I like Liam's songs, I wasn't surprised [at 'I'm Outta Time''s quality]," Noel told Music Radar in 2008. "He's expected to write great songs, he's in Oasis."