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The most helpful favourable review
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26 of 28 people found the following review helpful:
Fitting title
With three albums under their belt, two of them generation-definers but the third a flabby ego-booster, it didn't seem like Oasis were going anywhere fast. Standing On The Shoulder Of Giants was a later indication of just that, but before that came about they took the time to release this gem. Probably the most important fact is that most of this stuff is pre-Be Here...
Published on 12 Nov 2002 by Gaz
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1 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
The Real Oasis
Although not as good as their first two albums this is still a worthy album in its own right despite being a mere collection of b-sides. Its should be a well known fact that with virtually every oasis single released there's been a better song released with it. So you get oasis at their rawest (Headshrinker, Fade Away) and most heartfelt (Half The World Away, Talk...
Published on 24 Mar 2002
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26 of 28 people found the following review helpful:
Fitting title, 12 Nov 2002
With three albums under their belt, two of them generation-definers but the third a flabby ego-booster, it didn't seem like Oasis were going anywhere fast. Standing On The Shoulder Of Giants was a later indication of just that, but before that came about they took the time to release this gem.Probably the most important fact is that most of this stuff is pre-Be Here Now, pre superstardom. Acquiese was written on a train, (It's Good) To Be Free during a bad tour. There's a raw edge to this, partially present in Definitely Maybe and absolutely absent in Be Here Now. It's what's good about the Gallaghers in the first place, sadly an essense now lost. They would do well to rediscover it, and it's surprising that, after The Masterplan, they still didn't. But that's the future. As it is, the album has some of Oasis' best songs. Ever. Acquiese is heroic to put it simply - a Noel/Liam duet, and all the more memorable for it. Talk Tonight is an acoustic Oasis legend, and gems like Half The World Away are as yet unbearably unreleased (though it made it as the themetune for The Royle Family). The title track is a major curiosity. Packing more power than Wonderwall ever could, it's a deep, string-laden Whatever of a song, yet with Noel's best lyrics (trust him to put them in a B-Side) and a fantastic vocal. Frankly it's a mystery to the world why on earth he kept this masterpiece a B-Side. Still, stuff like Underneath the Sky and Going Nowhere (fantastic lyrics and a great Baccarac tune, there) are no less sophisticated. Fade Away and Headshrinker are really, really raw Oasis. Fast, hummable, fantastic. The Swamp Song may only be a warmup song, but it feels like an essense rather than a song - a masterful wallop of a tune, stomping along from start to finish. We could perhaps do without the unnecessary influence reminder that is the I Am The Walrus cover... yes, we KNOW you love the beatles, but how about you carve out your own name for a change rather than plugging them... but all is made well again with decent tunes Listen Up and Rockin' Chair. (It's Good) To Be Free is one of the less happy moments of the album, but it's still an accomplished one. Stay Young is loathed by the band, but poppy or not it's well written and cheerful... and quite irresistable: "Hey, stay young and invincible." This is distilled Oasis, the band at their truest and best. No egos have tainted it, no Wonderwalls have gotten too much in the way. It sounds like a bunch of guys making music, with or without the money. And it's times like that I wish Live Forever and Wonderwall had never occured - maybe then we'd get a career of Masterplan albums. Alas that wasn't to be, and they continued on with their "we're great, you're not" attitude to everything. Any self respecting fan should have this, as it will pretty much explain what it is you see in the band. Easily on a par with Definitely Maybe, this could well be the best they've done.
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21 of 23 people found the following review helpful:
Truly some of Oasis' best ever work, 15 Nov 2002
While Oasis have often thrilled the world with their dynamic original album tracks, this collection of B-sides may stand the test of time better than even their first two albums.
It's been said a million times that Oasis throw away tracks that other bands could make a career from, and with this album it's easy to see why people believe it.
From the blustering rock of 'Fade Away' and 'Stay Young' to perennial acoustic favourites 'Talk Tonight,' 'Half the World Away' and the divine 'Masterplan' it's obvious that this is a band - and Noel in particular - are phenomenal.
The range of the selected 14 tunes is massive, as is the quality, with almost any track being good enough to sit on an album and, in many cases, far superior to tracks that have appeared on their five current studio releases.
Criminally, Round Are Way was passed over and ideally, the CD would also have D'Yer Wanna Be A Spaceman, Heroes, Cum On Feel the Noize and Step Out at the expense of the boring Swamp Song, overlong Listen Up, Headshrinker and lyrically weak Rockin' Chair.
However, the bonus is that Noel made sure one of his oldest songs 'Going Nowhere on a Train' made the final order and this is as good as anything Oasis will ever do. If you've never heard the sweeping orchestral number with Noel on lead vocals, it's worth picking this album up for that reason alone.
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
Best Oasis album yet!, 25 Feb 2001
By A Customer
If you have heard Definitely Maybe, you will know what Oasis are capable of. This album is, in my opinion, better than Definitely Maybe. Aquiesce is one of the best first tracks of any album, except for Smells Like Teen Spirit. The last track, Masterplan, is the best Oasis song ever and, in my opinion, one of the best songs ever written. The chord sequences are fantastic, the choice of instruments is sublime. Noel's voice is much better suited to this style of music, which is why he sings it. This is the best Noel's voice gets except for Step Out on the Familiar to Millions CD. The album as a whole just fits together nicely to form one of the best albums on the market today. Buy it and you won't be disappointed.
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11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:
A No-nonsense Album, 29 May 2004
Before i start, im sure if you buy this album you will not forget it. So Buy it. I call it a no nonsense album because there are songs like Acquiese, Headshrinker, Stay Young, Going nowhere and of course the Masterplan itself. Its quite simply a huge album. Full of character. Who wouldnt guess these are B-sides that Noel wrote to go with a 'better' song from an album. But here we have a complilation of instant B-side classics. Here's a song-by-song: Acquiesce - An all time 'Shoulda bin an A-side'. Hints of Whats the story at the start, but then we get asong that you cant forget! Brilliant. Overall - 10/10. Underneath the Sky - Lets be fair, a classic B-side that is only deserved of that. Nothing special, none the less very catchy and you wont skip it. But an album filler. Actually, i might be alone in these thoughts, as Noel himself see's this one as one of his favourites. Overall - 7/10. Talk Tonight - Awesome. An Oasis accoustic classic. Noel sings this himself and does it brilliantly. There's nothing much to say about this song, you have to hear it. Overall - 10/10 Going Nowhere - Oasis's oldest track, written before they were signed about what they were going to do when the band was loaded. 'Im gonna get me a motor car maybe a jaguar maybe a plane or a day of fame'. Again Noels the singer (which i think has better vocals than his brother) and again we get a great song. Hear the brass and horn players in the background leading iint to the chorus. Heroic someone quoted. Overall - 10/10 Fade Away - elbowed off Definately Maybe by slide away. And arent we thankful. Poor, and a real racket. Shame as it has excellent lyrics 'while were living the dreams we have as children fade away' But maybe would have been better without the 5th guitar sound you hear. Overall - 6/10 Swamp Song - No lyrics to this, doesnt need it. Recorded live, Make your own mind up. Overall 7/10 I am the Walrus - Given the oasis sound. Critised by many simply because its an Beatles classic. But i love it. Even better when you know that Noel was drunk when recorded. Overall 8/10 Listen Up - Its a shame that this song is two minutes too long. Has a brilliant chorus but you have to wait to long to hear it. Tiresome but a worthy B-side track for the album. Overall - 7/10 Rocking Chair - Admittedly, its the only track i skip when i listen to the Masterplan. But i dont know why. It kind of sets it up by it fading in as it has nothing to the song. Poor lyrics and a let down, one of very few. poorly sag aswell by Liam. Overall - 6/10 Half the World Away - Sound familiar? From the Royal Family opening tune. Paul Wellers favourite Oasis tune. A solid tune with nothing special to make it a classic, but every one loves it. Overall - 8/10 (its good) To be free - hmmm Overall - 6/10 Stay Young - Ah, here we are. My favourite Oasis track and the best feel good song of all time. I was disgusted to hear that it was booted of the Be Here Now Album for 'Ihope i think i know', as this is 4 times better. Hear it and you'll know what i mean. Brilliant song along. Noel doesnt like this tune, but dont let the put you off, its huge. Brilliant. If it was to be released now it would be the Anthem of the year. Overall - 10/10 HeadShrinker - Liams finest Vocal display. Oh the freedom of a B-side. Takes a while to grow on you but then you'll love it. Roaring guitar. Heavy but controlled well. Overall - 9/10 The Materplan - Best song of all time? Nearly, behind Live forever and Stay Young. Noels favourite track he's ever made. I know why. Its got so many layers. 'No wonder god Loves them' this is for everyone. Id ont care if you are a oasis fan or Spice girl fan. This is a quality tune. Liam wishes he sung it, im glad he didnt. Has to be heared to be believed. Buy this ablum for this song alone. Overall - 11/10
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6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
Pure Oasis, 30 Oct 2004
I'm more of a fan of the early Oasis stuff, and was looking forward to hearing some older songs that I hadn't heard before, and B-sides that I only had on the singles. With most other bands, an album like this would probably be a disappointment made up entirely of filler material; but with Oasis you know it's going to be good. And it is.
Most of these songs would definitely stand up as singles in their own right. They've got all the energy of some of the band's best stuff. It's difficult to explain, but there's a buzz you get listening to Definitely Maybe and Morning Glory that they seemed to lose later on - that's the ambience you get with this album. It's very real, edgy, guitar-based; with Liam's inimitable vocals and Noel's cutting solos. This is great, great music, and you need it in your life.
Also worth a mention are the sleeve notes with lyrics and loads of info on each song. I hate bands who fill the sleeve with photos of themselves and nothing else...
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5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
No other band has B sides this good, 4 Nov 2006
When you here what Oasis left off you really start to appreciate their earlier work. Every song on this album could not only be an album track but an A side as well. Unless your a fan most of these songs will be unknown to you. This is prehaps the biggest surprise in Oasis' catalog. Indeed some of the bands best work is here. It opens terrifically with Aquiesce and the closer is debatably Noels finest work. There are however a few slip ups. the cover of I Am The Walrus is quite poor, and I stand by my belief that no one should ever attempt a Beatles cover, its never going to be good enough. The Swamp Song is a nice instrumental but a little over done and It's Good To Be Free just seems a bit plain. Aside from this though this is a worth while investment. If your a fan you souldn't be without it, if your not, you never know. It may just surprise you.
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5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
Still mad for it, 27 Feb 2006
Few would argue that the most essential Oasis albums are the first two, Definitely Maybe from August 1994 and (What's The Story) Morning Glory from October 1995, when they were young and mad for it, and Noel Gallagher had a pocket book seemingly stuffed to capacity with classic songs. So prolific was he that the singles from that brief period contained a further 20 new songs on the B-sides most of which were the equal of those on the albums, some arguably superior.With the exception of their debut single, Supersonic, none of these had been released in America, hence the idea of compiling the best of the B-sides onto an album for their benefit. The track listing was apparently chosen by fans on the Internet with some influence from Noel Gallagher, and two of his justly favourite compositions, Underneath The Sky and The Masterplan, make it onto the album alongside obvious musts like Acquiesce and Fade Away. All date from 1994 and 1995 apart from two 1997 recordings that appear on singles extracted from Be Here Now. The biggest omission is the non-album single Whatever, perhaps excluded on the grounds that it was not a B-side. Step Out (the B-side of Don't Look Back In Anger), removed from Morning Glory for legal reasons due to its similarity to Stevie Wonder's Uptight, misses out again, as does the anthemic Round Are Way, and the Slade cover Cum On Feel The Noize. However, rockers like Headshrinker and the Bacharach-inspired Going Nowhere easily earn their places in the company of the likes of the acoustic ballad Talk Tonight and the more recent (though written in 1990) Going Nowhere. Completists should note that the live I Am The Walrus, recorded at a soundcheck in Gleneagles, fades at 6.24, whereas on the Cigarettes And Alcohol EP it is complete at 8.14. Listen Up has been shorn of 18 seconds from its guitar solo, and Half A World Away, now known to the nation as the theme of The Royle Family, inexplicably fades out just a couple of seconds short of its natural end as heard on the Whatever EP. However, on the strength of these supposedly second division songs, perhaps there are actually three essential Oasis albums
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
Blistering B-Sides!, 17 April 2007
This is the album that could/should have been Oasis' third. It would have been a seminal achievement if this collection had been released as a normal album and not as a B-side compilation as it is presented here. Its not quite on par with "Definitely Maybe" or "(What's The Story) Morning Glory" but it does show Noel Gallagher for the fantastic songwriter he is. Aside from the messy "Swamp Song" and equally distorted live take on "I Am The Walrus", the songs are top-notch (not to say that the aforementioned tracks are bad...they are just not as good as one expects from Oasis). The opener "Acquiesce" is a stomping rocker, "Underneath The Sky" is a wonderful experimental piece, reminiscing of The Jam's work on "Sound Affects" while "Talk Tonight" is an acoustic highlight. It is Noel's song writing laid down in its most vulnerable form, only him and his guitar, and the result is nothing short of beautiful. "Going Nowhere" is a horn drenched sing-along, while "Fade Away" and "Listen Up" are another couple of good rockers. "Rocking Chair" is a slower electric guitar tune and "Half The World Away" is another fantastic acoustic track that will be known by most Brits as the theme tune to "The Royal Family". There then comes a trilogy of good rockers; "(It's Good) To Be Free", "Stay Young" and the best rocker on the album "Headshrinker". If the album ended here you would be pleased with the content, satisfied that a collection of B-Sides could be this good...but you still haven't heard the epic title track. "The Masterplan" has been sited by Noel as his best song, and I would be inclined to agree with him. It's positively spellbinding. But don't take my word for it, buy the album and see, it's worth the money just to hear this song.
In short; Oasis fans should buy, rock fans should buy, music fans should buy.
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4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
Masterplan is Oasis' best work since definately maybe, 19 Nov 2000
By A Customer
Never have a band had such a brilliant selection of B-sides. 'Talk Tonight' is, in my opinion, the greatest Oasis song ever written. It's slow tender vocals accompanied by excellent use of an acoustic guitar makes it great to listen to. 'Stay Young' has an upbeat, poppy tune with great vocals and 'The Masterplan' shows Noel's amazing songwriting ability. 'Acquiesce' contains possibly the best vocals ever included on an Oasis song, with Noel and Liam on top form. The only fault I can find with the album is that they haven't included other great B-sides such as 'Step Out' and 'D'yer wanna be a spaceman'. Brilliant!!!!!
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5 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
The Album that should've been 'Be here now', 25 Jul 2006
I'm not taking the mick outta' Be here now, its a good album, but it is amazing how the biggest album of all time, can be beaten by some B-sides, but that is the case.
Ratings.
1.Acquiesce. 5/5
2.Underneath the sky. 4/5
3.Talk Tonight. 4/5
4.Going Nowhere. 4.5/5
5.Fade Away. 4.5/5
6.Swamp Song. 2/5
7.I am the walrus. 3/5
8.Listen Up. 4/5
9,Half the world away. 5/5
10.Good to be Free. 4/5
11.Rockin' Chair. 4.5/5
12.Stay Young. 4.5/5
13.Headshrinker. 5/5
14.Masterplan. 5/5
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