PRS Music, an organisation which collects royalties for songwriters, has released figures showing Oasis have received more airplay over the past 14 years than their perennial Britpop rivals Blur. When both bands air plays are combined, Oasis hits ‘Wonderwall‘ and ‘Roll With It‘ proved the most popular, at 68% and 12% respectively, with Blur’s ‘Country House‘ next up with 10%.
With a reformed Blur headlining Glastonbury and their own Hyde Park shows to great acclaim, and Oasis’ biggest ever UK stadium tour about to culminate with three sell-out nights at Wembley, it seems the rivalry between the bands which became known as ‘The Battle Of Britpop‘ still generates many headlines and column inches 14 years after it first reared it’s head. So why do both bands still find themselves in constant competition so long after hostilities reached a peak in the summer of 1995? Live4ever takes a look at the history of the rivalry, and why it continues to be the cause of such fascination.
In 1994 Blur led a host of new British bands who were writing music inspired by their homeland, giving a voice to a generation of British music fans who had seen American music and culture becoming more prevalent after the emergence of Nirvana a few years earlier. After an un-distinguised start to their career, Blur’s 1993 release ‘Modern Life Is Rubbish’ began the change in direction for the band, but it was 1994’s ‘Parklife’ which catapulted Blur to the top of the music tree in Britain. Hits such as ‘Girls & Boys’ and ‘Parklife’ encapsulated 1990s Britain, and the album went quadruple platinum in the UK. In early 1995 they won the Brit Award for Best Album, while ‘Parklife’ won Best Single. Blur were the undoubtedly the biggest band in Britain, and at the forefront of a music scene which had become widely known as ‘Britpop’.
A week after the release of Blur’s single ‘Parklife’, Oasis finally put out their hotly anticipated debut album, ‘Definitely Maybe’. After enjoying increasing success with early singles ‘Supersonic’, ‘Shakermaker’ and ‘Live Forever’, the album cemented Oasis as the hottest new band in Britain, becoming the fastest selling debut album in history at the time. The album fit neatly into the growing ‘Britpop’ scene and songs such as ‘Cigarettes and Alcohol’ saw Oasis songwriter Noel Gallagher being labelled as the voice of a generation. Their working class roots and fan base were quickly seen to be in direct conflict with the ‘art school’ reputation of the members of Blur and soon the music press were stirring up a north-south rivalry between the two bands.
By the summer of 1995, Oasis had enjoyed their first UK no.1, ‘Some Might Say’ and were ready to release second album ‘(What’s The Story) Morning Glory?’. Blur were also on the verge of releasing their fourth album, ‘The Great Escape’, who’s lead single was set to be ‘Country House’. Assuming Oasis would follow accepted protocol and release second single ‘Roll With It’ three weeks before the album, Blur’s management were surprised when the date for release was set for 14th August, nearly two months before the album was due. This meant the release dates for the two singles were now just a week apart and as a result ‘Country House’ was moved to the same week as ‘Roll With It’. The battle had begun.
Opinion is divided on the reasons for Blur moving the release date. Alan McGee has recently said that it was Damon Albarn who made the decision, after being teased by Oasis front man Liam Gallagher at a party shortly after ‘Some Might Say’ had hit no.1. Others say it was a marketing decision by their management, who felt threatened by the growing popularity of Oasis, which seemed set to transcend the level Blur had enjoyed for a year or so. Whatever the reasons, there’s no doubt it was an important battle for Blur to win, and the management seemed to have pulled out all the stops to ensure Blur’s success. After a week of intense interest, including an item on ITN’s News At Ten, Blur did indeed win, and it seemed they could once again claim to be Britain’s most popular band, and could expect to see their new album keep them there. However, Oasis’ next single, ‘Wonderwall’ became a world-wide hit and sales of ‘(What’s The Story) Morning Glory?’ grew to un-precedent ed levels, finding them success in America and going on to become one of the biggest selling British albums of all time. Next single ‘Don’t Look Back In Anger’ pushed Oasis on further and saw them become the biggest band in the world by the end of 1996. For Blur ‘The Great Escape’ was a disappointment, suffering from poor sales and was over-shadowed by the runaway success of ‘(What’s The Story) Morning Glory?’. It is now accepted that while Blur won the battle, Oasis won the war.
Not long after, both Oasis and Blur had distanced themselves from the rivalry, dismissing it as nothing more than a story concocted by the music press. Their careers went different ways, with Oasis continuing on through line up changes and a downturn in sales to enjoy a resurgence in popularity after 2005 album ‘Don’t Believe The Truth’, while Blur moved away from the catchy pop songs that had found them success, before singer Damon Albarn and guitarist Graham Coxon found success with solo projects.
The recent headlines show that press and music fans alike are still unable to separate the two bands who’s bickering so defined a musical era. It should be no surprise. They were the two biggest bands in Britain, brought together for a few weeks by a music press intent on shifting units and an industry keen to exploit the interest it garnered. The battle moved away from music and, rightly or wrongly, was seen to represent age old clashes in Britain such as differences in class, education and wealth. The battle and the two bands who were involved came to epitomise a music scene which entered into the culture of the country, a scene which was mirrored in the worlds of fashion and art, and which even politicians looked to exploit for their own ends. Whether the bands like it or not, while their relevance continues to be re-affirmed by their legions of fans who still care for the music and still buy the concert tickets in their hundreds of thousands, so too will the rivalry remain relevant to the wider public who were so enchanted by the contest which created so many column inches all those years ago. They are two bands who went their separate ways a long time ago, but who will remain forever linked thanks to a media frenzy which so gripped the country in the summer of 1995 and continues to do so to this day.
