The highs and lows of Noel Gallagher

Fights, wild dance parties, tears and 24 years in the music industry — how does one pick the highlights of Noel Gallagher’s career? Easy — leave out the foul-mouthed bits and you are left with a sizeable dossier of information. The former lead guitarist and songwriter for Oasis (the rock band he was a part of with brother Liam) is now the frontman for the High Flying Birds, and performs a solo set at Atlantis on Friday— so tabloid! looks back at his rather colourful past.

1. Gallagher once remarked that he hoped British rock band Blur’s frontman Damon Albarn would “catch Aids and die”. Not harsh at all. He quickly apologised and remarked that the disease was no laughing matter. Come the 2012 Brit Awards, the two seemed to have let bygones be bygones for they shared a warm embrace. Read on to find out what the two were up to at the more recent Brits.

2. Albarn shouldn’t have taken it personally Gallagher seems to enjoy being in the limelight for all the wrong reasons — he enjoys —scratch that — has, a turbulent relationship with his brother Liam; so much so that one of their arguments made it to the 1995 single Wibbling Rivalry. From a brawl in 1994 during their American tour which involved a chair being thrown, to Noel head-butting Liam while on tour in Barcelona in 2000 after he questioned the legitimacy of his daughter Anais, to Noel leaving Oasis because he “simply could not go on working with Liam a day longer” — this sibling rivalry has seen it all. Didn’t mama teach you not to fight?

3. “If it ain’t broke don’t fix it. If you start to break it then people aren’t going to go. I’m sorry, but Jay-Z? No chance. Glastonbury has a tradition of guitar music and even when they throw the odd curve ball in on a Sunday night you go ‘Kylie Minogue?’ I don’t know about it. But I’m not having hip-hop at Glastonbury. It’s wrong,” said the very outspoken rocker when he found out Jay-Z was to headline the 2008 Glastonbury Festival. Jay-Z’s response? He opened with his version of the Oasis hit Wonderwall. Touche.

4. So we have established he does not get along with other rockers, does not think much of hip-hop artists — so little surprise Noel has issues with pop stars as well. At the 2013 Brit Awards, he joined hands with none other than Blur frontman Damon Albarn to snub One Direction when the boy band greeted the rock stars. Don’t worry Zayn Malik and co — he does not hold a grudge for long.

5. However, this forever feuding rocker has another side to him. After lending his support to the Teenage Cancer Trust over the last few years, the rocker was chosen as the curator for the charity’s concerts this year at London’s Royal Albert Hall. He called it ‘an honour’ to be put in charge of the gigs and has already lined up rock band Kasabian and Katy Perry’s former squeeze Russell Brand as acts. Noel will perform at the event that begins on March 19 as will — get this — Albarn.

6. So after all that peer bashing, turns out Noel can say good things too. On hearing David Bowie’s comeback album, he said, “It’s great to hear his voice singing something new. The more you hear Where Are We Now? the better it gets. The video’s mad – like his f*****g cat directed it.”

7. George Martin once called Noel, “the finest songwriter of his generation”. Remember those Oasis hits Wonderwall and Champagne Supernova — the older Gallagher penned them. And admirably, he is a self-proclaimed dyslexic and cannot read or write music. Good on you Noel — Wonderwall is one of our favourite karaoke tunes.

8. Under all that animosity and feisty comebacks Noel is diehard Manchester City fan confessing to bawling like a baby when they won the Premier League title last year.