Acquiesce

[ak-wee-es]

"Acquiesce" is a song by English rock band Oasis, written by Noel Gallagher. The song originally appeared as a B-side to Oasis' first UK #1 single, "Some Might Say", in April 1995. Its popularity led to it being included on the B-sides compilation album The Masterplan, released in 1998, after being voted for inclusion by fans of the band on their official website.

In 1998, the song was issued as a radio single in the United States to promote the release of The Masterplan. It reached #24 in the US Modern Rock Chart, based on radio airplay. A promotional video for the song was also produced, with images of a live performance at the G-Mex Centre in Manchester, on December 14, 1997. The vocals on this footage were overdubbed from another performance.

"Acquiesce" was also released as one of the lead tracks to the Stop the Clocks EP, in promotion of their forthcoming compilation album, Stop the Clocks. A new promotional video was filmed at the Electric Ballroom in Camden, London, on September 12, 2006, but did not feature the band. Instead, a Japanese look-alike/tribute band played the roles of Oasis. More footage is also understood to have been filmed in Japan, mirroring the idea featured in R.E.M.'s 1995 video for "Crush With Eyeliner."

The verses to "Acquiesce" are sung by Liam Gallagher, with the chorus sung by Noel (because, he claims, Liam could not reach the high notes), making it the first song to ever feature both Gallagher brothers on lead vocals. The only other Oasis songs to feature both brothers on lead vocals are "Put Yer Money Where Yer Mouth Is" from their 2000 album Standing on the Shoulder of Giants and "Let There Be Love", from their 2005 album Don't Believe the Truth.

History

Noel Gallagher claims to have written the lyrics to "Acquiesce" on the way to the studio for the recording sessions of Definitely Maybe. The train was delayed, and during this interruption, he wrote parts of the song. According to The Masterplan's sleeve notes (written by music writer and critic Paul Du Noyer), "The song is about friendship in the widest sense and not, as often speculated, about the Gallagher brothers themselves."

"Acquiesce" has become a fans' favourite and is regularly played live. Many Oasis fans feel this song should have been held back to go on the (What's the Story) Morning Glory? album, with others also feeling the song was strong enough to have been released as a single. This was an opinion that Alan McGee had when he first heard the song; he tried to convince Noel to release "Acquiesce" as a single instead of "Some Might Say". Noel rejected this idea because he was adamant that the work on the single was completed, and was unwilling to have to write another B-side and record it. However, Noel has since said that this and a couple of other songs such as "The Masterplan" were strong enough to have been album tracks and singles.

Miscellanea

Liam Gallagher has never sung the second verse of the song during live performances; instead, he sings the first and third verses twice. While Noel claims that he "refuses" to sing it, Liam states that he's never heard of any second verse.
"Acquiesce" features clips of an acoustic version of another Oasis song, "Morning Glory". This is heard at the beginning and at the end of the song. Also, over the distortion and guitars of the intro, a conversation between Liam and an anonymous voice (which is believed to be of co-producer Owen Morris) can be heard, played in reverse. Played correctly, the conversation goes: