MTV Unplugged
Warner Records
Jun 15, 2020 Liam Gallagher
It took half his life for Liam Gallagher to get a second chance at performing an MTV Unplugged show. It was the stuff of tabloid wet dreams when the younger Gallagher had to miss Oasis’ appearance for MTV Unplugged in 1996, when he was 23, due to illness. Last year, just about a week after he turned 47, Gallagher got his redemption moment, performing an MTV Unplugged concert at Hull City Hall on September 27.
The one-hour set, which was broadcast on MTV globally, is a tight collection of 10 songs that balances evenly between Gallagher’s solo material and Oasis songs. A gifted vocalist, Gallagher’s instrument isn’t always reliable, especially after a string of live performance. This is due to his affliction with Hashimoto’s disease resulting in hoarseness—which has its own appeal. This shortcoming is seemingly forgiven by the media with no derisive comments ever being uttered on those occasions when Gallagher can’t hit all the notes.
On MTV Unplugged, Gallagher goes the opposite direction. He starts raw and a touch too nasally on “Wall of Glass,” the only song included from his debut solo album, As You Were, but soon buffs his way into a smooth space. The inclusion of backing vocalists who are soulful and airy at the same time ramps up the impact of the delivery, particularly on “One of Us” and “Once” from his second album, Why Me? Why Not. The crowd does its part on the vocal side as it sings along, choral style, carrying Gallagher along with it. In between songs, the chants of “Liam! Liam! Liam!” amplify the already charged energy of what’s meant to be a stripped down performance.
The 24-piece Urban Soul Orchestra accompanying Gallagher doesn’t exactly scream “low key,” but it does lend itself nicely to these songs. As does one-time Oasis rhythm guitarist Bonehead, who joins Gallagher on stage for a few numbers. The Oasis song choices are not all obvious ones, with the exception of “Champagne Supernova.” Rather they are ones that Gallagher either likes performing live, or never got a chance to when he was in the band as he wasn’t calling the shots. These include “Some Might Say,” “Stand By Me,” “Sad Song,” and “Cast No Shadow,” which really, are more Noel Gallagher songs than Liam ones, but he definitely owns them with these original renditions that allow them to shine.
If all this sounds familiar that’s because Gallagher’s Acoustic Sessions EP that was released at the start of 2020, an eight-song, truly stripped back affair, shares half the songs with MTV Unplugged. That EP was also recorded at the same MTV Unplugged show and besides being, obviously, acoustic, it also features strings. It doesn’t feature the vocals, either backing or that of the crowd. Acting as mini version of MTV Unplugged Gallagher sounds flawless on the Acoustic Sessions EP, and the songs get a chance to breathe even more. Put these two releases together and it’s like you were at the rehearsal and then at the actual show, best of both. (www.liamgallagher.com)
Author rating: 7.5/10
Average reader rating: 7/10
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