Well how about this… Almost forty years on from their final number one, a stunning, chart-topping comeback for the Kinks…
The Importance of Being Idle, by Oasis (their 8th and final #1)
1 week, from 28th August – 4th September 2005
Nah, course not. And to be fair, while this is clearly a Kinks pastiche, it’s not a rip-off of one particular song. If you did have to be specific, you could probably call ‘The Importance of Being Idle’ the bastard offspring of ‘Sunny Afternoon’ and ‘Dead End Street’ (the video is certainly influenced by the famous clip the Kinks did for the latter). Noel also revealed that he borrowed from the La’s ‘Clean Prophet’, in which they too had done their best Kinks impression.
But what of this Frankenstein’s monster of a song… Is it good? Well, yes. Given the parts it’s stitched together from how could it not be? It’s also unlike anything else in the Oasis canon, let alone any of their previous chart-toppers. It’s light and breezy, with a musical hall air and a sense of silliness. In fact, I’m tempted to use a word that has never come within ten feet of any Oasis record up to now: it’s kind of camp.
For a start, it’s a play on an Oscar Wilde title. But it also has slide whistles, and big boinging drums, and Rhys Ifans prancing around as an undertaker in the video. If only they’d gone the whole hog and put Liam in drag, a la Dave Davies in the Kinks’ original. ‘Lyla’ was a slight musical shift for Oasis, but this is a real hint at what was to come for Noel in his solo career, especially with the High Flying Birds.
We can also, perhaps surprisingly, draw a comparison between this and the McFly song it deposed from the top, as both deal with depression, in their own ways. While McFly had a positive mantra, Noel seems to be wallowing in his life of unpaid bills, frustrated girlfriends, and general laziness… Give me a minute, A man’s got a limit, I can’t get a life if my heart’s not in it…
Continuing the trend of low sales benefiting fanbase acts, Oasis follow U2, Britney, Nelly, McFly and Eminem in taking two singles from their latest albums to the top. This was the third time Oasis had done this, but the first time doing it with consecutive singles, and in the same calendar year. In my post on ‘Lyla’ I wrote of how well Oasis did big, bolshy lead singles. But ‘The Importance of Being Idle’ is a welcome addition to their three non-lead chart-toppers, which have all been a bit different (‘Don’t Look Back in Anger’ and ‘All Around the World’ being the other two). This, their eighth #1, tied them with the Stones, making them the rock act with the joint-third most number ones, behind the Shadows (eleven) and the Beatles (seventeen, at the time).
And this was it from Oasis, from the chart-topping side of things. In fact, it was almost the end from them musically too, with one further album to come before they finally imploded in 2009. Despite the brothers’ recent reconciliation in a touring capacity, there have been no suggestions that they will be getting back into the studio. And it’s a shame that on their recent tour, they pretty much ignored anything released post-2000, meaning that classics like this remain somewhat buried under their biggest hits. Oh what I’d give for this to have a resurgence, and not bloody ‘Wonderwall’ yet again…
I’m back from a month’s travels, and so we’ll hopefully be picking up the pace again and posting a little more regularly!
Congrats you’ve now caught up with the popular blog which has churning no 1 posts since 2003!
Of course, he has more in his Patreon, but still an impressive feat.
Thanks! I haven’t looked at Popular for quite a while, since I started drawing near to where it was. I didn’t want to be influenced by Tom’s generally excellent write-ups (even the ones I disagree with!)
Snap! I’m busy holidaying abroad, Baltics last week and Spain next week 🙂 Hear, hear on the wishes to see this chart instead of the usual suspects, Idle for me is their most-listenable song now that Wonderwall (back at number 2 again recently) and Don’t Look back In Anger never really go away for a welcome break and refresh. It’s very 60’s and a highlight of their career. It’s as 60’s-vibed as near-thing Whatever was (Beatles in that case, not Kinks) and just as good. Love it! Happily I saw Noel in concert just before the Oasis reunion so Ive not felt the need to chase Oasis tickets, he did a good selection of his solo stuff and Oasis tracks. His solo career is more varied than much of Oasis’ later stuff, though this album was good, the last new one I bought, and I did opt for the 2 hits compilations.
Very nice – enjoy! I just spent a month in Central Asia, and am slowly getting back into the swing of things…
Looks like they didnt have any top 30 singles after 1997 in NZ. Be Here Now was a bit of a career killer.
That is surprising. Be Here Now is definitely a line in the sand for Oasis in the UK, as before that came out they could do no wrong. Still, the album was hugely successful, and its critical panning didn’t affect their chart fortunes. It wasn’t until 2008 that Oasis released a single which failed to make the Top 10.
I haven’t listened to this album Don’t Believe the Truth in years, or any of the singles. I like this a bit more than “Lyla”, which I still enjoy despite the production. This definitely has a strong Kinks-influence in the sound and lyrics. Actually, the lyrics are evoke “I’m Only Sleeping” by The Beatles for me as well, especially to do with the laziness. It’s a catchy song. Shame Oasis couldn’t continue their streak of every lead single reaching No. 1 with the next album.
I think Oasis if they release a new album will definitely get a new No. 1 song with the lead single, so maybe this won’t be the last we see of them at the top of the pops, but if it is, farewell to Oasis in terms of their chart-topping presence. All their chart-toppers have been enjoyable for me.
If you get the chance to see them on the new tour, definitely don’t miss out. Saw them down under when they came last year and it was amazing. Incredible show.
‘I’m Only Sleeping’ is a good shout. Now you’ve put the thought in my head I can’t unhear it.
Do you think they’d make #1 with a comeback? I guess they’d have the novelty factor, and their popularity with Gen Z, and a huge bunch of physical CDs and vinyls on their side. Yeah I could see them having a week at number one. Will the song ever come along, though…? Touring is one thing. Being in the recording studio is another. And I have the feeling that L & G pretty much hate one another.
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