Acquiesce

"Acquiesce" is a song by the English rock band Oasis, written by Noel Gallagher. The song originally appeared as a B-side to Oasis' first UK number-one single, "Some Might Say", on 24 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.

For the legal term, see Acquiescence.

"Acquiesce"
Single by Oasis
from the album The Masterplan
Released1998 (radio single)
RecordedMarch 1995
StudioLoco, South Wales
GenreRock, hard rock
Length4:29
LabelCreation
Songwriter(s)Noel Gallagher
Producer(s)Owen Morris, Noel Gallagher
Oasis singles chronology
"Don't Go Away"
(1998)		 "Acquiesce"
(1998)		 "Go Let It Out"
(2000)

In 1998, the song was issued as a radio single in North America to promote the release of The Masterplan. It reached number 24 on the US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart, number 20 on the Canadian RPM Alternative 30, and number 44 on the RPM Top Singles chart.

"Acquiesce" was also released as one of the lead tracks to the Stop the Clocks EP, in promotion of their compilation album of which it also appears on, Stop the Clocks.[1]

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).[2]

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.[3] 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."[2]

"Acquiesce" became a fan favourite and was 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.

The studio recording of the song 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:

Owen: Where's Noel?

Liam: Gone for a walk
Unknown voice: Sacked him
Owen: <indecipherable>

Liam: I've sacked him

The song is featured in the episode "The Day Before" (season 1, episode 12) of the television show Jericho, in the movie Goal!, and has been covered by bands such as the Killers, Good Charlotte and Third Eye Blind.

Music videos

There are two music videos for this single.

The first video was the live performance at the G-Mex Centre in Manchester, on 14 December 1997. The vocals on this footage were overdubbed from another performance.

The second video was filmed at the Electric Ballroom in Camden, London, on 12 September 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."

Track listings
  • US promo CD (ESK 41522)
  1. "Acquiesce" (Edit) – 4:27
  • US promo CD (ESK 41571)
  1. "Acquiesce" (Live) – 5:25
  2. "Interview with Noel Gallagher" – 27:30
  3. "Acquiesce" (Video) (CD-ROM Extra)
    Track 1: Recorded live at G-Mex, Manchester, UK on 12 December 1997.
    Track 2: Hosted by Jonathan L. of The Album Network and Virtually Alternative.
    This CD is not for sale and is only available with the purchase of the Epic album The Masterplan.
  • European promo CD (SAMPCM 6031)
  1. "Acquiesce" – 4:24
  2. "Talk Tonight" – 4:21
  3. "Rockin' Chair" – 4:35
  4. "The Masterplan" – 5:22

Personnel

Charts
Chart (1998) Peak
position
Canada Top Singles (RPM)[4] 44
Canada Rock/Alternative (RPM)[5] 20
US Alternative Airplay (Billboard)[6] 24

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[7] Silver 200,000

Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References
  1. "Oasisinet — Stop the Clocks EP". Archived from the original on 23 October 2006. Retrieved 25 September 2006.
  2. Paul Du Noyer. "The Masterplan". Archived from the original on 10 August 2007. Retrieved 15 February 2007.
  3. Acquiesce (Stop the Clocks feature) on YouTube
  4. "Top RPM Singles: Issue 6995." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 7 February 2021.
  5. "Top RPM Rock/Alternative Tracks: Issue 7036." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 7 February 2021.
  6. "Oasis Chart History (Alternative Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved 7 February 2021.
  7. "British single certifications – Oasis – Acquiesce". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 7 February 2021.
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