The Hindu Times

"The Hindu Times" is a song by English rock band Oasis. It was written by the band's lead guitarist Noel Gallagher, and was released as the lead single from their fifth studio album, Heathen Chemistry, on 15 April 2002. On the album, it segues directly into the next track, "Force of Nature."

This article is about the song. For the newspaper, see Hindustan Times.

"The Hindu Times"
Single by Oasis
from the album Heathen Chemistry
B-side
  • "Just Getting Older"
  • "Idler's Dream"
Released15 April 2002
Recorded2001–2002
Genre
Length3:53
LabelBig Brother
Songwriter(s)Noel Gallagher
Producer(s)Oasis
Oasis singles chronology
"Sunday Morning Call"
(2000)		 "The Hindu Times"
(2002)		 "Stop Crying Your Heart Out"
(2002)

The song peaked at number one on the UK Singles Chart becoming the band's sixth number-one single in their native country, remaining on top for one week before being dislodged by the Sugababes' "Freak Like Me".[1] The song also topped the charts in Canada, Italy and Scotland, and reached the top 10 in Denmark, Finland, Ireland, Norway, and Spain. This is their first single to featured former Heavy Stereo frontman Gem Archer (rhythm guitarist) and then-former Ride frontman Andy Bell (bassist).

Background and composition

The song, which combines powerful rock with a psychedelic feel, was unveiled during Oasis' Autumn 2001 Noise and Confusion Tour. The song was due to be released commercially at the same time but Noel decided the track needed more work done on it to be suitable for release. Many have commented on the main guitar riff being lifted from the Stereophonics song, "Same Size Feet", which uses exactly the same, or at least very similar, guitar riff. The B-side, "Just Getting Older", was written at the time of the release of Standing on the Shoulder of Giants (2000). The second B-side, "Idler's Dream", is the only Oasis song to not feature any guitars and is one of the three, the others being Married With Children and Sad Song, to not feature drums; the song consists simply of Noel Gallagher's vocals and a piano accompaniment.

The title has little to do with the lyrics of the song, which are more in the vein of Definitely Maybe's "Rock 'n' Roll Star". Noel got the name "The Hindu Times" from a T-shirt he saw in a charity shop. It has been speculated that the title refers to the main riff's similarity to Indian music in sound, sounding as if it were played on a sitar. Gallagher himself says that it is because he had already named the song before any lyrics were written for it.

Critical reception

"The Hindu Times" was one of the first Oasis singles since the singles from (What's the Story) Morning Glory? (1995) to receive almost unanimously positive reviews from critics.[2][3] In 2008 NME listed the song as one of the greatest indie anthems of the 2000s. In October 2011, NME placed it at number 143 on its list "150 Best Tracks of the Past 15 Years".[4] In 2010, XFM listed it in their "1000 greatest songs of all time" list.[5]

"The Hindu Times" was scheduled to be played during the Parade of Nations at the 2012 Summer Olympics opening ceremony as an example of British music,[6] but the Parade took much less time than expected, so the song was not used.

Music video

The original video was set to be filmed in New Delhi, but this did not work out. The music video was finally filmed at Abbey Road Studios, where the song was recorded. It features live footage of Oasis in recording sessions, as well as various words linked to India that keep appearing around the place.

Track listings
  • CD (RKIDSCD 23)
  1. "The Hindu Times" – 3:53
  2. "Just Getting Older" – 3:17
  3. "Idler's Dream" – 2:57
  • 7-inch (RKID 23)
  1. "The Hindu Times" – 3:53
  2. "Just Getting Older" – 3:17
  • 12-inch (RKID 23T)
  1. "The Hindu Times" – 3:53
  2. "Just Getting Older" – 3:17
  3. "Idler's Dream" – 2:57
  • DVD (RKIDSDVD 23)
  1. "The Hindu Times" – 3:53
  2. "The Hindu Times" (demo) – 4:32
  3. 10 Minutes of Noise and Confusion – Part One – 9:26
  • The demo version of "The Hindu Times" is radically different from the finished album version. Most of the lyrics (sung by Noel) are different, and the slower sound of the song is much more "grungy", with a heavy drum loop running throughout the song. It is also a semitone higher in the demo.
  • The "10 Minutes..." documentary is the first part of a unique feature covering 48 hours on the road with Oasis during the Tour of Brotherly Love which took place in the US with the Black Crowes during May and June 2001.

Personnel

Charts and certifications

References
  1. Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 672. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  2. Archived 8 September 2006 at the Wayback Machine
  3. "Have Oasis run dry?". BBC News. 15 April 2002. Retrieved 2 April 2014.
  4. "150 Best Tracks Of The Past 15 Years". Nme.Com. 26 March 2014. Retrieved 2 April 2014.
  5. "The Top 1000 Songs Ever | X-lists". XFM. Retrieved 2 April 2014.
  6. Heath, Sophia (19 June 2012). "London 2012 Olympics: the full musical playlist for the Olympic opening ceremony". The Daily Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Retrieved 1 September 2019.
  7. "Australian-charts.com – Oasis – The Hindu Times". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved 28 January 2018.
  8. "Austriancharts.at – Oasis – The Hindu Times" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 28 January 2018.
  9. "Ultratop.be – Oasis – The Hindu Times" (in Dutch). Ultratip. Retrieved 28 January 2018.
  10. "Ultratop.be – Oasis – The Hindu Times" (in French). Ultratip. Retrieved 28 January 2018.
  11. "Oasis Chart History (Canadian Digital Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 30 January 2020.
  12. "Danishcharts.com – Oasis – The Hindu Times". Tracklisten. Retrieved 28 January 2018.
  13. "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 20 no. 19. 4 May 2002. p. 15. Retrieved 15 June 2020.
  14. "Oasis: The Hindu Times" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved 28 January 2018.
  15. "Lescharts.com – Oasis – The Hindu Times" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved 28 January 2018.
  16. "Offiziellecharts.de – Oasis – The Hindu Times". GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 5 July 2018.
  17. "Top 50 Singles" (in Greek). IFPI. Archived from the original on 2 June 2002. Retrieved 28 June 2020. See Best column.
  18. "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Single (track) Top 40 lista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége. Retrieved 28 June 2020.
  19. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – The Hindu Times". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 5 July 2018.
  20. "Italiancharts.com – Oasis – The Hindu Times". Top Digital Download. Retrieved 28 January 2018.
  21. "Dutchcharts.nl – Oasis – The Hindu Times" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 28 January 2018.
  22. "Charts.nz – Oasis – The Hindu Times". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 28 January 2018.
  23. "Norwegiancharts.com – Oasis – The Hindu Times". VG-lista. Retrieved 28 January 2018.
  24. "Notowanie nr1051" (in Polish). LP3. 22 March 2002. Retrieved 26 February 2019. Cite magazine requires |magazine= (help)
  25. "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 5 July 2018.
  26. "Spanishcharts.com – Oasis – The Hindu Times" Canciones Top 50.
  27. "Swedishcharts.com – Oasis – The Hindu Times". Singles Top 100. Retrieved 28 January 2018.
  28. "Swisscharts.com – Oasis – The Hindu Times". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 28 January 2018.
  29. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 28 January 2018.
  30. "Top of the Music – Mix e Singoli" (PDF) (in Italian). FIMI. Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 May 2006. Retrieved 14 December 2020.
  31. "The Official UK Singles Chart 2002" (PDF). UKChartsPlus. Retrieved 5 July 2018.
  32. "British single certifications – Oasis – The Hindu Times". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 17 September 2020.
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