by Aidin Vaziri
“I don’t like your hair.”
I had just sat down to interview Oasis frontman Liam Gallagher for the first time and things were already going badly. I glanced over at the group’s then-guitarist Paul "Bonehead" Arthurs, who was seated snugly next to Liam, for some reassurance but couldn't avoid staring at his bald head. That didn't help.
"OK, then," Gallagher said. "Let's have it. What's the question?"
We were backstage at one of those big radio station holiday shows in Berkeley, Calif., shortly after Oasis' 1995 album
(What’s The Story?) Morning Glory had broken America and the group was headlining a bizarre bill that also included acts like Sonic Youth, Billy Idol, Love and Rockets and a little-known outfit called No Doubt.
The interview stammered ahead awkwardly for just a few minutes with Gallagher batting away most of the questions with useless answers (fortunately his older brother Noel, who I interviewed later that evening, was far more accommodating) when Kim Gordon, Sonic Youth’s iconic bass player, made the mistake of stepping into Oasis’ dressing room and asking for some Jack Daniel’s from the young British group’s gallon-sized jug.
Instantly, Oasis vocalist Liam Gallagher leapt off of the couch where he was being interviewed and shouted across the room to the band’s associates, “No, she can’t have any. That’s the last one. We can’t be having every Tom, Dick and Harry having me Jack Daniel’s.”
“We’ll buy you another bottle,” Gordon replied.
“No you won’t, that’s the last one,” Gallagher said firmly, through his thick accent.
Gordon left the room looking bewildered, not sure whether to laugh or cry.
Gallagher was entirely serious. “I’m not happy about that at all to tell you the truth,” he said, regaining his composure.
He sat back down in his seat, looked straight ahead with his penetrating eyes, fastened his stubbly chin and decided he was now impatient with the question and answer process as well. Only four minutes into the interview, Gallagher said, “Just let us get it over with it. What’s the last question?”