Manchester favourites, Inspiral Carpets, were well-known in the late 80’s/90’s for their psychedelic guitar sound. They were formed by Graham Lambert and Stephen Holt in 1983, their unusual moniker coming from the name of a clothing shop which was on their Oldham Estate. Drummer Craig Gill joined soon after – and the garage punk sound was firmly established.

In 1987, David Swift and Organist Clint Boon joined the band which went on to be famed as a popular ‘’Madchester’’ band along with the likes of the Happy Mondays and Stone Roses. Towards the end of the 80’s, notorious band merchandise , the ‘’Cool as Fuck’’ t-shirt grabbed column inches, culminating in a student from Oxford Polytechnic prosecuted for wearing one.

After their record label, Playtime's distributer Red Rhino Records, went bust, the group set up their own label, Cow, at the same time Holt and Swift left to form the Rainkings. Too Much Texas vocalist, Tom Hingley, and Martyn ‘’Bungle’’ Walsh of the Next Step replaced them.

Around 1990, Inspiral Carpets signed to Mute Records, with success in the form of anthem ‘’This is How it Feels’’ reaching No.14 and debut album, ‘’Life’’ peaking at No.2.

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The 2nd, and more complemplative album, ‘’The Beast Inside’’, encouraged a strong following in Portugal, Germany and Argentina. It gained a Top 5 placing in the UK.

In 1992, ‘’Revenge of the Goldfish’’ spawned 4 Hit UK singles, and was best placed at No.17.

The album ‘’Devil Hopping’’ never charted, but singles such as ‘’I Want You’’ (with cantankerous Mark E Smith, (The Fall) guesting) and ‘’Saturn V’’ were Top 20 hits.

When ‘’The Singles Collection’’ was released in 1995, Mute dropped the band , resulting in a split. Hingley went on to form the Lovers with Jerry Kelly of the Lotus Eaters, Boon formed the Clint Boon Experience!, Gill worked with band Hustler, while Walsh took up production work.

Oasis’s Noel Gallagher started out as a roadie in the band.

The band reformed in 2003, to sell- out tours, a compilation album, and single: ‘’Come back tomorrow’’.

Inspiral Carpets have toured occasionally since and are in talks to revive the old Cow label.

Wendy Gabriel

This information is provided as a brief overview and not as a definitive guide, there are other sources on the net for that. If however you have a story or information that is not generally known we would love to hear from you. Content@rokpool.com

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Oasis  formed in 1991 (and initially called The Rain) by Liam Gallagher (vocals), Paul McGuigan (bassist), Paul Arthurs (guitar) and Tony McCarroll (drums) before being joined by Liam’s brother Noel Gallagher (vocals and guitar).

Oasis have sold more than 60 million records worldwide. Their string of hits includes eight UK No.1’s. Their many awards include 5 BRIT Awards, 15 NME Awards, 4 MTV Europe Music Awards and 9 Q Awards. In February 2007 Oasis were given a BRIT for their outstanding contribution to music. The Gallagher brothers are the main songwriters for the band and have been the only continual members. The present lineup is comprised of Gem Archer (guitarist), Andy Bell (bassist) and tour drummer Chris Sharrock.

Oasis grew up on the Manchester club circuit before being signed by indie label, Creation Records and releasing their debut album, “Definitely Maybe” in 1994. The album went straight to No.1 and became the fastest selling debut album to date. They followed this up with 1995’s, “What’s The Story (Morning Glory)” which included their first No.1 single, “Some Might Say” and successful follow-up’s with, “Wonderwall”, “Roll With It” and “Don’t Look Back in Anger”. The album also featured the critically acclaimed (and non-UK single), “Champagne Supernova” which featured guitar and backing vocals by Paul Weller. 1995 also saw the media rivalry between Oasis and Blur reach fever pitch when Noel Gallagher was quoted saying he hoped Damon Albarn and Alex James would “catch AIDS and die”.

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The eagerly anticipated follow up to “What’s the Story (Morning Glory)”, “Be Here Now” sold over 696,000 copies in the first week making it the fastest selling album in UK history. After a change in lineup and the Gallagher brothers setting up their own record label, Big Brother, the band released “Standing on the Shoulders of Giants” which had more psychedelic influences and remains their lowest selling album despite it still reaching No.1 in the UK. 2002 saw the release of “Heathen Chemistry” which again went to No.1 but received mixed reviews. Their next effort was the release of “Don’t Believe the Truth” which was a major success with both critics and fans alike. The bands seventh studio album, “Dig Out Your Soul” was released in 2008.

Noel recently announced his departure from the band, after a feud with brother Liam.

This information is provided as a brief overview and not as a definitive guide, there are other sources on the net for that. If however you have a story or information that is not generally known we would love to hear from you. Content@rokpool.com

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