Be Here Now

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This article refers to a 1997 album by rock band Oasis; for the book on spirituality published by Ram Dass, see Be Here Now (book)

Be Here Now is the third studio album by English rock band Oasis, first released in August 1997 (see 1997 in music).

It was Oasis' most eagerly-awaited album, and while it was commercially successful, it failed to live up to the expectations that preceded its release. Despite its mixed critical reception, in 1998 Q magazine readers voted it the 13th greatest album of all time (although it subsequently slipped to 459th place in a poll by the same magazine). Retrospectively, the album is criticised for being over-indulgent, bloated, and with the guitars having a slightly "acidy" sound. Be Here Now is, nonetheless, held in high regard amongst some Oasis fans.

When released in the UK, Oasis were at the height of their fame. It became the fastest selling album of all time — it sold 423,000 copies on the first day of release alone, moving 695,761 copies in the first week and over 1 million within two weeks. Be Here Now went on to sell 8 million copies worldwide. It also topped the charts in 28 different countries.

Contents

1 Track listing
2 Trivia
3 Liam and Noel's opinions
4 Charts
5 Release details

Track listing

"D'You Know What I Mean?" (7:42)
"My Big Mouth" (5:02)
"Magic Pie" (7:19)
"Stand by Me" (5:56)
"I Hope, I Think, I Know" (4:23)
"The Girl in the Dirty Shirt" (5:49)
"Fade In-Out" (6:52)
"Don't Go Away" (4:48)
"Be Here Now" (5:13)
"All Around the World" (9:20)
"It's Gettin' Better (Man!!)" (7:00)
"All Around the World (Reprise)" (2:08)

(All tracks written by Noel Gallagher.)

Trivia

Noel Gallagher said that, in fact, he wanted to make a double album, but later reconsidered and scrapped some of the tracks intended for this release. Some, like "Stay Young" and "Going Nowhere", were released as B-sides. Nevertheless, the record is their longest so far: at over 70 minutes, it is about 25 minutes longer than the average length of their other records.
Be Here Now is the fastest selling album in UK chart history.
Famous actor Johnny Depp guests on slide guitar on "Fade In-Out". Reportedly, Noel was too inebriated to perform it himself.
"My Big Mouth" and "It's Gettin' Better (Man!!)" were premiered at the open air gig at Loch Lomond on the 3rd August 1996.
According to Noel Gallagher, the album name stems from a John Lennon quote. When asked what history was, during his bed-in demonstration, Lennon replied "to be here now" . Be Here Now is also the title of a song by George Harrison.
Be Here Now is also the name of an influential 1971 book by Richard Alpert (which likely inspired Harrison's song). The phrase describes the Vedic teaching that to dwell in the past or future is to be dead in the present. Thus, enlightenment lies in living continuously in the present.
The date on the calendar on the album cover varies depending upon the release date of Be Here Now in the relevant country. Therefore, it says August 21 on the British version, but August 26 in the American version.
The cover photo was taken at Stocks House in Aldbury, Hertfordshire, which used to be the rural base of Playboy UK
At the beginning of "D'You Know What I Mean?", the Morse code in the background says "bugger all", "pork pies" and "Strawberry Fields Forever".

Liam and Noel's opinions

The Gallagher brothers have different opinions about the record. While Noel is washing his hands of it, blaming it for over-production and high intake of "booze" and cocaine, it is interesting that Liam defends and likes the record:

Noel:

"Liam thinks it rocks."
"It's the sound of 5 men in a studio, on coke, not giving a fuck. There's no bass to it at all, don't know where that went. The songs are too long and the lyrics are shit and for every millisecond Liam is not singing, there's an air-guitar there in a 'Wayne's World' style."
"It's surprising how many people say to me it's their favourite Oasis album, but I don't like it because I'm giving it all this on the guitar all the time Our Kid's not singing."

He also claims that the album will not be remembered like Definitely Maybe or Morning Glory, but says the title explains what the album is all about: it was great at the time of release. It fitted the music of the day perfectly, but has not stood the test of time.

Liam:

"We thought it was great, and I still think it's great. People always talk about Definitely Maybe. Fuck Morning Glory, it's over! Fuck Definitely Maybe, it's over!"

Charts

Album — Billboard (North America)

Year	Chart	Position
1997	The Billboard 200	2
1997	Top Canadian Albums	1

Singles — Billboard (North America)
Year Single Chart Position
1997 "D'You Know What I Mean?" Canadian Singles Chart 3
1997 "D'You Know What I Mean?" Mainstream Rock Tracks 36
1997 "D'You Know What I Mean?" Modern Rock Tracks 4
1997 "Don't Go Away" Adult Top 40 27
1997 "Don't Go Away" Mainstream Rock Tracks 36
1997 "Don't Go Away" Modern Rock Tracks 5
1997 "Don't Go Away" Top 40 Mainstream 35
1998 "All Around the World" Modern Rock Tracks 15

Year	Single	Chart	Position
1997	"D'You Know What I Mean?"	Canadian Singles Chart	3
1997	"D'You Know What I Mean?"	Mainstream Rock Tracks	36
1997	"D'You Know What I Mean?"	Modern Rock Tracks	4
1997	"Don't Go Away"	Adult Top 40	27
1997	"Don't Go Away"	Mainstream Rock Tracks	36
1997	"Don't Go Away"	Modern Rock Tracks	5
1997	"Don't Go Away"	Top 40 Mainstream	35
1998	"All Around the World"	Modern Rock Tracks	15

Release details

The album was released in various countries in August 1997.

Country	Date	Label	Format	Catalog
United Kingdom	August 21 1997	Creation Records	LP	RKIDLP008
			CD	RKIDCD008
Japan	August 21 1997	Sony Music Japan	CD	ESCA 6767
United States	August 26 1997	Epic Records	CD	EK 68530

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