Definitely Maybe (25th Anniversary)＜Silver Vinyl/完全生産限定盤＞

シーンに多大な影響を与えたオアシスのデビュー・アルバム『Definitely Maybe』の発売25周年を記念して、コレクターズ限定のシルバー・カラーヴァイナルが登場。

「20年後には、みんな『オアシス(Definitely Maybe)』をありのまま認めて買って聴くようになるよ。大事なのはそういうことだ。」―1994年8月、ノエル・ギャラガー
全英初登場1位、全世界で500万枚、イギリスで200万枚以上のセールスを記録した、94年発表の記念すべきデビュー・アルバム『オアシス』(原題:Definitely Maybe)。発売25周年を記念して、コレクターズ限定のシルバー・カラーヴァイナル(アナログ盤)とピクチャー・ディスクのリリースが決定!!

1994年にマンチェスターから突然変異的に現れた、ギャラガー兄弟擁するオアシスの記念すべきデビュー・アルバム『オアシス』。兄(ノエル)が書き下ろした反則なまでにキャッチーな曲を、弟(リアム)が力強くふてぶてしい声で歌う、オアシスというロックンロール・バンドの基本方程式の誕生の瞬間が記録された、黄金の歴史の幕開けにふさわしい奇跡のデビュー作が、発売25周年を記念して2種類のコレクターズ限定盤としてリリースされる。1つは8月30日に一般発売されるシルバー・カラーヴァイナル(アナログ盤LP)、もうひとつはオアシスの公式オンラインストアで購入出来るピクチャー・ディスクだ。

1994年8月29日に発売された『オアシス』は当時、デビュー作最速売上記録を更新し、一躍社会現象となった。4作のシングル「スーパーソニック」、「シェイカーメイカー」、「リヴ・フォーエヴァー」、「シガレッツ・アンド・アルコール」が、ロック・クラシックとしての地位を確立しただけでなく、「ロックンロール・スター」や「スライド・アウェイ」といったアルバム収録曲の枠を出ることがなかった楽曲もまた、今なおあらゆる世代の音楽ファンに知られるアンセムとして生き続けている。

『オアシス(Definitely Maybe)』は「史上最高のアルバム」アンケートにもたびたび登場しており、"史上最高のデビュー・アルバム"として広く知られている。同時に、リリースから四半世紀経った今でも、そこに収められた楽曲は1994年当時と同じように新鮮で今日的な意味を帯びている。

Definitely Maybe begins with a statement of aspiration, as Liam Gallagher sneers that "tonight, I'm a rock & roll star" -- the words of a bedsit dreamer hoping he'd break out of those four walls and find something greater. Maybe all he could muster is a fleeting moment of stardom as he sings in front of a fleet of amps pushing out power chords, or perhaps he'd really become a rock & roll star; all that matters is he makes the leap. This dream echoes throughout Oasis' debut, a record which takes the dreams of its listeners every bit as seriously as those of its creators. Both the artist and audience desire something greater than their surroundings, and that yearning gives Definitely Maybe a restlessness that resonates. Certainly, Oasis aren't looking to redefine rock & roll here; they'd rather inhabit it. They scour through the remnants of the past three decades to come up with a quintessentially British rock & roll record, one that swaggers with the defiance of the Rolling Stones, roars with the sneer of the Sex Pistols, thieves from the past like the Happy Mondays, and ties it all together with a melodicism as natural as Paul McCartney, even if Definitely Maybe never quite sounds like the Beatles. All the Fab Four comparisons trumpeted by the brothers Gallagher were a feint, a way to get their group considered as part of the major leagues. Soon enough, these affirmations became a self-fulfilling prophecy -- act the way you'd like to be and soon you'll be the way you act, as it were -- but that bravado hardly diminishes the accomplishment of Definitely Maybe. It is a furious, inspiring record, a rallying cry for the downtrodden to rise above and seize their day but, most of all, it's a blast of potent, incendiary rock & roll. Soon after its release, Noel Gallagher would be hailed as the finest songwriter of his generation, an odd designation for a guy drawn to moon/June rhymes, but his brilliance lies in his bold strokes. He never shied away from the obvious, and his confidence in his reappropriation of cliches lends these bromides a new power, as do his strong, sinewy melodies -- so powerful, it doesn't matter if they were snatched from elsewhere (as they were on "Shakermaker" or the B-side "Fade Away"). The other secret is of course Noel's brother, Liam, the greatest rock & roll vocalist of his generation, a force of nature who never seems to consider either the past or the present but rather exists in an ever-present now. He sometimes sighs but usually sneers, shaking off any doubt and acting like the rock & roll star Noel so wanted to be. This tension would soon rip the group apart but here on Oasis' debut, this chemistry is an addictive energy, so Definitely Maybe winds up a rare thing: it has the foundation of a classic album wrapped in the energy of a band who can't conceive a future beyond the sunset. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine