Who Left Oasis First?
Who Left Oasis First?
Oasis were chaos from day one. Fights, sackings, walkouts - none of it surprising if you knew the band. They formed in 1991 and by 1994 they were selling out arenas. But behind the success, members were already clashing. Everyone remembers the Gallagher brothers losing the plot at the end. What most forget is that other people bailed out long before that.
This article isn’t about the well-documented fallout in 2009. It’s about who jumped ship first. Spoiler: it wasn’t Liam. Or Noel.
And in a twist nobody saw coming, Oasis are back. Properly back. Not just a rumour on Twitter. They're doing a full tour in 2025. Massive dates across the UK, Europe and beyond. Manchester’s getting two homecoming shows at the Etihad and tickets vanished in minutes. It’s the first time Liam and Noel have shared a stage in over 15 years.
So before they blast out Rock ’n’ Roll Star again, here’s a look at how it all fell apart, one member at a time.
The Original Oasis Line-up
Manchester Digital Music Archive
Before the sold-out tours and tabloid headlines, Oasis were just five lads from Manchester trying to get out of the dole queue. The original line-up wasn’t exactly stable, but it worked just long enough to make Definitely Maybe a hit.
Here’s how it started:
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Liam Gallagher – vocals
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Paul “Bonehead” Arthurs – rhythm guitar
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Paul “Guigsy” McGuigan – bass
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Tony McCarroll – drums
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Noel Gallagher – lead guitar and songwriter
Noel joined a bit after the rest. Liam brought him in on the condition that Noel could take full creative control. That’s where the power shifted. From that point on, Noel ran the band musically. He wrote the songs, chose the direction, and didn’t hide how he felt about people who couldn’t keep up.
The line-up stayed intact just long enough to record their debut, but the cracks started to show almost immediately. And within a year of becoming famous, one member had already been pushed out.
First Exit: Tony McCarroll (1995)
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Tony McCarroll was the first original member to be kicked out of Oasis. He played drums on Definitely Maybe and had been part of the group since the early days, even before Noel joined. But as the band’s sound evolved, he found himself on the wrong side of Noel’s standards.
According to Noel, McCarroll’s drumming wasn’t up to scratch. He claimed Tony struggled to keep time and couldn’t handle more complex material. In a 1995 interview, Noel didn’t hold back - calling him “a nice guy but not a great drummer.” Behind the scenes, there were plenty of fallouts, with Tony later describing the atmosphere as toxic and driven by ego.
The official split came just before recording started on (What’s the Story) Morning Glory? He was replaced by Alan White, whose style was tighter and more versatile. For a band now selling records by the million, Noel wanted someone who could deliver in the studio without drama.
Tony didn’t go quietly. He later sued the band for unpaid royalties and reached a reported settlement of around £500,000. Years later, he published a tell-all memoir titled Oasis: The Truth, where he painted himself as a scapegoat caught in the Gallagher power struggle.
Despite everything, he never fully vanished from the conversation. In 2021, he suffered a heart attack but survived. He’s stayed away from the reunion, but fans still remember him as part of the raw, scrappy version of Oasis that came before the stadiums and tabloids.
Guigsy Walks (1999)
Paul Francis McGuigan better known as ‘Guigsy’, founding member of #Oasis pic.twitter.com/EymPeYjSJH
— MichaelSpencerJones (@msj_photo) October 7, 2023
Paul “Guigsy” McGuigan left Oasis in 1999, during the early stages of recording Standing on the Shoulder of Giants. Unlike McCarroll’s messy exit, this one was quiet. No press conference. No blazing row. He just disappeared.
Guigsy had been with Oasis from the beginning. His bass playing wasn’t flashy, but it fit the band's early sound. More importantly, he was part of the original Manchester circle - someone Liam trusted and felt comfortable around. But by 1999, the pressure of life in a high-profile band had worn him down.
The official line was that Guigsy left due to exhaustion. He’d been dealing with stress for a while, and touring only made it worse. Noel later said he was surprised Guigsy had lasted as long as he did. The band were five albums deep, and cracks were everywhere. Drugs, fame, and constant travel had changed the pace, and Guigsy didn’t want any more of it.
He was replaced by Andy Bell, formerly of Ride. Bell could play bass, guitar, and keys - something Oasis needed as their sound got more layered. It also marked a shift in how the band functioned. The newer members were more like session musicians, while the Gallaghers held all the control.
Since leaving, Guigsy has kept a low profile. No comeback attempts, no interviews, no guest spots. Some fans respect that - others still wonder what he really thought about the band’s peak years. Either way, his exit marked the start of Oasis looking more like a business than a group of mates.
Bonehead Bows Out (1999)
By Syedsohail231 - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, Link
Paul “Bonehead” Arthurs quit Oasis not long after Guigsy, making 1999 the year the original backbone of the band fell away. Where Guigsy slipped out quietly, Bonehead’s departure raised more eyebrows. He’d been there from the start - more than just a rhythm guitarist, he was a founding member and one of Liam’s closest mates.
At the time, the official reason was simple: he wanted to spend more time with his family. That’s what the band said, and it wasn’t untrue. Bonehead had young kids and the touring schedule was relentless. But there was more to it than that. The band had changed. Recording Standing on the Shoulder of Giants was, by most accounts, a tense, unhappy process. Noel was in full control, and creative input from the others had been whittled down to almost nothing.
Bonehead later admitted he felt sidelined. The studio had become less about making music together and more about Noel laying down tracks with hired help. That didn’t sit right with him. For someone who helped build Oasis from scratch, the shift felt like the band was no longer a band.
His replacement was Gem Archer, who had played in Heavy Stereo and was seen as reliable, flexible, and easier to manage in the studio. From that point on, Oasis became the Gallagher brothers and a rotating cast of professional musicians.
Unlike Guigsy, Bonehead never fully walked away from music. He’s played with Liam’s solo band, made guest appearances, and stayed part of the conversation around Oasis. In 2022, he was diagnosed with tonsil cancer but thankfully made a full recovery. Now, he’s back in the fold for the 2025 reunion tour - one of the few original members returning to the big stage.
Other Line-up Shuffles
By Solly_Darling from Paris, France - Beady Eye @ Ancienne Belgique, CC BY-SA 2.0, Link
After Bonehead and Guigsy walked in ’99, Oasis felt like a different band. The replacements - Andy Bell and Gem Archer - were seasoned musicians, more used to taking direction than pushing back. Noel, already running the show, tightened his grip even further.
The next shake-up came in 2004 when Alan White was sacked. He’d joined in 1995, stepping in after Tony McCarroll and drumming through the band’s most commercially successful period. His playing was slicker, and he handled the more polished sound Noel was chasing on Be Here Now and Standing on the Shoulder of Giants. But rumours of personal issues and fallouts with Noel started to swirl.
Alan White
Noel claimed White had become unreliable. He was replaced by Zak Starkey - son of Ringo Starr - who brought a heavier, more aggressive style to the drums. Starkey wasn’t just a name; he’d already played with The Who and slotted in fast. Although he never became an official member, his work on Don’t Believe the Truth and Dig Out Your Soul was a key part of the band’s late-era revival.
By Kubacheck - https://www.flickr.com/photos/kubacheck/2978939470/, CC BY 2.0, Link
From 2004 to 2009, the line-up stayed stable. Liam and Noel were still at the front, but behind them was a mix of pros who could deliver live and in the studio without drama. What started as a gang of mates from Burnage turned into a studio-led operation with hired hands and Gallagher dominance. The fights didn’t stop though - far from it - but the band itself stopped bleeding members. At least for a while.
This set the stage for what came next: the final and most explosive departure of them all.
The Big Blow-Up - Noel Leaves (2009)
By 2009, Oasis were held together with duct tape and grudges. The line-up had stayed the same for five years, but the relationship between Liam and Noel was past the point of repair. What had started as bickering between brothers had turned into open hostility, and everyone around them could see it.
The final split happened backstage at the Rock en Seine festival in Paris. Tensions boiled over. Liam allegedly swung a guitar at Noel, though the details have always been murky. What’s clear is that Noel walked. Hours later, a statement went out:
“It’s with some sadness and great relief... I simply could not go on working with Liam a day longer.” - Noel Gallagher, 28 August 2009
That was it. No goodbye tour. No press conference. Just silence, then confirmation Oasis were done.
For fans, it was shocking but not surprising. Noel had hinted for years that he was fed up. Interviews from the mid-2000s are full of quotes about being tired of the drama. He’d become increasingly isolated during the recording of Dig Out Your Soul, often working separately from the rest of the band.
Liam, on the other hand, carried on. Within months, he’d formed Beady Eye with the remaining members of Oasis. Noel launched his solo project, Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds, a year later. Both acts found their own audience, but neither could escape the shadow of what had ended.
And then came Twitter.
From 2011 onward, Liam used the platform like a pub loudspeaker. He hurled abuse, nicknames, digs - anything to wind up his brother. Some classics:
“SHITBAG.” - Liam Gallagher, March 2011
“To the people who thought I was the voice of a generation: your mate just got a solo record deal with the BBC. Sit down.” - Liam Gallagher, July 2017
“Potato.” - Liam Gallagher, repeatedly from 2016 onwards, referring to Noel’s face
“I’ve heard pigeons that sound better than that new tune.” - Liam Gallagher, about a Noel track, 2019
Noel wasn’t innocent either, but his insults were usually more subtle and bitter. A few gems:
“He’s like a man with a fork in a world of soup.” - Noel Gallagher, 2011, on Liam’s intelligence
“He’s not my brother. Not in any meaningful way.” - Noel Gallagher, Q Magazine, 2016
“Liam’s like a broken toy robot stuck on 'angry'. It was funny at first.” - Noel Gallagher, 2020
Fans kept hoping for a reunion, but each insult felt like another nail in the coffin. By 2023, it had become a running joke. If Oasis were getting back together, pigs would be flying, wearing parkas.
Then came the shock announcement in late 2024: Oasis would return for a 2025 world tour, starting with massive homecoming shows in Manchester. No one quite believed it. Some still don’t. Whatever deal had been made, it had brought the Gallaghers back into the same room - and onto the same stage - for the first time in 16 years.
How long it’ll last is anyone’s guess. But at least for now, they’re back. And everyone wants to see what happens next.
2025 Reunion - Oasis Are Back
After 16 years of slagging each other off in interviews, Twitter feuds, and tabloid quotes, nobody expected Liam and Noel to share a stage again. But in late 2024, it happened: a cryptic tweet from Liam, followed by an official statement confirming what fans had been waiting for since 2009 - Oasis were reuniting.
“OASIS LG x” - Liam Gallagher, 3 November 2024
“It's happening.” - Noel Gallagher, same day, posted without context
The internet exploded. Within hours, #Oasis2025 was trending worldwide. The official tour announcement followed a week later. A massive run of shows across the UK, Europe, North America, and Japan - with Manchester right at the centre. The homecoming gigs at the Etihad Stadium sold out in under ten minutes. A third date was added. That sold out too.
The line-up includes Liam on vocals, Noel on guitar, and Bonehead back on rhythm - his first full run of Oasis shows since 1999. Zak Starkey is drumming again, while Andy Bell and Gem Archer are not involved. Guigsy and Tony McCarroll haven’t been invited, with no comment from either of them. According to a source close to the band, “Noel’s not interested in a full nostalgia trip - just the bits that still work.”
The reunion wasn’t driven by financial desperation. Both brothers have done well solo. It was more likely about legacy - and timing. The 30th anniversary of (What’s the Story) Morning Glory? lands in 2025. There's also a full reissue campaign, including unreleased demos, remastered albums, and a documentary already in production.
Initial rehearsals were reportedly tense. One leak claimed the brothers didn’t speak directly for the first week. Liam was said to be in “tour shape” already, while Noel was more guarded. But by January 2025, they’d been spotted leaving the same studio in London, laughing. It was the first candid photo of them together in over a decade.
Fans are cautious. Some are expecting chaos, others are just happy to hear Live Forever played by the people who made it famous. What’s clear is that, for the first time since 2009, Oasis are a band again - even if it’s held together with gaffer tape and sheer force of will. Whether they implode after six shows or keep it going for years, this reunion has already gone further than anyone thought it would.
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