Listen. You know the score. When I put out As You Were, people were ready to write me off, weren't they? They thought I was done, dusted, just another heritage act floating around North London waiting for a phone call that wasn't coming. But music isn’t about sitting in a corner and feeling sorry for yourself. It’s about standing your ground.
People talk about solo debuts like they’re some kind of reinvention. I didn’t need to reinvent anything. I just needed to be me again. That’s what the title meant, wasn’t it? As You Were. A command. A reminder. It was 2017, and the world was full of beige music made by people who looked like they were terrified of their own shadows. I just walked back into the room, grabbed the mic, and reminded everyone what a real rock 'n' roll star sounds like.
The Making of a Modern Classic
It wasn't all sunshine and Guinness, though. After Beady Eye finished, I spent some time just being a person. Running. Thinking. Getting the head right. When it came time to actually record the tunes, I knew I needed the right heads around me. That’s where Greg Kurstin and Andrew Wyatt came in. Some people whispered, "Oh, Liam's gone pop because he’s working with the guy who does Adele’s records."
Give over.
Kurstin is a proper musician. He knows a melody when he hears one. We went into the studio—places like Snap in London and some spots in LA—and just got to work. We weren't trying to make a jazz-fusion record. We were making a Liam Gallagher record. It’s got that John Lennon stomp, that Sex Pistols snarl, and a bit of that Stones swagger. If you don’t like that, you don’t like music. Simple as.
The opening track, Wall of Glass, was the statement of intent. It’s got that heavy harmonica, that big, dirty riff. It told everyone I wasn't coming back for a polite chat. I was coming back to take over.
Why As You Were Actually Worked
Most people get it wrong when they talk about this record. They think it was just nostalgia. It wasn’t. It worked because the songs were actually good. You can have all the attitude in the world, but if the tunes are rubbish, you’re just a loudmouth in a parka.
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- For What It's Worth is a proper anthem. It’s me saying sorry for some of the madness, but doing it with my chin up.
- Paper Crown has that acoustic, psychedelic vibe that takes me back to the stuff I loved growing up.
- Greedy Soul is just pure energy.
I remember the first time we played these live. The energy was different. It wasn't just the old Oasis crowd—though they were there, and I love 'em—it was kids. Sixteen-year-olds who weren't even born when Definitely Maybe came out. They were wearing the parkas, they were doing the walk, and they were singing every word of the new stuff. That’s when I knew we’d hit something real.
Music is about connection. It's about that feeling in your chest when the drums kick in. Most modern music feels like it was made by a computer program that’s trying too hard to be clever. As You Were didn't try to be clever. It just was. It was honest.
The Critics and the Noise
I don't read the reviews usually, but I heard some of them were actually decent for once. The Guardian gave it four stars. NME was on board. Even the people who usually spend their time slagging me off had to admit the record had legs. It went straight to Number 1 in the UK. It outsold the rest of the Top 10 combined in its first week. Think about that. In an era of streaming and people just picking one song and moving on, people actually went out and bought the physical record.
Vinyl sales were through the roof. It became the fastest-selling vinyl in 20 years at that point. That tells you something about the fans. They wanted something they could hold. Something that felt permanent.
The Impact on the Live Circuit
You can’t talk about this album without talking about the gigs. Glastonbury. Reading and Leeds. Finsbury Park. I’ve always said I’m at my best when I’m three feet away from a crowd of people losing their minds.
The setlist started blending the new stuff with the classics seamlessly. You’d have Rock 'n' Roll Star followed by Bold, and the energy didn't drop. That’s the test of a good solo record. Does it stand up next to the giants? Does it hold its own when the "Cigarettes & Alcohol" riff starts?
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It did. It does.
What People Still Miss
People focus on the "Liam" persona. The tweets. The banter. The attitude. But listen to the vocals on Universal Gleam. Listen to the vulnerability in Chinatown. I put my heart into those takes. I’m not just shouting into the void. I’m singing about my life, my kids, my mistakes, and my hopes.
There’s a lot of light and shade on that record. It’s not just a wall of sound. There are moments where it breathes. That was Kurstin's influence, probably. He pushed me to find different pockets in my voice that I hadn't used in a while. It felt fresh. It felt like I was starting a new chapter, but using the same pen.
Practical Lessons for the Next Generation
If you’re a young kid in a band or a solo artist trying to make your mark, there are a few things you can take from the As You Were era.
- Don't chase trends. If I’d tried to make a trap record or some synth-pop nonsense, I’d have looked like a clown. Stay in your lane, but make that lane the best it can be.
- Work with people who challenge you. I could have just worked with my mates, but I went to LA and worked with producers who had different ideas. It kept me sharp.
- Be honest. People can smell fake a mile away. If you’re feeling rubbish, write about it. If you’re feeling like a god, write about it. Just don’t lie.
- Performance is everything. You can have the best production in the world, but if you don't deliver it with conviction, no one cares. Stand your ground.
The record proved that there’s still a massive appetite for guitar music. People keep saying rock is dead. They’ve been saying it since 1970. It’s not dead. It just takes a bit of a nap every now and then until someone comes along and wakes it up with a loud noise and a bit of style.
As You Were wasn't just a comeback. It was a reclaiming of the throne. It set the stage for everything that came after—Why Me? Why Not., the Knebworth shows, the collaborative stuff with John Squire. It all started with that decision to just be myself again.
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No gimmicks. No nonsense. Just me, a mic, and some proper tunes.
If you haven't listened to it in a while, go back and put it on. Loud. Don't skip the "deluxe" tracks either, because Doesn't Have To Be That Way is a bit of a trip.
The main takeaway from the whole experience is simple: Never count anyone out. Especially not me. I’ve got more lives than a cat and a better wardrobe too. The music business is a weird place, full of sharks and people who wouldn't know a good chorus if it hit them in the face, but if you've got the songs and you've got the spirit, you'll always find your way back to the top.
Go get a parka, put the record on, and stay dangerous.
Next Steps for the Listener:
- Listen to the full album from start to finish to hear the narrative arc between the aggressive openers and the more melodic, introspective tracks on side B.
- Watch the documentary 'As It Was' for a deeper look at the transition from the end of Beady Eye to the solo success of this record.
- Compare the live versions of these tracks from the MTV Unplugged session to hear how they translate to an acoustic setting.