Liam Gallagher, John Squire Lean Into Britpop on New Song ‘Mars to Liverpool’

John Squire and Liam Gallagher. – Credit: Alberto Pezzali/NurPhoto/Getty Images; Sergione Infuso/Corbis/Getty Images

Liam Gallagher and John Squire have revealed the full details of their upcoming collaboration, including an album with the expository title Liam Gallagher John Squire and world tour dates. They’re previewing the LP, due in March, with a new single, “Mars to Liverpool.”

Gallagher explained the collaboration as such: “I think the people that are into the Stone Roses and Oasis and that kinda thing, I think they’ll fucking love it.” And indeed, “Mars to Liverpool,” sounds like the middle of a Venn diagram between Oasis’ simple, poppy melodies — “Here comes that feeling,” Gallagher sings, “Here it comes again, I’m waiting for this storm to run out of rain” — and the Stone Roses’ swinging, Sixties-inspired guitar rock. The song, written by Squire, is Britpop comfort food (pub fare?) that shows off the best of each musician.

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In addition to the new single and “Just Another Rainbow,” which they released earlier this month, the record contains nine more songs that the former Oasis frontman and Stone Roses guitarist wrote together. Squire made the cover art, and Greg Kurstin (Kelly Clarkson, Paul McCartney) produced the music. Kurstin also plays bass, Wurlitzer, and Hammond B3 on “Mars to Liverpool” while Joey Waronker (R.E.M., Beck) plays drums and Gallagher and Squire do the rest.

“I think John’s a top songwriter,” Gallagher, who first met Squire as a 16-year-old fan at a Roses show, said previously. “Everyone always bangs on about him as a guitarist, but he’s a top songwriter too, man, no two ways about it as far as I’m concerned. There’s not enough of his music out there, whether it’s with the Roses or himself. It’s good to see him back writing songs and fucking good ones.”

The duo’s tour, which kicks off in March, focuses mostly on Europe, but they do have one U.S. date at the Paramount in Brooklyn on April 11. Later this year, Gallagher will be on a solo tour of the U.K. and Ireland celebrating the 30th anniversary of what he calls “the most important album of the Nineties, bar none,” Oasis’ Definitely Maybe. His brother Noel definitely maybe won’t be there.

Liam Gallagher John Squire track list:

1. “Raise Your Hands”2. “Mars to Liverpool”3. “One Day at a Time”4. “I’m a Wheel”5. “Just Another Rainbow”6. “Love You Forever”7. “Make It Up as You Go Along”8. “You’re Not the Only One”9. “I’m So Bored”10. “Mother Nature’s Song”

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