"Supersonic" is the debutsingle by the English rock bandOasis. Written by lead guitaristNoel Gallagher, it was released on 11 April 1994 as Oasis' debut single and later appeared on their debut album Definitely Maybe in August 1994.
Background
"Supersonic" was written and recorded in a single day at The Pink Museum recording studio in Liverpool. The band were there to record "Bring It On Down" but first, as a warm up, they started jamming together. Soon Noel Gallagher was humming a melody over McCarroll and Bonehead's rhythm until he called the jam to a halt as it was time to start recording "Bring It On Down". The intended song was not going too well so it was decided that they work on something new, based on a jam they had had earlier that day. The recording was completed in 11 hours and it was never remixed. Noel has claimed that the actual writing of the song took place while his bandmates took a break from the recording studio to order and eat a Chinese takeaway. Instead of joining them, Noel stayed in the studio to develop his riff, and had written the entire song before they returned. He later remarked that it was an unbelievable experience to see their fans singing along to a song he had written at 3am in the morning. Oasis recorded two videos for the song for UK and U.S. release. The UK version features the band playing on a roof, similar to the Beatles' rooftop concert. The rooftop is on the south side of Euston Road, London, with King's Cross station and the Great Northern Hotel clearly visible across the road. The U.S. version features outer-space views, the band in a car, big toy dinosaurs, and the band performing the song in a dark room. Scenes from this video were used in the music video for "Some Might Say", the debut single from their second album Morning Glory?—albeit in black and white. "Supersonic" was released with three B-sides: "Take Me Away", featuring only Noel Gallagher on acoustic guitar and vocals; "I Will Believe", a mid-tempo rocker taped live in 1993; and a demo of "Columbia", which would later appear on the band's 1994 album Definitely Maybe.
Release and rankings
The song was released on 11 April 1994 and peaked at number 31 on the UK Singles Chart, the band's second lowest-peaking single, after "Half The World Away" which peaked at 56. However, over time it has amassed sales of over 215,000, making it their 13th biggest selling single ever in the UK, even outselling their 2002 number one "The Hindu Times", and both of their 2005 number ones, "Lyla" and "The Importance of Being Idle". "Supersonic" was also the band's first single to chart in the United States, where it peaked at number 11 on the US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart on 10 December 1994. The song was performed by the band on their debut national TV performance on Channel 4's The Word. It remains a favourite song of both the band and their fans. The single went platinum in the UK in 2019. In March 2005, Q magazine placed "Supersonic" at number 20 in its list of the 100 Greatest Guitar Tracks. In May 2007, NME magazine placed "Supersonic" at number 25 in its list of the 50 Greatest Indie Anthems Ever.
Cover
The cover depicts the band and their instruments at Monnow Valley Studios in Wales. Photographer Michael Spencer discussed the cover art in an interview : "The shot was taken at Monnow Valley studios in Wales, where they had started recording Definitely Maybe. The idea was to have a cluttered studio environment with amps and cables strewn everywhere. Liam was only 21 at the time and already looked like a fully-formed rock star, so Art Director Brian Cannon decided to have him at the front of the shot. He thought it would be a nice twist if we had some tungsten lights in view, the idea being to put Oasis firmly in the ‘spotlight’ for their debut single. I cross-processed the film, which gives the shot its bluey tint."
Music video
There are two music videos for the song. In the UK version the band is playing at a roof of a hotel near King's Cross Station. The US version shows the band driving a car and playing in a hemispherical structure, nearly identical to the "Some Might Say" video. As of September 2019, The UK version of the music video has over 42 million views on Youtube, whilst the US version has over 310 thousand.
Other appearances
The song appeared on Rock Band on 1 September 2009 as a live version. The song's title was used for , a 2016 documentary about the band by director Mat Whitecross.
