Bring on the withdrawal. The highly anticipated return of Oasis to these shores after 16 years ended last night with two sold-out shows at Toronto’s Rogers Stadium, the city’s new temporary outdoor stadium in Downsview, after a 15-year wait for Gallagher brothers Noel and Liam to hug it out, and, as U.K. talk show host Jonathan Ross said, be reasonable. 

Noel famously walked away from “the biggest band in the world” and his baby brother on Aug. 28, 2009, after a backstage fight in Paris. Frontman Liam formed Beady Eye and released albums under his own name; and guitarist, singer and Oasis main songwriter formed Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds.

Then last summer, after 15 years of some of the most inventive and entertaining wind-ups we are all sure to miss —  Noel calling Liam a “part-time singer, full-time knobhead,”  “a squeaky toy”” and “man with a fork in a world of soup;” and Liam calling Noel  “a scrotum,” “boring old fart” and “big gob shithouse” (both called each other “potato”) — their reunion and UK tour were announced to everyone’s amazement — and excitement.

The multiple Oasis Live ‘25 stadium dates, starting in Cardiff, Wales on July 4 and 5, quickly sold out, including five nights in their hometown of Manchester at Heaton Park (cap. 80,000), and seven at London’s Wembley Stadium (cap. 90,000). So, Rogers Stadium, at a mere 50,000 capacity, for two nights, is intimate by their standards.

But what’s interesting is while the band went from an unknown band in 1994 to headlining Britain’s Knebworth Festival, for 250,000 people over two nights, two years later, Oasis never reached stadium status in North America — until now.

(Courtesy: Karen Bliss)

Former MuchMusic VJ and broadcast personality Bill Welychka, who just released the second edition of in his book, A Happy Has-Been: Exciting Times and Lessons Learned by One of Canada’s Foremost Entertainment Journalists, saw them play several times and interviewed the brothers many times, compiled in an 2005 45-minute Story of Oasis special for MuchMoreMusic, and came in by train from Kingston, Ont. for last night’s show. 

“As a longtime fan, seeing the brothers hold hands coming out, like they did in Wales, was something that I thought I would never see again,” he tells Now Toronto. “I’m so glad they buried the hatchet. And to hear, for many years, Noel saying, ‘No, there’s never gonna be a reunion, never gonna be a reunion,’ and then it happened. 

“A sold-out Rogers Stadium, it was magnificent, and it made me so happy. It lifted my spirits. You can just look around and see the smiles, see the reaction of how important it was for these two guys to start talking to each other again. It’s a huge show without any record to sell. Just seeing these two brothers, and who’s in the band?  I was asking around me, ‘Who’s playing drums? Who’s on bass?’ And it didn’t matter. It’s just seeing the Gallagher brothers back. 

@nowtoronto Rain or shine, Oasis brought the energy to Toronto last night — Live ’25 Tour was unforgettable 🔥🎶 Were you there to catch the show? #Oasis #Toronto ♬ original sound – Now Toronto

“I certainly got the feeling that there was something special to a lot of people,” he continues. “For some people, this is their Led Zeppelin reunion. It brings you back to a place and time and an energy and a feeling that they haven’t experienced, in some cases, for decades, and it becomes a touchstone to an important place in their lives and in their heart and their spirit that they’re getting back for one night, and that is priceless.

“I don’t think most people live in the past, but every now and then when you can dip your toe into nostalgia, it makes you feel good. A lot of people did bring their kids or maybe they had never seen Oasis.”

(Courtesy: Karen Bliss)

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For the record, who’s in the band besides Noel and Liam? Guitarists Gem Archer and Paul “Bonehead” Arthurs, bassist Andy Bell, new drummer Joey Waronker, keyboardist Christian Madden, and a horn section of Alastair White, Joe Auckland and Steve Hamilton. 

The setlist — roughly half coming from the band’s first two albums, 1994’s breakthrough debut, Definitely Maybe, and 1995’s (What’s The Story) Morning Glory — has remained unchanged, including “Supersonic,” “Live Forever,” “Wonderwall,” “Don’t Look Back In Anger,” “Champagne Supernova” and “Morning Glory.” 

The Brit-pop leaders, which have sold 75 million albums worldwide, played their very first Canadian show in Toronto back in October 1994 at Lee’s Palace for about 500 people — just two months after the release of the yet-to-be iconic Definitely Maybe — and next played the 1200-cap. Phoenix Concert Theatre, in March, 1995, getting bigger and bigger each time they came here. A year later, they were headlining Air Canada Centre (now Scotiabank Arena).

They played Molson Park, in Barrie, Ont., in Aug. 1996 on a bill behind just behind Neil Young & Crazy Horse; Maple Leaf Gardens in January, 1998; the Gardens again in April 2000; Molson Amphitheatre in May 2001; a special gig at The Warehouse (now The Guvernment) Dec. 2005; and another underplay at Danforth Music Hall in Nov. 2006.  

Oasis’ last appearance before their breakup, was Sept. 7, 2008, headlining Virgin Festival on Toronto Island Park, which turned dangerous when a fan attacked Noel onstage, causing three broken ribs when he crashed into the monitor.

“I wasn’t there for Lee’s or Phoenix, but probably every one since, including a private Molson show at the Kool Haus,” Kieran Roy, president and co-owner of indie label Arts & Crafts, tells Now Toronto. “Last night was as good as any of them,” he says of the Sunday show.

(Courtesy: Karen Bliss)

So, how did the Canadian Oasis fans measure up to the UK fans?

Leeds’ native Dan Trevethan’s first-ever concert at 16 was Oasis in 1995 at Manchester’s since demolished Maine Road stadium and he’s seen them in Europe, Asia, and now Canada. He caught one of the five Manchester reunion shows and flew to Toronto to catch the first show with longtime friends Ben Kowalewicz and Ian D’Sa from rock band Billy Talent. 

@nowtoronto As a legendary British band known for tumultuous sibling spats and years of silence, #Oasis sounded anything but distant as they stormed the Rogers Stadium on Sunday and Monday night. 🎸Read more at nowtoronto.com #Toronto #RogersStadium ♬ original sound – Now Toronto

“It was definitely more crazy in Manchester,” he tells Now Toronto. “British people, in general, go crazy for them, and when it’s been that long, it’s extra crazy. They were a whole scene back in the day. That was a huge movement, but speaking to people over here, they say, ‘Great couple of albums, enjoyed the shows,’ but they’re not as fanatical as the UK. 

“But I thought everyone was enthusiastic, took the jokes well, because that’s what those two do, right? They make jokes out of everything and biggest laugh of the night is when they called you guys a bunch of French c**ts for booing Manchester. That was funny. We were all laughing about that.”

Oasis next play Chicago, this Thursday, at Soldier Field, then have two shows in East Rutherford, N.J., at MetLife Stadium; two at Pasadena, Calif.’s Rose Bowl, before hitting Mexico City, back to London, then South Korea, Japan, Australia, Argentina, Chile and Brazil, concluding Nov. 23. There are unconfirmed rumours of more dates in 2026.