'Don't Look Back In Anger' takes title of most played Oasis song of 21st Century

‘Don’t Look Back In Anger’ has been revealed as Oasis’s most played track on UK radio and TV in the 21st century, according to new data from music licensing company PPL. Following the band’s euphoric live return to universally glowing five-star reviews in Cardiff, and ahead of a run of homecoming gigs in Manchester, PPL has crunched the numbers to reveal the top ten most played Oasis songs, and to show in detail how their music has soundtracked the UK’s airwaves over the last 25 years.

 

PPL, which licenses the use of recorded music on radio, TV and in public places, has compiled the chart of Oasis’s most played songs in the 21st century using airplay data from radio and TV stations across the UK, which it collects in order to pay performers and recording rightsholders for the use of their music.

 

The data shows that Oasis have racked up over seven years of cumulative airplay on UK radio and TV stations since the turn of the century, with their songs being played, on average, 120 times per day across the country.

 

‘Don’t Look Back In Anger’ takes the title of the band’s most played song, closely followed by ‘Wonderwall’ in second place. ‘She’s Electric’, ‘Roll With It’ and ‘Little By Little’ complete the top five. ‘Live Forever’, the third single ever released by the band, is the highest-ranking track from their debut album Definitely Maybe and continues to make a mark on radio and TV more than 30 years after release. (What's the Story) Morning Glory?, the band’s seismic second album, dominates the list, providing six of the top ten tracks.

 

 

 

PPL also reviewed the impact of two major updates from the band: the announcement in May 2024 that it would release a 30th anniversary edition of Definitely Maybe, and the subsequent tour announcement in August.  Both events had a swift effect on Oasis’s presence on radio and TV.

 

Formed in Manchester in 1991, Oasis were catapulted to fame upon the release of their debut album Definitely Maybe in 1994, which topped the album charts and quickly became the fastest-selling debut album in British history at the time. Their second album (What's the Story) Morning Glory? is one of the best-selling albums of all time and was the biggest selling album of the 1990s in the UK. Last week the band announced details of deluxe formats to celebrate the era-defining album’s landmark 30-year anniversary. It will feature new unplugged versions of five classic recordings ‘Cast No Shadow’, ‘Morning Glory’, ‘Wonderwall’, ‘Acquiesce’ and ‘Champagne Supernova’. Released on the 3 October on Big Brother Recordings, (What’s The Story) Morning Glory? (30th Anniversary Deluxe Edition) is available for pre-order here.

All their subsequent five albums, spanning from 1997 to 2008, also reached number 1 in the UK and countries around the world.  Overall, Oasis have sold more than 70 million records worldwide and have long been one of the UK’s most recognisable and celebrated bands. They continuously reach a new generation of younger adoring fans and over a million people are set to attend their UK tour dates this summer.

Peter Leathem OBE, CEO of PPL, said: “Oasis are one of the most iconic, era-defining bands we have ever seen. They dominated the 1990s and 2000s, and for many they personified those decades, but their timeless songs continue to resonate with audiences even long after their release. With their reunion tour underway, this chart provides the perfect opportunity to look back in admiration at the enduring impact of their music throughout this century, and to celebrate one of the greatest British bands of all time.”

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