WHEN Noel Gallagher walked onto the stage at Piece Hall last night, beneath a Yorkshire blue sky, he was always going to rise to the bait.
"Yorkshire Day? What does that mean? Why do you lot get your own day?" he yelled, as the crowd taunted the proud Mancunian with white rose flags and chants of "Yorkshire!"
He may have been this side of the Pennines for the night but - accompanied on stage by a cardboard cut-out of Pep Guardiola, a Manchester City scarf draped around him - Noel made it clear where his heart was.
"This one's for everyone in here who's from Manchester!" We don't need our own day..." he beamed, closing his set with a rousing rendition of Joy Division anthem Love Will Tear Us Apart.
It was hit after hit from Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds - the latest headliners at TK Maxx presents Live at The Piece Hall - who returned to the historic Halifax venue after headlining there in 2022.
The fabulous set opened with Pretty Boy from the most recent album, Council Skies, shifting into the sublime title track.
"We're going back - and we'll end up in the Nineties," said Noel, delivering crowd favourites including AKA...What a Life!, Heat of the Moment, If I Had A Gun... and Dead in the Water, all set to a series of striking videos, from urban North West landscapes to psychedelic dreamscapes.
A first class performance from Noel and his band - the perfect rock soundtrack for a balmy summer evening.
Next came a cluster of Oasis hits - among them The Masterplan, Little by Little, Half the World Away and a cracking encore comprising a stripped back Live Forever, Stand By Me and the big one - Don’t Look Back in Anger.
Opening the night was excellent rising singer-songwriter Andrew Cushin. Brimming with youthful attitude, star charisma and raw talent, he's one to watch.
* The summer continues at TK Maxx presents Live at The Piece Hall tonight with The Verve legend Richard Ashcroft, then punk pioneers The Stranglers tomorrow (Saturday, August 3).
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