The Rain

The Rain were the Manchester band that eventually evolved into Oasis. The band formed in Manchester, England in 1991, taking their name from The Beatles' B-side, "Rain". Founding members were Paul "Bonehead" Arthurs (guitar), Paul "Guigsy" McGuigan (bass), Chris Hutton (vocals). Drummer Tony McCarroll joined shortly after the band formed to replace their drum machine and Hutton was replaced as vocalist by Liam Gallagher, who became the band's songwriter, in partnership with Arthurs. In this partnership, they wrote several songs including "Take Me" and "Life in Vain". The band rehearsed only one day a week and did not perform at shows often.

Shortly after Liam joined, the band was renamed Oasis, at his suggestion. Various explanations of the origins of the name have been offered, however, it came about when Liam’s older brother Noel roadied for the Inspiral Carpets at a venue in Swindon called the Oasis Leisure Centre. Liam reportedly liked the name's "resonance of imagery."

One day in August 1991, Noel, having recently returned from the Inspiral Carpets' tour of the U.S., went to watch his brother's band perform at the Manchester Boardwalk, supporting a band called Sweet Jesus. Noel offered to join, reportedly on condition that he would be the lead guitarist and they would perform only his songs. Noel made an instant impact on the band, he began to introduce new sounds and ways of creating music. After a few small warm up gigs in towns such as Middlesbrough, the band decided to produce Definitely Maybe, under the name of Oasis.

The Rain (disambiguation)

The Rain were a band from Manchester, England, that eventually evolved into Oasis.

The Rain may also refer to:

See also

The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly)

"The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly)" is a 1997 hit song recorded by American rapper Missy "Misdemeanor" Elliott. It was written and composed by Don Bryant, Bernard "Bernie" Miller, Elliott, and producer Timbaland for her debut album Supa Dupa Fly (1997) and contains a sample of Ann Peebles' 1973 single "I Can't Stand the Rain", whose lyrics serve as the chorus.

The song was released to U.S. radio stations on May 20, 1997, and the Hype Williams-directed video was released to video shows starting June 3, 1997. The song entered the Hot R&B Airplay chart in mid-June, and peaked at #6 the week of August 9, 1997. It peaked at #51 on the Hot 100 Airplay chart the following week.

The song was released as the album's lead single on July 2, 1997 (see 1997 in music), and reached the top twenty in the United Kingdom and New Zealand. VH1 ranked the song 99th on VH1's 100 Greatest Songs of the '90s. And in 2010 Pitchfork Media included the song at number 33 on their Top 200 Tracks of the 90s. In 1998, "The Rain (Supa Dupa Fly)" was named the fourth-best single of 1997 by the The Village Voice's annual-year end Pazz & Jop critics' poll.

Stranded in the Jungle

"Stranded in the Jungle" is a song originally recorded by the American doo-wop group the Jay Hawks. It was written by Ernestine Smith and the band's first tenor, James Johnson. The Jay Hawks' version of the song peaked at #18 on the Billboard Magazine Best Selling Popular Retail Records Chart.

Cover versions

Recording cover versions of contemporary songs was standard industry practice during the 1940s and 1950s. A hit song could generate many different versions: pop and instrumental, polka, blues, hillbilly and others by a variety of artists. The American doo wop group, The Cadets, were the first to cover the Jay Hawks' hit, with the Gadabouts not far behind. All three groups proved to be one-hit wonders, with "Stranded in the Jungle" being the only top-40 hit for any of them. The Rhythm Rockets and the Johnston Brothers (B-side to "In the Middle of the House" by the Johnston Brothers and the Keynotes) also covered it in 1956.

Cadets version

The Cadets' "Stranded in the Jungle" is likely the best known version. It sat at #16 on the Best Selling Popular Retail Records Chart the same week the Jay Hawks' version reached #18 (July 18, 1956). A week later, it peaked at #15 on the sales chart and at #3 on the U.S. Rhythm and Blues chart (the Gadabouts peaked at #39 on the pop chart one week later). The Cadets version features spoken verses by Will "Dub" Jones (who would go on to sing bass on most of The Coasters' hits) with a duet refrain by Willie Davis and Aaron Collins. It was during the final refrain of the song that Prentice Moreland delivers the line, "Great Googa Mooga! Lemme outta here!"