STYLE VAULT: LIAM GALLAGHER

THE MOST STYLISH MEN IN HISTORY
by Lizzie Homersham 

Oasis lead singer and now Beady Eye vocalist, Liam has such abounding confidence in his fashion sense that recent projects include founding the clothes label Pretty Green. For many of these garments Liam Gallagher himself is the assured model whose self-professed good looks keep him happy and well: "I suppose I do get sad," Liam has remarked in the past. "But not for too long. I just look in the mirror and go, "what a fucking good-looking fuck you are" and then I brighten up." Before we charge him with shameless narcissism, however, Liam is equally sure of the benefits his clothing can bring to other wearers: "You're going to be fucking arrested wearing [Jay-Z's Rocawear] gear and you're going to pull a really nice-looking bird wearing mine." Boasts aside now, the younger Gallagher brother's place in the Style Vault is unarguably well-deserved: his John Lennon inspired glasses may not have made his band bigger than The Beatles (as he once claimed they could be) but, framed by his mod hairstyle and monobrow, since the beginning of Liam's career they have formed the basis of an iconic 60s look that has been relentlessly brought up-to-date. Among his modern additions to a tried and tested image are floral print shirts, duffle coats, red corduroy and leather. At ill-advised but understandable moments given Oasis's contribution to Brit Pop, Liam Gallagher has sported the male version of Ginger Spice's Union jack dress – a full-length parka emblazoned with the British flag. Certain accessories are also find favour about Gallagher's person, among them the tall trilby, paisley print or plain silk scarves and visor style sunglasses. On stage, meanwhile, Liam likes to keep things simple – only a tambourine can come between this musician and his microphone, never a larger instrument, because "I'm not the likes of Mick Jagger, man. I don't think singers who start off singing should play guitar. It looks fucking stupid."

STYLE VAULT FACTS

1. Liam Gallagher may no longer have doubts about his vocal abilities but it was not until his late teens that he begun to practise singing along to bands such as T-Rex, The Who, The Jam and, of course, The Beatles.

2. Oasis's second album What's The Story Morning Glory became the third best-selling album in British chart history.

3. At the height of the Brit Pop era Oasis and Blur went head-to-head in the charts with respective singles "Roll With It" and "Country House" released on the same day in August 1995. Blur outsold Oasis and their victory deemed symbolic of middle-class southerners triumphing over the working-class north.

4. Liam Gallagher is currently one of the people behind a screen adaptation of Richard DiLello's book The Longest Cocktail Party, featuring the late 60s excesses of The Beatles' company Apple Corps.

5. Liam's rants, rages and violent spats have been well documented but his musical achievements, despite a childhood blighted by abuse, can only be applauded.

Lizzie Homersham is editor of The Style Vault for Topman GENERATION.