(What's The Story) Morning Glory? singlehandedly revives the faith that British rock will make everything all right. Oasis combines the mid-Sixties pinache of the Small Faces with late-Seventies Rotten sneer and a timeless John and Paul veneer; guitarist Noel Gallagher has become a marvelous rock writer. While "Wonderwall," a reference to an obscure George Harrison solo album, eats up the airwaves like some latter day "Stairway", it seems unlikely that Oasis can still be alternative.

The surprise is that Morning Glory has inscrutable depth; it does not merely rework Gary Glitter, Paul Weller, and Lennon/McCartney material, but offers powerfully original songs such as "Some Might Say", "Don't Look Back in Anger", and "She's Electric." These tunes are as they used to call'em, 'album tracks,' (meaning they may never grace the airwaves). A shame, but the system dictates that.

Fact is that the variety, texture and depth of this disc justify an immediate purchase. The catchy choruses bring out the best of British Pop, the verse-chorus transitions such as the line "Cos I've been standing in the station in need of education in the rain" from "Some Might Say" invoke the point of view of someone other than a victimized, post-Cobain, angst ridden, grunge rehasher that you get all too often these days-- how refreshing. Memorable for how it synthesizes disparate rock elements such as the daubs of Ronson-esque glam rock guitar on "Look Back", the mod aesthetic, white powder references and Beatles bridges-- it's the kind of stuff music critics can think of but never get together.