Alan White (drummer) - Definition and Overview

Alan White (born 26 May 1972, Eltham, South London) was the drummer of British rock group Oasis from 1995 to 2004. White, whose brother Steve was then drummer for Paul Weller's Style Council, replaced original drummer Tony McCaroll in summer of 1995, during the recording of (What's the Story) Morning Glory—only "Some Might Say" has McCaroll's performance. During their first meeting, Noel Gallagher told White to finish his tea, gave him a tape of Shakermaker and go home to learn it. His first gig, the very next day, was Top of the Pops, his second was, even more nerve-wrackingly, Glastonbury. White's brother, Steve White, is also a prolific drummer, who's working with Paul Weller—praised as an initiator of the Britpop movement—and various other famous musicians. Alan had mentioned that Steve made big impact in his development as a drummer.

Whitey (as he's known among the press and fans) had drummed on 4 studio albums, including one b-side collection: (What's the Story) Morning Glory (1995), Be Here Now (1997), the Masterplan (1998), Standing on the Shoulder of Giants (2000) and Heathen Chemistry (2002). According to Oasis' spokesperson there were some new tracks and demos with Whitey's drumming as well, which were made at the end of 2003 for their future album.

In 2004, White left Oasis during the early recording sessions for the bands sixth album. Rumours began to circulate about the reasons for his departure. One such rumour was that Alan was asked to leave the band when it was discovered that he had been responsible for the leaking of Heathen Chemistry onto the Internet, three months before its official release. Alan, who had several copies of the finished disc, allowed one copy to be put in the hands of an NME reporter, who went on to leak it to his colleagues. Oasis members have since denied this. The second rumor was that Alan had developed tendonitis and needed a rest. During a previous tour Oasis had had to cancel gigs as a result of White's condition (resulting in a brawl between the Gallaghers, which saw Noel abandon the foreign leg of the tour), and Steve White took over Alan's drumming duties for a section of the tour. Alan White himself has denied this explanation and he said that his career will continue, but did not mention the real reason for his dismissal. Later, Noel Gallagher in an inteview about the upcoming and untitled album said that Alan White just didn't spent enough time with the band in the studio and would lay down his sticks as soon as the album and the tour are finished.

In early 2005, Steve White shed some light on the situation on his website (http://www.whiteydrums.com/), explaining what his brother was doing at the moment. According to Steve, Alan has no commitments at the moment and had no intentions to drum for another band in the foreseeable future. He also said that his brother was tired of the band: "The spirit of being in a band was kicked out of him, maybe sometime soon, but he is very happy and very healthy and keeping very well".