What makes Oasis one of the greatest bands of all time? It beats me. They're not the cleverest popsmiths around. And Noel Gallagher plays fast and loose with originality. Even their album art seems neither-here-nor-there most of the time.

Oasis makes me want to smile and cry and pump my fist. They make me want to sing along -- even to admittedly derivative and silly songs. They've discovered some warm fuzzy place at the heart of British guitar music, channeling the Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Who, The Stone Roses, The La's...but they generate a sound that somehow remains unmistakably Oasis. I read someone mentioning that initially they didn't get Oasis, until one day they heard them loud -- earsplittingly loud. And then they understood.

I was reminded of how great they were by a song I discovered today -- it isn't on any albums. It's called "Whatever" and it's clearly a rip-off of a Neil Innes song. But Noel turned a cute novelty song with a good tune into a sublime, timeless anthem. It's the kind of song that is so beautiful I feel spent by the end of it (and then I play it again).

Oasis - Whatever [listen] [watch]

And here's another slightly hard-to-find track:

Oasis - Round Are Way [listen]