Ballad Of The Mighty I

Album: Chasing Yesterday (2015)
Charted: 54
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Songfacts®:

  • Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds close Chasing Yesterday with this emotional track. Gallagher told Q magazine the song sums up the album's lyrical theme - "The things in life that will always remain slightly out of reach." He explained: "The hope in this song is that the chase is what is great.... Put it this way, I'm not sure I really want (favorite soccer team) Manchester City to win the Champions League for ten successive seasons. It shouldn't be that easy."

    "I don't like to use the word 'journey,' because you sound like a contestant on a reality TV show, but surely the journey is better than a destination."
  • The song finds Johnny Marr joining Noel Gallagher on guitar duties. "I tried to get him to play on the last album but it never happened," said Gallagher. "So when I put this track together and knew he would be perfect for it I called him and asked if I could send him the rough mix. He said: 'No, I don't want to hear it. I'm just going to react to it on the day.' He didn't even want any pointers. Well, that was brave of him. He just arrived with two guitars and a bag of effects pedals. And I have to say, he's unbelievable. He's way up there, on another level to the rest of us. The result is a burst of energy that helped make Mighty I one of the best songs I've ever written."
  • The former Smiths guitarist spoke to NME about his appearance on the track. "[Noel] contacted me and said he had a song that he'd be happy for me to play on," Marr said. "I accepted, gladly, and it was was really good to spend a day playing guitar in a little studio near Chelsea Bridge."

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