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Alan White, born 26 May 1972, in Eltham, South London, is an English drummer. He was the drummer of English rock group Oasis between 1995 and 2004.

Before Oasis (1987-1994)

Alan White was a highly regarded studio drummer before joining Oasis. In 1987 he joined future Oasis member Gem Archer's band Whirlpool."He came down and just blew us all away," remembers Archer [1].. "I thought he was mega but the others were worried what a 15-years-old kid on the road and on the lager would be like. I rang his dad and told him: 'Sorry. But don't worry he's fantastic. He'll go all the way.' And he did. It was the weirdest day when he welcomed me to Oasis. And he hasn't let me forget it." White also played drums on Andy Bell's wife's solo album, forming a connection with another future Oasis member. Prior to joining Oasis, White drummed with London-based band Starclub.

White's brother, Steve White had played with Paul Weller's Style Council and various other famous musicians, including The Who. Because of this famous connection, Alan mentioned that Steve impacted greatly his development as a drummer. His other influences include Ringo Starr, Chad Smith, Mick Avory, and John Bonham.

White replaced original Oasis drummer Tony McCarroll in May 1995 and was immediately "thrown in the deep end", joining the band the very next day to perform a playback of Some Might Say in front of a national TV audience on BBC1's long running music programme Top of The Pops. One of White's first live shows with Oasis was in front of a massive crowd at the Glastonbury Festival in June 1995.

Until the arrival of Gem Archer and Andy Bell in the Autumn of 1999, White was the token southerner in the otherwise Mancunian Oasis. Initially known, inventively, as 'Whitey', he was later re-christened 'Dave' by the band because he once served himself a drink from an unattended bar, therefore resembling the character Dave from "The Winchester" in the '70s TV series Minder. White commented on the "North/South divide" saying it was not that bad, but "for ages I was the 'Cockney cunt' and they were the 'Manc fuckers'". In his book "What's the Story?" Ian Robertson stated that White was also known by the phrase "Alan White - He's alright".

Oasis Career (1995-2004)

White was also entrusted with the job of being Liam Gallagher's 'official' drinking partner and was also said to be his best friend in the band. Together the pair were known as 'Bert and Ernie', named after the Sesame Street-characters. In December 2002 Liam and White were involved in a high-profile brawl in a German bar. Consequently, Liam lost some of his front teeth and was arrested by the authorities. Alan, however, was inebriated and had a brain scan in a hospital afterwards after suffering minor head injuries.

Noel has stated that Alan had a far greater significance to the band than a mere session and touring drummer, claiming that he helped immensely in the recording process[citation needed]. Noel also said that when he wrote a song he would play it to White who would often adapt the rhythm of the song or advise Gallagher on possible changes in the tempo.[citation needed] However, his style has been criticised for contributing to some of the bands more overblown moments, which earned Oasis' 1997 Be Here Now and 2000 Standing on the Shoulder of Giants a critical panning.

At the time of his departure White was the longest serving member in Oasis beside the Gallaghers and passed through thin and thick with the band. He had supported the act from their years of glory during the Britpop hysteria and to their fall-out at the end of the decade. Although that longtime performers Paul McGuigan and Paul Arthurs quit the band during times of pressure, he decided to stay on with the band. The Gallaghers, for their part, have referred to White as the "best fucking drummer" they've ever played with.

Alan performed on 4 of Oasis' 6 studio albums: (What's the Story) Morning Glory? (1995), Be Here Now (1997), Standing on the Shoulder of Giants (2000) and Heathen Chemistry (2002). He also played on the majority of band's b-sides, some of which were released on the b-side record The Masterplan (1998).

White married model Liz Atkins on 13 August 1997 at Studley Priory Hotel, Oxfordshire. He had met her on the set of the "Don't Look Back in Anger" music video. The couple divorced in 2000.

Departure From Oasis

In early 2004, White surprisingly left Oasis during the early recording sessions for the band's sixth album. According to Oasis' spokesperson there were some new tracks and demos with White's performance as well, which were made at the end 2003 and early 2004 at the first sessions for their upcoming album, before his surprising departure. Due to his departure, the band scrapped the first midway sessions and later suffered some prolonged and difficult recording for Don't Believe the Truth (2005).

In a recent interview, Noel also alluded to White's personal problems: "He's a fucking great guy and he's one of the best drummers I've ever met in my life, but his personal life is fucking chaos," a possible reference to White's alleged romantic woes.

The rumours surrounding White's departure, either revolved around his past tendonitis problem or the false accusations of his leaking Heathen Chemistry. Amidst all the turmoil, Steve White, Alan's brother, explained to a fan in early 2005 that his brother was just tired and didn't want to be in Oasis anymore, so he left to patch up his relationship with his girlfriend; "The spirit of being in a band was kicked out of him." However, Steve reassured the Oasis fan that his brother was in a good mood and condition and hinted that Alan possibly can continue his drumming – "Perhaps some time soon, but he is very happy and very healthy and keeping very well". He currently resides in the Chicago suburbs with the love of his life, Christine.

White was replaced with Zak Starkey – The Who drummer and the son of The Beatles' legend Ringo Starr. Ringo particularly was cited as one of White's biggest drumming influences.

In March 2007, the remaining members of Oasis paid White £348,000 to buy him out of their company "Definitely Maybe", in order to free place for Zak Starkey as an official drummer and member of the band.

Post-Oasis

For his part, White has kept a low profile since his departure, excluding a statement to a drumming site, where he said that the tendonitis rumours are "utter shit" and that the reasons are others. As of January 2007, 3 years after his departure of the band, White has remained out of the spotlight and he has no familiar drumming occupations at the moment.

His brother Steve has explained a couple of times in his website that Alan "is just having a nice time, he has pursued other interests in business. At the moment he has no plans at the minute to get behind the drums, his departure from the band left him with the feeling that the music business is full of bullshit and bullshitters."

Source: Wikipedia

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