ROANOKE TIMES 
                      Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times

DATE: Tuesday, September 17, 1996            TAG: 9609170132
SECTION: EXTRA                    PAGE: 1    EDITION: METRO 
DATELINE: CHARLOTTE, N.C.  
SOURCE: KENNETH JOHNSON KNIGHT-RIDDER/TRIBUNE

WILL OASIS ROCK ON, OR HAS BRITISH GROUP SPLIT UP?

What's the story, morning glory? Did British pop sensation Oasis break up hours before the band was scheduled to appear in the Charlotte area?

That was the question on the lips of a dozen British reporters who called Charlotte media last week after the cancellation of the band's concert Wednesday night at the Charlotte Hornets Training Facility in Fort Mill, S.C.

Epic Records, the group's label, issued a statement on Thursday saying the band also had abruptly canceled the rest of its tour - in Atlanta and three stops in Florida.

``Oasis have hit internal differences on their ninth tour of the U.S., which has resulted in the tour being pulled two-thirds of the way through,'' the statement said.

There was no comment on rumors of a breakup. But The Sun - a London-based British tabloid - reported two of the band members, brothers Noel and Liam Gallagher, had a fistfight at a hotel in Charlotte.

According to The Sun, which cited sources close to the band, the fight occurred at the end of a five-hour ``summit meeting'' among band members. Reportedly, security guards had to be called. The hotel was not identified.

The popular group has become as well-known for the brothers' infighting as for its Beatles-esque pop. At London's Heathrow Airport on Thursday, lead guitarist and songwriter Noel Gallagher refused to speak about the incident, the BBC reported. The band last appeared Tuesday in Virginia.

Hornets Training Facility Manager Marc Farha said they were notified of the cancellation about 6 p.m. Wednesday and got the word out via radio.

Still, about 300 fans showed up.

Approximately 3,500 advance tickets had been sold. The facility holds 5,000 for concerts. The concert had been moved to the training facility from the Independence Arena, which holds 12,000.

Oasis has two top-selling CDs, ``Definitely Maybe'' and ``(What's the Story) Morning Glory?''

LENGTH: Short :   46 lines
ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO:   Lead vocalist Liam Gallagher performs with Oasis at a 
          concert in Texas in the spring.  KRT   color



















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