Noel Gallagher explained the song's origin in 2006: "It was written going to a studio in Wales to record 'Some Might Say'. The train broke down, and I was stuck for four hours, and I wrote that song. Someone had said 'Acquiesce' on the phone, and I'd written it down".[5] The verses are sung by Liam Gallagher, with the chorus sung by Noel, who said that Liam could not sing the high notes.[6]
Noel Gallagher has said the lyrics are not about him and his brother Liam,[5] a sentiment echoed by Paul Du Noyer in his liner notes of The Masterplan: "The song is about friendship in the widest sense and not, as often speculated, about the Gallagher brothers themselves".[6]
FourFourTwo claimed that in 1995, Oasis was set to record an official song for the football club Manchester City, to be titled "It's Tough Being a Blue When You Come from Where I Do", but this never materialized, and the music was instead used for "Acquiesce".[7]
Release
In October 1998, "Acquiesce" was issued as a radio single in North America to promote the release of The Masterplan. It reached number 24 on the US BillboardModern Rock Tracks chart, number 20 on the Canadian RPMAlternative 30, and number 44 on the RPM Top Singles chart.
"Acquiesce" quickly became an Oasis concert staple. Chris True of Allmusic said that the song "arrives with huge guitars and moves with a midtempo swagger and power that are just infectious" and highlights Noel's vocals on the chorus as taking the song to "glorious heights".[9]
The song's music video is set in Tokyo, though it was filmed in Camden Town, London. It features a Japanese rock band, whose members resemble and share the mannerisms of their Oasis counterparts, performing "Acquiesce" for a frenetic theatre crowd.[11]
