By Josh 
Let’s be honest—Oasis were always magpies when it came to rock history. They’d snag bits and pieces from their heroes, mash them up, and turn them into something you couldn’t stop singing along to. And yeah, their Beatles obsession? Not exactly a secret. But it wasn’t just John, Paul, George, and Ringo who inspired Noel Gallagher. At some point, he thought, “Why not borrow from the god of guitar himself, Jimi Hendrix?”
Now, let’s be real—if you’ve touched a guitar in the last 50 years, Hendrix has probably influenced you, whether you know it or not. The guy was a force—from the raw power of ‘Purple Haze’ to the soul-crushing sweetness of ‘The Wind Cries Mary,’ and even his proto-metal riffs on tracks like ‘Spanish Castle Magic.’ Jimi wasn’t just playing the guitar; he was bending it to his will.
But Noel? He wasn’t exactly about to shred like Hendrix. Sure, he could write a killer tune, but his solos leaned more towards heartfelt and raw (think Neil Young) than flashy or face-melting. So instead of trying to outplay the master, Noel focused on the vibe—specifically, the grooves. Enter ‘Little Miss Lover,’ with its ridiculously cool drum shuffle courtesy of Mitch Mitchell. Noel took one listen and thought, “Yeah, that’ll do nicely.”
And boom—out came ‘Fuckin’ In the Bushes.’ While not a direct sample, the track lifts the spirit of Mitchell’s groove and gives it that Oasis swagger. Alan White smashes out the drums, Noel tosses in some bluesy licks, and the whole thing feels like a mix of gritty Hendrix funk and glam-rock mischief à la T. Rex or Ziggy-era Bowie. It’s dirty. It’s cheeky. It’s fun.
Compared to their last instrumental, the meh-worthy ‘The Swamp Song,’ this track is a massive step up. With trippy vocal samples scattered throughout, it’s the kind of psychedelic chaos that pulls you in before the album’s first proper song, ‘Go Let It Out,’ takes over.
But here’s the kicker—the rest of Standing on the Shoulder of Giants? Kind of a buzzkill. After the raw energy of ‘Fuckin’ In the Bushes,’ the album slows down into a reflective, moody vibe where Noel deals with personal demons and some big existential questions. It’s not bad—just not the barn-burning rock fest the opener teases.
Still, ‘Fuckin’ In the Bushes’ wasn’t really about promises. It was about saying, “Oi, we’re back.” After the overblown madness of Be Here Now and a few years of radio silence, Oasis came storming in with a Hendrix groove and a Manchester-sized chip on their shoulders. And for that brief moment, they felt unstoppable again.