Although Heathen Chemistry was a very poor album, both commercially, critically, and also musically noted by fans, there were a few gems on it that suggested that perhaps Oasis were on it again musically after the misadventures of the excesses of Be Here Now and Standing On The Shoulder Of Giants that came before it. There was an increasing need for some of the songs that had everything thrown at them in a musical sense to be scaled back a bit. This trend continued throughout most of Oasis’s music during the 2000s. Despite all this, Stop Crying Your Heart Out is still one of the most popular and well-received Oasis songs to date. For that reason, this EP release is worth checking out. Let’s hear it.

Stop Crying Your Heart Out begins with some slow and heavy piano chugging away, ala Imagine, just before Liam Gallagher gets singing away very well. “Hold up, hold on, don’t be scared…you’ll never change what’s been and gone…” are fantastic lyrics, and this song continues on nicely as well, with a lot of gorgeous sounds and textures. When the chorus hits you, you are taken away to a better place musically, and this is a perfect song to bring hope and positivity to someone when they have been hit for six, so to speak. This is a beautiful acoustic guitar ballad with Mellotron string sections, lush sounds, and an emotional musical message. The midsection with a repeated guitar figure and delicious harmonies from Noel Gallagher is here. This is fantastic music, and a great and wonderful tune is here. Fine artistry and a top song, Oasis made their best song from Heathen Chemistry here, and it is a gem. If you are an Oasis fan, you need to hear this song. Magical music and Liam Gallagher sings beautifully here. The long outro has a great array of gorgeous sounds and textures. Alan White’s drumming is a bit lackluster here, which explains why he sounds mixed out. The outro is gorgeous, acoustic guitars and electric guitar harmonics are here. Nice tune indeed.

Thank You For The Good Times begins with crunchy guitars and fairly simple riffs galore. It is a strange listen, but nonetheless, quite good for the Heathen Chemistry era. Liam Gallagher’s voice is fairly raspy and tuneless here, and his singing shows some incredible aging here from his 1995-1996 heyday. Still, this is a good song, but not a great one. It’s still enjoyable and listenable though and is excellent proof that Noel Gallagher wrote and made songs that were often looked over and ignored. This is happy, positive, and spirited music, and it is also a good piece of music, despite Liam’s ordinary singing here. Sadly, Liam Gallagher’s voice was in rapid decline here and he was past his 1990s magical note-perfect singing. This is a nice little number to hear all the same. The outro is interesting and euphoric listening, and this is quite good for a B-Side. Nice tune, it ends with a little bit of cool drumming from Alan White, before concluding. Sweet.

Shout It Out Loud is the last tune here, and it begins with hi-hats and strummed acoustic guitars. This is a really pretty listen, and it quickly launches into a crunchy guitar-led piece that is very good. Noel Gallagher sings this one, and he sounds motivated and profound in his vocal delivery. Again, like the track before it, it is big proof of the fact that Noel Gallagher put underrated and overlooked tunes as B-Sides on his EP releases. Goodness knows why. Still, this is a good tune that sounds a bit like Angel Child in its vocal melody. It has a Psychedelic edge to it musically, complete with a Fender Stratocaster sounding guitar solo that is very David Gilmour-esque. Noel is a real genius of musical talent, even if he doesn’t market his own music that way. A pretty and decent listen and something people should hear more of. Better than most of the trite on Heathen Chemistry, it makes one wonder about Noel Gallagher’s own musical marketing. A strong effort and a singalong piece with some interesting sonic sounds to it.

This is a very good release from Oasis which still sounds very decent today. Liam Gallagher and Noel Gallagher in particular put in the effort to make one smile, particularly with the title track of this EP. Is it worth listening to? Absolutely, especially for Stop Crying Your Heart Out itself. A good reminder that Oasis at their best was about exuding an array of positive emotions that words cannot describe. A nice little EP, and a joy to hear.

Definitely back on track.

8/10