If {^Definitely Maybe} was an unintentional concept album about wanting to be a {\rock & roll} star, {^(What's the Story) Morning Glory?} is what happens after the dreams come true. {$Oasis} turns in a relatively introspective second record, filled with big, gorgeous {\ballads} instead of ripping {\rockers}. Unlike {^Definitely Maybe}, the production on {^Morning Glory} is varied enough to handle the range in emotions; instead of drowning everything with amplifiers turned up to 12, there are strings, keyboards, and harmonicas. This expanded production helps give {$Noel Gallagher}'s sweeping melodies an emotional resonance that he occasionally can't convey lyrically. However, that is far from a fatal flaw; {$Gallagher}'s lyrics work best in fragments, where the images catch in your mind and grow, thanks to the music. {$Gallagher} may be guilty of some borrowing, or even plagiarism, but he uses the familiar riffs as building blocks. This is where his genius lies: He's a thief and doesn't have many original thoughts, but as a {\pop/rock} melodicist he's pretty much without peer. Likewise, as musicians, {$Oasis} are hardly innovators, yet they have a majestic grandeur in their sound that makes {\ballads} like {&"Wonderwall"} or {\rockers} like {&"Some Might Say"} positively transcendent. {$Alan White} does add authority to the rhythm section, but the most noticeable change is in {$Liam Gallagher}. His voice sneered throughout {^Definitely Maybe}, but on {^Morning Glory} his singing has become more textured and skillful. He gives the lyric in the raging title track a hint of regret, is sympathetic on {&"Wonderwall,"} defiant on {&"Some Might Say,"} and humorous on {&"She's Electric,"} a bawdy rewrite of {&"Digsy's Diner."} It might not have the immediate impact of {^Definitely Maybe}, but {^Morning Glory} is just as exciting and compulsively listenable. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide