Music Friday: Unlucky-in-Love Liam Gallagher Is Shining Like a ‘Diamond in the Dark’

Welcome to Music Friday when we bring new brand new tunes with jewelry, gemstones or precious metals in the lyrics or title. Today, former Oasis frontman Liam Gallagher laments his recent separation from a long-time love in the 2022 release, "Diamond in the Dark."

In the song he co-wrote with Michael Tighe and Andrew Wyatt, Gallagher uses gemstone imagery to paint a picture of a forlorn romantic suffering from loneliness, confusion and depression.

He sings, "I’m shining like a diamond in the dark / I’m floating like a lion in the ark / I’m walking round in circles through the park / And no tough talk will erase you."

The diamond in the dark represents something that could be beautiful and brilliant, but has failed to reach its potential. In fact, a diamond in the dark doesn't shine at all, because diamonds can only sparkle in the presence of light.

Released as the fourth single from Gallagher's third solo album, C'mon You Know, "Diamond in the Dark" has met with critical acclaim. Faroutmagazine.co.uk called the song "a top-down, driving anthem while basking in the summer sun with a slice of psychedelia thrown in for good measure." The album charted in 17 countries, including the coveted #1 spot on the UK Albums chart and #16 position on the Billboard US Top Album Sales chart.

Gallagher rose to fame during his successful 18-year run (1991 to 2009) as the frontman for the British rock band, Oasis. The group's biggest hit, "Wonderwall" (1995), sold 2.4 million copies.

The 49-year-old native of Manchester, England, launched his solo career in 2017 and received the MTV Europe Music Award for "Rock Icon" in 2019.

Please check out the video of Gallagher's live performance of "Diamond in the Dark." The lyrics are below if you'd like to sing along…

"Diamond in the Dark"
Written by Liam Gallagher, Michael Tighe and Andrew Wyatt. Performed by Liam Gallagher.

I left LA today
I’m on another plane
I spent too much time on the dark side of your door
I spent the night awake
Had all that I could take
I might not see those baby blue eyes anymore

Come on
I’m shining like a diamond in the dark
I’m floating like a lion in the ark
I’m walking round in circles through the park
And no tough talk will erase you
Now I know how many holes it takes, too
And I really don’t know how to shake these memories

And there’s a fire in the sky
And baby there’s red dawn in my eyes
And all the meanings got so twisted since you're gone
And I guess I’ll hope you fine
But really you know I hope you’re crying
And there’s a million things to say since you been gone

Come on
I’m shining like a diamond in the dark
I’m floating like a lion in the ark
I’m walking round in circles through the park
And no tough talk will erase you
Now I know how many holes it takes, too
And I really don’t know how to shake these memories

Desperate eyes
Don’t recognize the warning signs
Alibis
They won’t keep you warm at night

So come on
I’m shining like a diamond in the dark
I’m floating like a lion in the ark
I’m walking round in circles through the park
And no tough talk will erase you
Now I know how many holes it takes, too
And I really don’t know how to shake these memories

Now I know how many holes it takes to
And I really don’t know how to shake these memories

Credit: Photo by Thesupermat, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.