Talk about anticipation. Ever since leaked soundcheck demos of this song appeared on the internet, much interest has attended its inevitable studio rendering. We can happily report that the results meet every expectation and then some.

With piano and acoustic guitar guiding him, Noel - moody, delicate and restless - sings, "If I had a gun, I'd shoot a hole into the sun/ and love would burn this city down for you" in this quasi-Wonderwall-like gem.

Haunting background vocals create a stirring leitmotif. If I Had A Gun pops with electric guitars, heading right into the first chorus in which Noel intones, "'Scuse me if I spoke too soon/ my eyes have always followed you around the room/ 'cause you're the only God I will ever need/ I'm holding on and waiting or you to find me."

That's major-league writing, in what will surely become a modern-rock standard. Noel keeps his delivery in check, never surrendering to showboating, and even as the instruments pile up and peak around him, he stays the course. A hands-down winner, this one.