14 Songs (Paul Westerberg album)
14 Songs is the first official solo album from Paul Westerberg, former leader of The Replacements, after the final Replacements album, All Shook Down, was heavily packed with session musicians and marginalized the other three band members.
| 14 Songs | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | June 15, 1993 | |||
| Studio | Coast Recorders, San Francisco; RPM Studios, New York; Paisley Park Studios, Chanhassen, Minneapolis; The Sound Factory, Hollywood | |||
| Genre | Alternative rock | |||
| Length | 47:57 | |||
| Label | Sire/Reprise | |||
| Producer | Paul Westerberg, Matt Wallace | |||
| Paul Westerberg chronology | ||||
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The album features contributions from Ian McLagan, former keyboardist for the Faces, a band that Westerberg has often cited as a favorite.
In an interview included with a special edition of the album, he explained that he started the record jamming with drummer Josh Kelly and former Georgia Satellites bassist Rick Price, but found that the combination wasn't working, requiring him to seek other players. (The only song featuring Kelly and Price is the opener, "Knockin' On Mine.") He also revealed that the album title was a reference to Nine Stories, by J.D. Salinger.
The CD version was packaged in book form, with the disc in a pocket inside the front cover. All numbered pages in the book are page 14, including six pages at the back for "Notes."
Reception
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [1] |
| Entertainment Weekly | B[2] |
| Los Angeles Times | [3] |
| NME | 7/10[4] |
| Q | [5] |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [6] |
| Select | 4/5[7] |
| The Village Voice | B+[8] |
By March 1996, 14 Songs had sold over 161,000 copies in the United States.[9]
Track listing
All tracks are written by Paul Westerberg
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Knockin' On Mine" | 3:43 |
| 2. | "First Glimmer" | 4:55 |
| 3. | "World Class Fad" | 3:27 |
| 4. | "Runaway Wind" | 4:23 |
| 5. | "Dice Behind Your Shades" | 4:11 |
| 6. | "Even Here We Are" | 1:39 |
| 7. | "Silver Naked Ladies" | 4:38 |
| 8. | "A Few Minutes of Silence" | 3:17 |
| 9. | "Someone I Once Knew" | 3:06 |
| 10. | "Black Eyed Susan" | 3:33 |
| 11. | "Things" | 3:21 |
| 12. | "Something Is Me" | 2:18 |
| 13. | "Mannequin Shop" | 3:11 |
| 14. | "Down Love" | 2:15 |
Personnel
- Paul Westerberg – guitar, keyboards, saxophone, vocals
- Matt Wallace – bass, percussion, drums, backing vocals
- John Pierce – bass, piano, backing vocals
- Rick Price – bass, mandolin, backing vocals
- Josh Freese – drums
- Josh Kelly – drums, backing vocals
- Ian McLagan – piano, backing vocals
- Michael Urbano – drums
- Suzanne Dyer – backing vocals
- Joan Jett – backing vocals
- Laurie Lindeen – backing vocals
- Brian MacLeod – drums, backging vocals
Technical personnel
- Produced by Paul Westerberg and Matt Wallace
- Mastered by Doug Sax
- Frank W. Ockenfels 3 - cover photography
References
- Rabid, Jack. "14 Songs – Paul Westerberg". AllMusic. Retrieved January 14, 2009.
- Flaherty, Mike (June 18, 1993). "14 Songs". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved May 9, 2017.
- Willman, Chris (June 6, 1993). "The Accidental Poet Laureate of a Generation". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved May 9, 2017.
- "Paul Westerberg: 14 Songs". NME. June 12, 1993. p. 35.
- "Paul Westerberg: 14 Songs". Q. No. 82. July 1993. p. 101.
- Sheffield, Rob (2004). "Paul Westerberg". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. p. 868. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
- Cavanagh, David (July 1993). "Paul Westerberg: 14 Songs". Select. No. 37. p. 95.
- Christgau, Robert (September 28, 1993). "Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. Retrieved May 9, 2017.
- Rosen, Craig (March 16, 1996). "Paul Westerberg's 'Eventually' Is Now". Billboard. Vol. 108, no. 11. Los Angeles. pp. 14, 22. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved July 3, 2020.
