14 Songs

14 Songs is the first solo album by the American musician Paul Westerberg, released in 1993. It followed the final Replacements album, All Shook Down, and the dissolution of the band.

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
Stereo Review wrote that "Westerberg writes about everyday things without pretense, taking comfort in the ordinary and passing on wisdom in small doses... Perhaps consequently, if anything rings a little hollow here it's rockers like 'Silver Naked Ladies' and 'Something Is Me', which aim for a rambunctious 'Mats/Faces devil-may-care feeling but sound a mite forced." The Indianapolis Star opined that "while it's lamentable that Westerberg continues to put distance between him and that true Mats sound, it's good to have rock's sublime poet/jester back."

By March 1996, 14 Songs had sold over 161,000 copies in the United States.

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