Paul Westerberg started his musical career fronting the 80s alternative rock icons, The Replacements. Upon their break-up in 1991, Westerberg wasted no time getting to work on a solo career, contributing two tracks to the soundtrack for the hit movie Singles. Both should have helped him break onto the charts, but despite appreciable airplay, neither "Dyslexic Heart" or "Waiting For Somebody" took off. His first solo record, "14 Songs," should have introduced the world to Westerberg's songwriting genius, but for some reason it failed to happen. This is one of the best records of the 90s in my book. Ever prolific, Westerberg continued to release records under his name, as well as Grandpaboy, and has appeared on lots of soundtracks and tribute albums. Most notably, some of his best work in years appears on the soundtrack to the 2006 animated film Open Season. In 2015, he teamed up with Juliana Hatfield to release a singe album as The I Don't Cares. While his more recent efforts are low-fi adventures from his basement studio, I rank his work during the late 80s and early 90s with some of finest tunes out there. "World Class Fad," from his 1993 solo debut, should have made Westerberg the household name he deserves to be.
I've often thought of 90s darling Juliana Hatfield as the female Paul Westerberg, which is strangely predictive of her recent 2016 collaboration album with him under the moniker The I Don't Cares. But back in the 90s this singer/songwriter from Maine played with The Lemonheads and in her own outfit, The Juliana Hatfield Three. She went solo in 1994, scoring two minor hits with "Spin The Bottle" (#97), which was featured in the movie Reality Bites, and "Universal Heart-Beat" (#84). I've never quite figured out why songs like these didn't fare better. Perhaps her sugary voice was too sweet for grungy guitars?
