14 Years

"14 Years" is a song by the American rock band Guns N' Roses, released in 1991 on their album Use Your Illusion II.^[1]

"14 Years"
Promotional single by Guns N' Roses
from the album Use Your Illusion II
Released	1991
Genre	Hard rock, blues rock, heavy metal
Length	4:16
Label	Geffen
Songwriter(s)	Izzy Stradlin Axl Rose
Producer(s)	Mike Clink Guns N' Roses

Background

The song is one of the few Guns N' Roses tunes sung almost entirely by Izzy Stradlin with Axl Rose singing the chorus.^[2]

"14 Years" was only performed live when Stradlin was still in the band.^[2] It has been speculated^{[by whom?]} to be about Rose's and Stradlin's friendship, with people pointing out that they had known each other for 14 years by the time the song was supposedly written. This has never been confirmed by the band.^[2]

An earlier demo had different lyrics with the first verse and the chorus slightly modified, while the second and third verses were given a complete makeover. Parts of the demo's second verse would be used in the third verse of the final version, while the third verse is a slightly modified version of the demo's first verse. Stradlin would sometimes change the lyrics a bit when singing the song live.^{[citation needed]}

The song was part of the set list at a few live concerts in 2012 featuring Izzy Stradlin.^[3]

Personnel

• W. Axl Rose – backing and co-lead vocals, piano
• Slash – lead guitar
• Izzy Stradlin – rhythm guitar, lead vocals
• Duff McKagan – bass, backing vocals
• Matt Sorum – drums
• Dizzy Reed – organ, (in the video, he's playing the piano)

References

1. "Use Your Illusion II - Guns N' Roses | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved June 1, 2021.
2. "14 Years | GN'R Source". Archived from the original on April 13, 2013. Retrieved June 1, 2021.
3. "Guns N' Roses Setlist at The O2 Arena, London". Setlist.fm. Retrieved June 1, 2021.