When the Pawn...

The album's title is a poem Apple wrote in response to unfavorable reactions from readers of an unfavorable Spin magazine cover story about her.[6] Richard Harrington of The Washington Post called it Apple's version of Chumbawamba's "I get knocked down, but I get up again".[6] "It came from being made fun of," she said, "and then, of course, it becomes a thing I'm being made fun of for."[7]

Upon its release, When the Pawn... broke the record for longest album title at 444 characters (previously held by a volume in The Best... Album in the World...Ever!).[8][9] Chumbawamba themselves would end up breaking the record with 2008's The Boy Bands Have Won, whose full title contains 865 characters, nearly twice as many as When the Pawn...'s. The album was produced and mixed by Jon Brion and co-mixed and engineered by Rich Costey.

The full title is:

When the pawn hits the conflicts he thinks like a king
What he knows throws the blows when he goes to the fight
And he'll win the whole thing 'fore he enters the ring
There's no body to batter when your mind is your might
So when you go solo, you hold your own hand
And remember that depth is the greatest of heights
And if you know where you stand, then you know where to land
And if you fall it won't matter, cuz you'll know that you're right

The first single, "Fast as You Can", was fairly popular and received moderate radio and video airplay. It reached the top 20 on the US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart and became Apple's first top 40 hit on the UK Singles Chart. The follow-up singles, "Limp" and especially "Paper Bag", which was nominated for a Grammy Award, were less successful. Apple's boyfriend at the time, filmmaker Paul Thomas Anderson, directed videos for all three singles.[10]

In 2019, Apple collaborated with King Princess on a cover of "I Know". The song was released for Spotify's RISE program on January 25.[11] A reissue by Vinyl Me Please was announced in 2020 featuring a new cover chosen by Fiona herself, marking the album's first ever vinyl pressing.[12]

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	79/100[13]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[14]
Chicago Sun-Times	[15]
Entertainment Weekly	A[16]
Los Angeles Times	[17]
NME	5/10[18]
Pitchfork	9.4/10[19]
Q	[20]
Rolling Stone	[21]
Spin	8/10[22]
The Village Voice	A−[23]

In comparison to Apple's debut album Tidal, Harrington stated, "When the Pawn is a decidedly more mature work that trades in youthful melodrama for somber ruminations on shattered relationships and romantic obsession".[6] In The New Rolling Stone Album Guide, Jenny Eliscu states that Pawn is "more musically complex and melodically advanced" than the previous album, while focusing on Apple's "sultry voice and moody piano playing".[1] Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone gave the album three-and-a-half out of five stars, calling it "richer, deeper and stronger than Tidal, in every way", with "a far more muscular approach to both the songs and the singing".[21] Entertainment Weekly's David Browne awarded the album an A grade, praising Jon Brion's production as well as Apple's songwriting: "Apple hasn't gained much in psychic confidence following the success of Tidal. On When the Pawn..., Apple presents herself as a mental shambles, and she’s more than happy to tell us about it."[16] Pitchfork originally gave the album a score of eight out of ten, with reviewer Chip Chanko praising Apple's lyrics, writing: "[Apple] seems older. Her voice is full of a heartfelt soul that seems almost timeless. While Billie Holiday would never have considered the possibility of lines like, 'It won't be long till you'll be/ Lying limp in your own hand,' Apple executes them flawlessly with a modern passion.[24] Amy Linden of Vibe wrote: "When the Pawn... is full of images that resonate. Apple's a sad, sultry woman with a sense of who she is—even if that person isn't someone she wants to be. Once again, her pain brings us joy."[25] Piers Martin of NME rated it a 5 out of 10, calling it Apple's "second album of Amos-aping MTV-branded Lilith Fair fodder."[18]

On the U.S. Billboard 200, When the Pawn.. debuted at number 13 with 103,000 copies sold in first week.[26] As of 2005, sales of the album in the United States had exceeded 922,000 copies, according to Nielsen SoundScan.[27] On March 26, 2020, When the Pawn.. was certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America.[28]

All tracks are written by Fiona Apple, except where noted.

Album

Singles

• When the Pawn... at MusicBrainz
• When the Pawn... at Metacritic