Fiona Apple When the Pawn... 180g LP

Rolling Stone 500 Greatest Albums of All Time - Rated 108/500!

Fiona Apple's second album, When The Pawn..., was released in 1999 to widespread critical praise and is now widely regarded as a classic. It includes tracks "Paper Bag," "Fast As You Can," and "I Know."

Fiona Apple was catapulted into the public consciousness with the release of her debut album, Tidal, in 1996 at the crest of the alternative rock wave. She was an MTV favorite and captivated audiences both at her own shows as well as on Sarah McLachlan's Lilith Fair revue. Her 1999 follow up, When The Pawn…, cemented her appeal having a focused blend of emotional songs with unconventional arrangements. Her output become more sporadic with Extraordinary Machine coming six years later and then The Idler Wheel… another seven years after that. Her reputation as a daring and serious artist has never been in question.

Pawn is immediately grabbing, and instead of fading upon further plays, it reveals more with each listen, whether it's a lyrical turn of phrase or an unexpected twist in the arrangement; what's more, Apple has made it as rich emotionally as it is musically. That's quite a feat for any album, but it's doubly impressive since it is only the second effort by a musician who is only 22 years old.