Begin to Hope

Begin to Hope
Studio album by Regina Spektor
Released June 13, 2006
Recorded SeeSquaredStudio and New York Noise Studios, NYC
Genre Anti-folk, indie pop, chamber pop, piano rock
Length 47:15
Label Sire 9362-44112-2
Producer David Kahne, Regina Spektor
Regina Spektor chronology
Mary Ann Meets the Gravediggers and Other Short Stories
(2006)
Begin to Hope
(2006)
Live in California 2006 EP
(2007)
Singles from Begin to Hope
  1. "On the Radio"
    Released: May 30, 2006
  2. "Fidelity"
    Released: September 25, 2006
  3. "Better"
    Released: July, 2007
  4. "Summer in the City"
    Released: December, 2007
Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
Metacritic80/100[1]
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[2]
The A.V. ClubA−[3]
Blender[4]
Entertainment WeeklyB+[5]
The Guardian[6]
Pitchfork Media(7.5/10)[7]
PopMatters(9/10)[8]
Rolling Stone[9]
Slant[10]
StylusB[11]

Begin to Hope is the fourth album by American singer-songwriter Regina Spektor.[12] It was released June 13, 2006. The album debuted at number 70 on the Billboard 200, but due to the popularity of the single "Fidelity", it peaked at number 20[13] and was labeled a "pace setter" by Billboard. Rolling Stone magazine named it the 21st-best album of 2006.[14] The album was certified Gold by the RIAA for shipments to U.S. retailers of 500,000 units.[15]

The album was nominated for the 2006 Shortlist Music Prize.[16]

Track listing

All songs written by Regina Spektor.

  1. "Fidelity" – 3:47
  2. "Better" – 3:22
  3. "Samson" – 3:10
  4. "On the Radio" – 3:22
  5. "Field Below" – 5:18
  6. "Hotel Song" – 3:29
  7. "Après Moi" – 5:08
  8. "20 Years of Snow" – 3:31
  9. "That Time" – 2:39
  10. "Edit" – 4:53
  11. "Lady" – 4:45
  12. "Summer in the City" – 3:50
Deluxe Edition bonus disc
  1. "Another Town" – 4:07
  2. "Uh-Merica" – 3:16
  3. "Baobabs" – 2:02
  4. "Düsseldorf" – 3:09
  5. "Music Box" – 2:11
iTunes Store/Amazon MP3 bonus tracks
  1. "Hero" – 3:44
  2. "Bartender" – 3:12
Vinyl edition disc 2, side A
  1. "Another Town" – 4:10
  2. "Uh-Merica" – 3:19
  3. "Baobabs" – 2:04
  4. "Düsseldorf" – 3:12
  5. "Music Box" – 2:07
Vinyl edition disc 2, side B
  1. "Better" (Piano and Voice) – 3:09
  2. "Better" (Radio Recut) – 3:12
  3. "Hero" – 3:45
  4. "Bartender" – 3:12

Personnel

Charts

Peak positions

Year Chart Peak Position[17]
2007 Australian ARIA Albums Chart 29
2006 Austria Albums Chart 72
2007 Ireland Albums Chart 18
2007 New Zealand RIANZ Albums Chart 10
2007 Swedish Albums Chart 18
2006 U.S. Billboard Top Heatseekers 1
2007 U.S. Billboard 200 20
2007 U.K. Albums Chart 53

Certifications

Region Certification Sales/shipments
New Zealand (RMNZ)[18] Gold 7,500^
United Kingdom (BPI)[19] Gold 100,000^
United States (RIAA)[20] Gold 500,000^

^shipments figures based on certification alone

Single success

In 2006, Regina Spektor's first single, "Fidelity", premiered on VH1. Soon after, VH1 included her among "You Oughta Know: Artists on the Rise".[21]

Spektor performed "Fidelity" on Late Night with Conan O'Brien in July 2006 and on ABC's Good Morning America in April 2007.[22] She also performed "On The Radio" on Jimmy Kimmel Live! in November 2006. She performed the song again on Late Show with David Letterman in April 2007, and on the Australian Rove McManus show in 2007.

"Better" was released to US radio in late July 2007. It was featured in the fourth season of the CBS TV show, How I Met Your Mother, in an episode titled "Happily Ever After."

Even though it hasn't been released as a single, "Hotel Song" has reached #11 in the Irish music download charts and #16 in the Irish Top 50 Singles Chart as of May 2007. The song is featured in mobile phone company Vodafone's TV commercial in Ireland, contributing to the song's popularity in the country. The song was also featured in the 2011 Jennifer Westfeldt film Friends with Kids.

"Musicbox" is featured on a JCPenney commercial.

"Samson" is a new recording of a song originally released on 2002's Songs. "Samson" was featured on CSI: NY in the second season episode "All Access". Additionally, Gwen Stefani used the song for her Season 9 battle between Korin Bukowski and Chase Kerby.

"Field Below" was on an episode of Criminal Minds.

"Après Moi" was covered by Peter Gabriel on his recent album Scratch My Back.

"That Time" was featured in the 2008 Martin McDonagh film In Bruges starring Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson.

"Hero" was featured in the film (500) Days of Summer, along with "Us" from Spektor's previous album, Soviet Kitsch.

Sales

References

  1. http://www.metacritic.com/music/begin-to-hope/regina-spektor
  2. Allmusic review
  3. The A.V. Club review
  4. Blender review
  5. Entertainment Weekly review
  6. The Guardian review
  7. Pitchfork Media review
  8. PopMatters review
  9. Rolling Stone review
  10. Slant review
  11. Stylus review
  12. Block, Melissa (2006-06-28). "Stories in Song: Regina Spektor's 'Begin to Hope'". NPR. Retrieved 2009-10-10.
  13. Dec 11, 2006 8:53 AM (2006-12-11). "The Top 50 Albums of 2006". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2009-10-10.
  14. "RIAA Certifications for Regina Spektor". Billboard. Retrieved 2007-11-20.
  15. "Cat Power Wins 2007 Shortlist Music Prize". Billboard.com. Retrieved 2009-10-10.
  16. "Music Charts – αCharts". Acharts.us. Retrieved 2009-10-10.
  17. "New Zealand album certifications – Regina Spektor – Begin to Hope". Recording Industry Association of New Zealand. Retrieved 25 August 2012.
  18. "British album certifications – Regina Spektor – Begin to Hope". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 25 August 2012. Enter Begin to Hope in the field Keywords. Select Title in the field Search by. Select album in the field By Format. Select Gold in the field By Award. Click Search
  19. "American album certifications – Regina Spektor – Begin to Hope". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 25 August 2012. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH
  20. "New Music Artists Info on You Oughta Know, Rising New Artists, See Photos & Watch Videos Online". VH1.com. Retrieved 2009-10-10.
  21. "The Virginian-Pilot Archives". Nl.newsbank.com. 2007-04-05. Retrieved 2009-10-10.
  22. "Gold & Platinum – October 10, 2009". RIAA. Retrieved 2009-10-10.
Preceded by
Move by Yourself by Donavon Frankenreiter
Billboard Top Heatseekers number-one album
July 01, 2006
Succeeded by
Inhuman Rampage by Dragonforce
Preceded by
Rock Star Supernova by Rock Star Supernova
Billboard Top Heatseekers number-one albums (second run)
December 16, 2006–January 06, 2007
Succeeded by
K.O.B.: Live by Aventura
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