What We Saw from the Cheap Seats

The album's first single, "All the Rowboats", was released for streaming on February 27, 2012, and for digital download the following day.{{cite web|url=http://www.indieshuffle.com/regina-spektor-all-the-rowboats/ |title=Regina Spektor- All The Rowboats |publisher=Indie Shuffle |date=February 27, 2012 |accessdate=February 28, 2012}} It was featured prominently on the episode of the CW's Ringer that aired on March 13, 2012, making Spektor the "Artist Spotlight" of the week.{{cite web|url=http://www.cwtv.com/music/ringer/season-1/episode-116|title=Ringer Music - Artist Spotlight|publisher=The CW|accessdate=March 14, 2012}} The second single, "Don't Leave Me (Ne Me Quitte Pas)", is a new version of "Ne Me Quitte Pas", a song originally from Spektor's 2002 album Songs. On October 16, 2012, "How" was released as the third single from the album. Music videos were produced for these songs.

Spektor undertook two tours in support of the album. The first was a tour of the southern US, on which Spektor opened for Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers for eight shows in April and May 2012. The second was an international tour that opened with three sold-out shows in New York City, Boston, and Philadelphia, at which Only Son, a band led by Spektor's husband Jack Dishel, was the opening act. This tour extended to several European countries (including Russia, to which Spektor had not traveled since emigrating from it as a child) and ran through the summer of 2012.

To promote the album, Spektor performed on the Late Show with David Letterman, Good Morning America, The Colbert Report, and VH1; did an interview with The New York Times; and did a special "Live on YouTube" engagement.

{{Music ratings

| MC = 73/100{{cite web|title=What We Saw from the Cheap Seats - Regina Spektor|url=https://www.metacritic.com/music/what-we-saw-from-the-cheap-seats|publisher=Metacritic|accessdate=24 June 2012}}

| rev1 = AllMusic

| rev1Score = {{rating|4|5}}{{cite web|title=Allmusic review|website=AllMusic |url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/what-we-saw-from-the-cheap-seats-mw0002325104}}

| rev2 = The A.V. Club

| rev2Score = (A-){{cite web|last=Murray |first=Noel |url=https://www.avclub.com/regina-spektor-what-we-saw-from-the-cheap-seats-1798172971 |title=Regina Spektor: What We Saw From The Cheap Seats | Music |publisher=The A.V. Club |date= 29 May 2012|access-date=May 29, 2012}}

| rev3 = Consequence of Sound

| rev3Score = {{rating|3.5|5}}{{cite web|url=http://consequence.net/2012/05/album-review-regina-spektor-what-we-saw-from-the-cheap-seats/ |title=Regina Spektor - Album review: Regina Spektor - 'What We Saw From The Cheap Seats' - Album Reviews |publisher=Consequence.net |date=May 31, 2012 |accessdate=May 31, 2012}}

| rev4 = Entertainment Weekly

| rev4Score = (B){{cite news|author=Kyle Anderson |url=https://ew.com/article/2012/05/25/what-we-saw-cheap-seats-review-regina-spektor/ |title=What We Saw From The Cheap Seats |publisher=EW.com |date=May 23, 2012 |access-date=May 28, 2012}}

| rev5 = NME

| rev5Score = (8/10){{cite web|url=https://www.nme.com/reviews/regina-spektor/13231 |title=Regina Spektor - Album review: Regina Spektor - 'What We Saw From The Cheap Seats' - Album Reviews |publisher=Nme.Com |date=May 29, 2012 |accessdate=May 29, 2012}}

| rev6 = Ology

| rev6Score = (A−){{cite news |author=Brett Warner |url=http://www.ology.com/post/78329/album-review-regina-spektor-what-we-saw-from-the-cheap-seats- |title=Album review: Regina Spektor - 'What We Saw From The Cheap Seats' |publisher=ology.com |date=May 22, 2012 |accessdate=May 28, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120526055530/http://www.ology.com/post/78329/album-review-regina-spektor-what-we-saw-from-the-cheap-seats- |archive-date=May 26, 2012 |url-status=dead }}

| rev7 = Pitchfork

| rev7Score = (6.3/10){{cite news|author=Lindsay Zoladz |title=Regina Spektor: What We Saw from the Cheap Seats |url=https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/16670-what-we-saw-from-the-cheap-seats/ | date=May 30, 2012}}

| rev8 = Paste Magazine

| rev8Score = (6/10){{cite news|author=Ryan Reed |title=Regina Spektor: What We Saw from the Cheap Seats |url=https://www.pastemagazine.com/articles/2012/05/regina-spektor-what-we-saw-from-the-cheap-seats.html | date=May 31, 2012}}

| rev9 = Rolling Stone

| rev9Score = {{rating|3.5|5}}{{cite magazine |last1=Hermes |first1=Will |author1-link=Will Hermes |title=Regina Spektor |url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/what-we-saw-from-the-cheap-seats-20120529 |access-date=15 March 2023 |magazine=Rolling Stone |publisher=Sire/Warner Bros. |date=May 29, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120530140541/https://www.rollingstone.com/music/albumreviews/what-we-saw-from-the-cheap-seats-20120529 |archive-date=May 30, 2012 |language=en}}

| rev10 =Slant Magazine

| rev10Score = {{rating|4|5}}{{cite web|title=Slant review|website=Slant Magazine |date=28 May 2012 |url=https://www.slantmagazine.com/music/review/regina-spektor-what-we-saw-from-the-cheap-seats/2787}}

| rev11 = Sputnikmusic

| rev11score = {{Rating|5|5}}{{cite web |url=http://sputnikmusic.com/review/49832/Regina-Spektor-What-We-Saw-From-The-Cheap-Seats/ |title=Regina Spektor: What We Saw from the Cheap Seats |work=Sputnik Music |date=May 21, 2012 |accessdate=May 24, 2012}}

}}

Similarly to Spektor's previous studio albums, What We Saw from the Cheap Seats received a favorable reaction upon its release. On review-aggregation website Metacritic, it has a score of 73 out of 100, based on 28 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews".

Several critics praised the unique quirkiness of the album, with Will Hermes of Rolling Stone, who gave it 3.5 out of 5 stars, claiming that the album "may be [Spektor's] best," and made Spektor "her generation's Joni Mitchell. A staff reviewer for Sputnikmusic gave the album the maximum 5 out of 5 stars, writing that it is Spektor's "best effort yet," and that "an artist who could already seemingly do no wrong went and became even more perfect."{{cite web|url=http://sputnikmusic.com/review/49832/Regina-Spektor-What-We-Saw-from-the-Cheap-Seats/|title=Review: Regina Spektor - What We Saw from the Cheap Seats - Sputnikmusic|publisher=|accessdate=October 5, 2016}}

American Songwriter wrote that "Cheap Seats as a whole [...] points toward ever unfolding new directions for an artist whose sense of whimsy never excludes the possibility of real-world despair."{{cite web|title=Regina Spektor: High Fidelity|date=28 June 2012|url=http://www.americansongwriter.com/2012/06/regina-spektor-high-fidelity/3/|publisher=American Songwriter|accessdate=July 5, 2012}}

In the United States, the album debuted at number three on the Billboard 200, with sales of 42,000 (this was the same rank, but a slight decrease in sales from the opening of Spektor's previous studio album, Far).{{cite news |url=https://www.billboard.com/articles/news/484092/john-mayers-no-1-for-second-week-on-billboard-200 |title=John Mayer's No. 1 for Second Week on Billboard 200 |date=June 6, 2012 |first= Keith |last=Caulfield }} As of September 2016, the album had sold 174,000 copies in the United States.{{cite web |archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20160928004910/http://hitsdailydouble.com/new_album_releases |archivedate= September 28, 2016 |url=http://hitsdailydouble.com/new_album_releases |title=Upcoming Releases |website=Hits Daily Double |publisher=HITS Digital Ventures }}

All songs written by Spektor except where noted.

{{Track listing

| collapsed =

| headline =

| total_length = 37:18

| all_writing =

| all_lyrics =

| all_music =

| title1 = Small Town Moon

| note1 =

| writer1 =

| lyrics1 =

| music1 =

| length1 = 3:02

| title2 = Oh Marcello

| note2 =

| writer2 = Spektor w/ interpolation by Bennie Benjamin, Sol Marcus, and Gloria Caldwell ("Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood")

| lyrics2 =

| music2 =

| extra2 =

| length2 = 2:38

| title3 = Don’t Leave Me (Ne Me Quitte Pas)

| note3 =

| writer3 =

| lyrics3 =

| music3 =

| length3 = 3:39

| title4 = Firewood

| note4 =

| writer4 =

| lyrics4 =

| music4 =

| length4 = 4:55

| title5 = Patron Saint

| note5 =

| writer5 =

| lyrics5 =

| music5 =

| length5 = 3:40

| title6 = How

| note6 =

| writer6 =

| lyrics6 =

| music6 =

| length6 = 4:48

| title7 = All the Rowboats

| note7 =

| writer7 =

| lyrics7 =

| music7 =

| length7 = 3:34

| title8 = Ballad of a Politician

| note8 =

| writer8 =

| lyrics8 =

| music8 =

| length8 = 2:13

| title9 = Open

| note9 =

| writer9 =

| lyrics9 =

| music9 =

| length9 = 4:30

| title10 = The Party

| note10 =

| writer10 =

| lyrics10 =

| music10 =

| length10 = 2:28

| title11 = Jessica

| note11 =

| writer11 =

| lyrics11 =

| music11 =

| length11 = 1:44

}}

;Deluxe edition bonus tracks

{{Track listing

| collapsed =

| headline =

| extra_column =

| total_length = 46:03

| title12 = Call Them Brothers

| note12 = featuring Only Son

| writer12 = Jack Dishel, Regina Spektor

| extra12 =

| length12 = 3:07

| title13 = The Prayer of François Villon (Molitva)

| note13 =

|writer13 = Bulat Okudzhava

| extra13 =

| length13 = 3:33

| title14 = Old Jacket (Stariy Pidjak)

| note14 =

| writer14 = Bulat Okudzhava

| lyrics14 =

| music14 =

| extra14 =

| length14 = 2:04

}}

All credits for tracks one through eleven are listed in the album's booklet.

• Regina Spektor - vocals, piano (1-10), keyboards (2-10), marimba (3), co-producer, songwriter
• Mike Elizondo - producer, bass (1, 3, 5, 7-10), upright bass (2, 4, 6), electric guitar (1, 6, 7), acoustic guitars (11), programming (3, 5, 7)
• Aaron Sterling - drums (1, 3-7, 9), percussion (1, 5, 7), marimba (3)
• Jay Bellerose - drums (2, 7, 10), percussion (2, 10), bongos (10)
• Danny T. Levin - trumpet (3)
• David Moyer - baritone and tenor saxophone (3)
• Jack Dishel - vocals (3, 5)
• John Daversa - trumpet (10)

;Additional personnel

• Art direction, design – Stephen Walker (6)
• Co-producer – Regina Spektor
• Engineer – Adam Hawkins
• Engineer [Assistant] – Brent Arrowood
• Management – Ron Shapiro
• Management [Business] – Errol Wander
• Mastered by – Bob Ludwig
• Photography by – Shervin Lainez
• Producer – Mike Elizondo
• Written-By – Regina Spektor{{cite web|url=http://www.discogs.com/Regina-Spektor-What-We-Saw-From-The-Cheap-Seats/release/3780282|title=Regina Spektor - What We Saw From The Cheap Seats|website=Discogs |publisher=|accessdate=5 October 2016}}

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{{col-end}}

{{Reflist|30em}}

• [http://chernomore.net/Poetry/Bulat_Okudzhava.htm#PRAYER François Villon's Prayer, Track 13, in Russian and English]
• [http://vagalecs.narod.ru/Okudzh.htm#The Old Jacket (Stariy Pidjak), Track 14, translated into English]

{{Regina Spektor}}

{{Authority control}}

Category:2012 albums

Category:Regina Spektor albums

Category:Sire Records albums

Category:Albums produced by Mike Elizondo