Pawn Hearts is the fourth album by English progressive rock band Van der Graaf Generator, released on 12 November 1971 on Charisma Records.

The songs for the album were worked out while on tour in 1971, with further development and arranging at manager Tony Stratton Smith's house in Crowborough, Sussex over a two-month period.

By 1971, Van der Graaf Generator's line-up had stabilised as frontman and songwriter Peter Hammill, saxophonist David Jackson, organist and bassist Hugh Banton and drummer Guy Evans.

[5] To alleviate the tedium of touring, the group invented games including "Crowborough Tennis" which involved bouncing a ball off a table, a photograph of which was eventually used as the inner sleeve for the album.

He feels guilty about not being able to help, and the song's ending is left open, leaving the listener to decide if the keeper has committed suicide or rationalised events to live in peace.

The first half was made up of the album as released, while the second was to be divided between personal projects and live-in-studio versions of older Van der Graaf Generator songs such as "Killer" and "Octopus".

[13] Evans contributed an avant-garde piece, "Angle of Incidents" which featured drums being recorded backwards and the sound of a fluorescent lighting tube being dropped down the studio's stairs.

[15] Charisma ultimately felt that the group should simply release a single album, and vetoed the live and solo recordings.

[1] In the US and Canada, the album was distributed via Buddah Records and contained "Theme One" as an extra track between "Lemmings" and "Man-Erg", which was done without the band's approval.

A Record Mirror review said "I have to confess complete ignorance of precisely what Van der Graaf Generator are trying to achieve",[25] though Melody Maker were more enthusiastic, saying "A Plague of Lighthouse Keepers" is one of the most fascinating and dramatic items I've ever heard".

[27][28] The group toured Italy to promote the album, where they were treated like superstars and surrounded by army vehicles and riot police.

[27] Though "Theme One" did not chart as a single in the UK, John Peel replaced Martin's original orchestral version with the group's before closing down Radio 1 each night.