by Robert Wilkinson
Our Saturday Night Attitude peace dance begins early! Today we celebrate the 76th birthday of one of the great talents of all time. His songs are timeless, memorable, and have held up across the decades as has Cat Stevens himself as a powerful voice of conscience, spirituality, and international philanthropy.
Interestingly, "Cat Stevens" was also a stage name. This remarkable man was born Steven Demetre Georgiou (21 July 1948). When 18, he took the name of Cat Stevens and wrote some great ones – “First Cut is the Deepest,” “Matthew and Son,” and “Here Comes My Baby,” the first a huge hit for both Rod Stewart and Sheryl Crow, and the last one a huge hit for the Tremeloes.
I’ve taken his bio from Wikipedia and condensed it so you can learn more about this remarkable man of peace.
When his career was taking off, he contracted TB, went into hospital, and as a result of confronting death, “took up meditation, yoga, and metaphysics, and read about other religions; and became a vegetarian. As a result of his serious illness and long convalescence, and as a part of his spiritual awakening and questioning, he wrote as many as forty songs, many of which would appear on his albums in years to come.”
After being bought and sold in the music industry for a number of years, he almost drowned in Malibu in 1976, and shortly after that converted to Islam. He retired from music for about 20 years, with one of his final appearances in 1979 for UNICEF’s International Year of the Child concert in Wembley. Since then, he’s funded schools, famine relief, and supports orphans all over the world.
Though some political elements tried to make him a scapegoat for and target of Islamophobia, claiming he was for a fatwa against Rushdie (he wasn’t), Yusef persevered and was subsequently awarded the “Man of Peace” award from the private Nobel Peace Prize Laureates Committee. He returned to music in the 90s, and since then has performed for global charities and re-entered the world of commercial music and tourning, but on terms harmonious with his faith.
For your enjoyment, the amazing songs and voice of Yusef Cat Stevens!
From his first album, Mona Bone Jakob a live performance of his first hit, “My Lady D’Arbanville.”
From the same album, a live performance in France in 1970 of “Katmandu.” (No this is NOT the Bob Seger version!)
From his pop music era, several from his first two albums. We begin with a live performance at the Royal Albert Hall by Yusuf of “First Cut is the Deepest.”
From Germany in 2011, Yusuf live doing “First Cut is the Deepest.”
Here's the original studio recording of “First Cut is the Deepest.”
An early clip of a very young Cat Stevens! From 1966, a live lip-synched video of his smash #2 hit, “Matthew and Son.” Here’s another video from January 1967 of Cat lip-synching “Matthew and Son.”
Here’s the original studio version of Cat’s hit, “Here Comes My Baby,”, and here’s the Tremeloes (who made it a hit) in a 1967 live performance of “Here Comes My Baby.”
We'll close this early period with a rare gem! Here's Cat doing a live performance in 1967 from a rave up off of New Masters, "Bad Night."
From the album Tea for the Tillerman, more than a few amazing tunes!
First, a live performance courtesy of the BBC of "Wild World.” And because it's so out there, here's Yusuf and Peter Gabriel at the 2003 Nelson Mandela's AIDS Day Concert performing a fantastic a cappella version of “Wild World.”
From Hot Summer Nights, "Into White."
From 1973, a live performance of “Hard Headed Woman”
This is one of the best I've ever seen in terms of sheer passion! Here's a phenomenally great live performance from the 1976 Earth Tour featuring Cat on piano of “Sad Lisa.” From 2013 in Germany, a gentle offering of "Sad Lisa."
Also from that Earth Tour 76 in 1976 when he was at his peak, a live performance of "The Wind"
From the 1971 DVD Tea for the Tillerman Live, "Father and Son.” and courtesy of KCET from the same year, “Miles From Nowhere.”
Now some tunes from the album Teaser and the Firecat.
Here’s a great live performance of "Peace Train.”
From the same album, a 1976 live performance on TV of "Morning Has Broken." Here's another version live in 1973 of "Morning Has Broken."
Live on BBC TV in 1971, here’s Cat doing "Moonshadow." and “How Can I Tell You”
I found it again! Here’s the entire 39 minute BBC concert! Cat Stevens In Concert – Live at the BBC 1971
Cat’s in LA! Here’s 25 minutes of that show in 1971! Cat Stevens Live in Los Angeles 1971
Since it’s such a great tune, here’s another recent live performance with the whole audience singing ALL the lyrics along with Yusuf! “Moonshadow.”
Cat and Carly Simon had a great love going back then. Here’s one of the songs Carly Simon wrote about her love for Cat! For your enjoyment, here she is live in 1987 at Martha’s Vineyard doing “Anticipation.”
Here’s another acoustic version of Carly doing "Anticipation.”
Here’s the original studio version of Cat's song to Carly on the album Catch Bull at Four, "Sweet Scarlet.”
Also from Catch Bull at Four here’s Yusuf live in 2009 at the Royal Albert Hall doing the powerful "Sitting.” From 2015 in Chile, a slightly more subdued performance of “Sitting.” Because the audio clip of this tune from the Magikat Earth Tour is gone, this year we get to enjoy the studio original of “Sitting”
From the soundtrack of one of my favorite movies, Harold and Maude, starring Ruth Gordon and Bud Cort, the uplifting "If You Want to Sing Out, Sing Out.” (I couldn’t find any performances, but the movie clips are great!)
Originally on Tea For the Tillerman, here's a great live performance in 2007 from Yusuf's Cafe Sessions of the best known song from the movie, "Where Do the Children Play?"
Also from the Café Sessions (but not in the movie), a song we can’t get enough of! “Peace Train.”
Three of one of his biggest! First, from 1971, a rousing performance of “Peace Train.” The next is from the legendary Earth Tour, “Peace Train” and from his induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2010, his performance of “Peace Train”
I was at this one! Cat was at the 2010 Jon Stewart/Stephen Colbert Rally to Restore Sanity in DC, where he did "Peace Train" as part of a running gag along with Ozzy Osbourne doing his "Crazy Train" and the O'Jays doing "Love Train." Hilarious!“Peace Train” and “Crazy Train” at the 2010 Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear
From the album Buddha and the Chocolate Box a great live performance from the 1976 Earth Tour of "Oh Very Young.”
From that tour, here’s “Two Fine People”
Here’s a performance of a single that made it to #6 but never made it to an album. From the Earth Tour, “Another Saturday Night”
This year his 1976 Williamsburg VA concert is nowhere to be found.
From his post-pop career:
The original studio version of "Tala'a Al-Badru Alayna.”
Here’s a live performance of “The Wind East and West.”
Here’s the original studio version of a song about the 2004 tsunami. Proceeds go to help orphans in Banda Aceh. “Indian Ocean.”
From the 2006 Nobel Concert, from his 2006 album An Other Cup, "Heaven/Where True Love Goes." And from that same Nobel Peace Prize concert, what other song says it all? “Peace Train.”
From 2007 in London, an incredibly beautiful performance of "Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood.”
Here’s a live performance of “The Wind East and West.”
Live in 2009 on the Chris Isaak Hour TV show, “Roadsinger.” From the same show, "Boots and Sand.”
Also from that album, here's Yusuf in the original music video for “Thinking ‘Bout You.”
For our closer, courtesy of Alexei, here's Yusuf live with a choir in South Africa in 2003 doing an exquisite a cappella version of "Peace Train."
For our encore, we’ll reprise a great live performance in Chile in 2015 of one of my favorites, the powerful “Sitting.”
For our second encore, the entire hour and 19 minute 1976 Earth Magikat concert! Cat Stevens Live – Magikat Earth Tour 1976
For our final encore, Yusuf/Cat at Christchurch, New Zealand just after the slaughter. ”Peace Train” and “Don’t Be Shy” Live at the National Remembrance Service for Christchurch – March 2019
If you want to find out more, here’s CatStevens.com as your one stop shop to find out all you want to know about this global humanitarian.
I also found this extraordinarily well done article in The New Yorker from September 2017 when he was on his comeback tour. Yes, apparently Cat’s back! He left music in the 70s to pursue his path, and now he’s back, and I gather he’s as playful as he was 45 years ago! For your reading enjoyment, "The Unlikely Return of Cat Stevens."
Thanks for everything, Yusuf. We certainly need more "men of peace" in our world, and goodwill ambassadors that remind us that there is only one race - the human race - and that the children are the hope for our future. Aum and blessings for all you've done, all you do, and all you will do. As-Salāmu `Alaykum, my Brother.
© Copyright 2024 Robert Wilkinson
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