Customer Reviews

Very Best of Cat Stevens

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Born Steven Georgiou, he adopted the name Cat Stevens for his musical career but subsequently became a Muslim, quitting his musical career and changing his name again, this time to Yusuf Islam. This compilation of his music as Cat Stevens is as good as any you are likely to find.

Cat had a minor UK hit in 1966 (I love my dog) but established himself as a songwriter by providing the Tremeloes with their first hit since Brian Poole left them (Here comes my baby) and by providing P P Arnold with her first hit (First cut is the deepest). Those hits were both in 1967, the year in which Cat had his first major hit as a singer, when Matthew and son peaked at number two in the UK. It was the biggest hit he ever had. He had another top ten UK hit (I'm gonna get me a gun) and two minor hits (A bad night, Kitty) in 1967 but none of those hits are included here. Actually, despite their hit status, they aren't really important.

Cat left his original label (Deram) and signed to Island, after which he recorded a series of albums that won him international acclaim. Although he placed six singles on the UK charts, all included here, his reputation ultimately rests with his albums. This explains why so many of his fans do not like compilations of his music, preferring the original albums.

Nevertheless, there is a market for compilations and there are plenty of people who don't want (or can't afford) to collect Cat's original albums. So here you get those hits (Lady D'Arbanville, Moon shadow, Morning has broken, Can't keep it in, Another Saturday night, Remember the days of the old school yard) as well as other classic tracks such as Peace train, Father and son, Wild world and Cat's own versions of Here comes my baby and First cut is the deepest.

If you want just one Cat Stevens collection, make it this one - but if you decide to collect his original albums instead, start with Tea for the tillerman or Teaser and the firecat.

I have the American domestic version of The Very Best of Cat Stevens (which I lost this weekend, along with three other Cat CDs, and will need to replace). I just compared this playlist to that on the case of my American version, to see if the "4 Bonus Tracks" were worth the higher price.

I was surprised to discover that this is nothing like the American "The Very Best of Cat Stevens"! An important aspect of the American "The Very Best of Cat Stevens" is that the songs are in CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER, and that it includes the previously unreleased "...Seeing My Grandson Grow Old".

This Import CD's playlist is almost identical to another Import "Remember Cat Stevens: Ultimate Collection", except for two songs. (This substitutes "Sad Lisa" and "How Can I Tell You," both beautiful songs.) Compared to the domestic version (for half the price), this has 8 additional songs but omits 4 songs.

This IS a very good collection. It includes two of the Harold & Maude songs. But you can get all the Harold & Maude songs on my favorite Cat CD, Footsteps in the Dark, currently a real bargain at $9.98.

This is a first class compiliation of Cat Stevens' greatest hits. If you are a baby boomer, then you will greatly appreciate this album which primarily features music from the late sixties and the seventies. Some of the music will put you on the nostalgia train and some of it is timeless, but all of it is excellent.

Cat Stevens is undoubtedly a prolific songwriter and when he sings his music, you get gold. This anthology of his music is about as good as it gets. From "Lady D'arbanville" to "Wild World", "Moonshadow", "Peace Train", "Oh Very Young", and, of course, "Morning Has Broken", the listener can't go wrong. Cat Stevens' talent is such that not only can he write great music, but he can sing, as well. His voice is at times folksy, at other times rich and vibrant, with a catch in it that can break your heart. When Cat Stevens converted to Islam and left the entertainment world, Islam's gain was truly the music world's loss.

It is the domestic version of this CD, however, released under the same name, which is the better value price wise, and the one worth having in one's personal music collection, notwithstanding the fact that this import does have an extra four tracks. At nearly double the price of the domestic version, this import is not worth that extra money, especially as the domestic version has all the tracks worth having.

Most of the best of Cat Stevens is here, but it's missing 6 or so things. Still, not bad at all.

Cat Stevens is not a very popular man in the west right now - especially after his conversion to Islam and his lamentable involvement in the Rushdie affair. But he was a superb composer of delicate pop songs in the 60s and 70s. This compillation includes some of the best of them - Wild World, The First Cut is the Deepest (later a memorable cover by Rod Stewart), the wonderful Rubylove, Moonshadow, Father and Son, Hard Headed Woman, Peace Train. Highly Recommended.