Customer Reviews

Year of the Cat

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

"Year Of The Cat" was Al Stewart's breakthrough hit in America. The album was produced by Alan Parsons, who also produced Pink Floyd's "Dark Side Of The Moon" to much acclaim. The remastering job done on this import CD is outstanding. Peter White's acoustic guitar playing, featured in the song "On The Border," especially sounds vibrant. The first bonus track is a live version of that song. The second bonus song, "Belsize Blues," was never officially released and alone is worth the price of this CD. More of a rocker than a blues number, it features a bluesy harmonica not heard elsewhere on the album. The lyrics flow along in a style very reminiscent of early Bob Dylan. The third bonus track is not a song at all. Al discusses the musicians who played on the album and briefly explains the meaning of each song. I highly recommend this import CD to all fans of Al Stewart.

It's increasingly fashionable to 'remaster' CDs; with some justification, as the technology has advanced in the years since albums like YOTC were first released digitally.
Personally, my ears aren't finely tuned enough to feel major benefit from this re-release, and my ancient sound system made no comment, so I have had to concentrate on the 'bonus tracks'

On the Border (live) is taken from the Chicago Radio sessions; it's a fine version, but technically hardly an advertisement for digital remastering. More seriously, those sessions included a ten-minute Year of the Cat, with a four minute keyboard intro, and marvellous sax solo - why isn't that one here?

Belsize Blues owes its presence here to its absence from other 'official' releases, though this version was first released on the unofficial Coldest Winter in Memory collection. The date suggests it could have been a rejected track from the original YOTC - though the flavour is five years earlier. The sleeve notes leave us none the wiser.

Story of the Songs is a commentary on the YOTC album by Al stewart; interesting, but hardly the sort of thing you'd listen to daily on your in-car stereo. Many of the concert albums include highly original and amusing intros, especially to YOTC itself; wouldn't the fictional explanations have been a better addition than a recorded sleeve note?

This remastered album will have nothing to say to new listeners, so it is clearly intended to persuade existing fans to part with their money. The die-hards will - as I did - and I don't regret it. But, by gum, I'd have been much, much happier spending a few dollars more on a proper job.

Picture it - a twin-cd set with the remastered YOTC on one disc, and the other featuring these bonus tracks, plus a selection of other live versions, complete with intro, guest artists - one YOTC even featured a guest singer - and a sleeve note that truly informed us about the collection, not just looked back to 1976.

The last reviewer missed the boat on this one. Anniversary Editions should include a sparkling master of the original, and nothing more (imagine Pink Floyd's DSOTM with extras...). It's a remaster of what was originally released, and nothing more. Extra tracks are what boxed sets (and CD singles) are all about recently. The extras here are a real bonus. This one truly delivers.

This is one of the best remasters I've EVER heard. Maybe it's time to upgrade your equipment? You'd be amazed at the difference. My system doesn't scream, but the difference is definately there from the original CD. Much worth the upgrade if you already have it on CD. This even beats the pants off the old MFSL LP, which I thought was superior to the original CD.

Of the different versions of Al Stewart's magnum opus out there, this is the best sounding to my ear. The original compact disc, like so many others from the mid-eighties had that thin, tinny, almost transitor-like quality to the higher frequencies while the Rhino release of Year of the Cat suffered from a slight over-compression of the dynamic range. I've listened to all three on very good equipment, and I can whole-heartedly recommend this version over the others.

Of all the albums Alan Parsons produced outside of The Project, this is his favorite...and with good reason! Even the weakest song, a toss-up between Midas Shadow or Sand In Your Shoes, is a great composition, performance, and production. And as good as the depiction of Basque separatists is in the tersely engaging On The Border or how innovative the production and arrangement on Year Of The Cat, a song like Stewart's personal favorite Flying Sorcery almost steals the show. Stewart has always been a very strong lyricist, but the lyrics of this song would be timeless poetry even without a note of music to support them and, as such, are nothing short of transcendent!

I really have a difficult time imaging anyone who wouldn't enjoy YEAR OF THE CAT. I once knew someone who said she didn't like Stewart's voice, but even THAT was her only complaint. If you've never heard this album you're really missing out not only on a landmark artistic statement, but one heck of an enjoyable listening experience. You may even consider investing in an entry-level audiophile sound system to really take in Broadway Hotel, One Stage Before, and Year Of The Cat in all their stereophonic glory.

There seems to be a new resurgence of interest in 1970s music, particularly among today's 15 - 25 year olds. I grew up in the 70s and my friends' teenage sons are regularly asking me for recommendations of lesser known 1970s bands. They all know about Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd and the like, but they are not familiar with most of the lesser known 1970s bands.

To assist others looking for lesser known 1970s music, I'm posting recommendations of 1970s bands and albums that aren't very well known but are worth the attention of a new generation of listeners.

Al Stewart is one such artist and his Year of the Cat, released in 1976, is one such album. Al Stewart had released several albums prior to Year of the Cat and several over the decades since, but this was his best selling album, by far.

You've probably heard the title track on the radio but the rest of the album is worthwhile also. There's not a weak track on the entire album.

Year of the Cat doesn't seem to be well known among today's 15-25 years olds, but it was very well known in the years immediately following its release. Back in the late 1970s, everybody I knew had this album. If you're checking out 1970s music, this is an album that should be in your collection.

If you buy this album and you like it, then you might want to check out some other Al Stewart albums. After buying Year of the Cat, I suggest you follow it up with Al's 1978 release, Time Passages, which is of similar high quality to Year of the Cat.

If you like those two, you might want to check out Past, Present and Future (released in 1973) and Modern Times (released in 1974). Both are excellent albums, but also seem to be overlooked and largely forgotten today.

Al Stewart is still releasing new material. I would also suggest checking out his more recent releases like Beach Full Of Shells and Sparks of Ancient Light.

In short, Year of the Cat is a top quality album that was very popular when it was first released but which seems to be overlooked and largely forgotten today.

If you're interested in checking out some excellent 1970s music which seems to be overlooked today but which deserves a new generation of listeners, Al Stewart's Year of the Cat is an album that's worth your attention.

Nothing that's forced can ever be right, if doesn't come naturally, leave it. Well, thankfully, there nothing forced about this album! Year of the Cat was the seventh album of Scottish singer-songwriter Al Stewart, and it was a hit when it came out in 1976. The title song zoomed up to the Top 10 Single list, but all of the songs are quite, quite good.

The songs of this album have a clean and soothing sound, which makes for great hours of listening. Now, Mr. Stewart has a reputation as a "folk singer," but the songs of this album are not so easily typed. They are easy listening, but well produced with electric guitars and an uplifting sound. This is a great album that I don't hesitate to recommend!

Al Stewart probably has about 30 albums, but you wouldn't know it because that album of "Year of the Cat" is, by far, his most recognized album. I love the title track, but my favorite songs are "On the Border" and "One Stage Before".

This is one of those albums that never sound outdated. In fact, it brings up warm feelings of being a teenager again when life was so much easier than what today's teen's have today. Today's kid's are immersed with so much technology (cell phones, I-pods, computers, computer games), that they wouldn't understand how simple and stress-free our lives were as teens back in the seventies.

....Oops, sorry, I drifted there. It's just that albums like this one brings up great memories. Anyway, this album from Al Stewart was produced by Alan Parsons even before the Alan Parsons Project was recognized. This Al Stewart album was released just before Alan Parson's "I Robot" which was his most famous album rivaled possibly by his 1982 album "Eye in the Sky". Alan Parsons even participated in producing the Beatles "Abbey Road" album, so you know that he's a major contributor to making classic albums even before his own album repertoire began. Just for fun, I'll also mention that Alan Parsons produced "Magic" by Pilot too.

"Time Passages" was a great follow-up to this album and, of course, Al's had other mild hits. And I'm sure that he has great songs on all his released albums. It's just a shame that they didn't get promoted as much as they should have been. On an earlier seventies album "Past, Present, and Future", his songs "Nostradamus", and "Roads to Moscow" were classic progressive folk rock staples. The man is an over-looked genius.

I've got the Rhino remastered version of "Year of the Cat" which sounds great compared to the limited edition Mobile Fidelity CD that I sold for about $150 a few years ago. I really wonder if that CD was worth $150. I also sold my limited edition Mobile Fidelity CD of Alan Parsons Project's "I Robot" for well over a hundred dollars too. The 2007 re-master of that CD sounds much better too.

A high school buddy came by my house excitedly one day, decades ago, with a new album in hand. It was Al Stewart's "Past, Present, and Future." We sat mesmerized listening to a sound, the likes of which, we had never heard before. That began my 40 year love of Al Stewart's music. I've had "Year of the Cat" in vinyl since its release in the 70's. I just purchased the CD version and can't stop playing it.....what great music.

I bought this CD in the beginning of January and it took 20 days to arrive. Once I finally got the package I gave to my husband as a birthday present. After 2 weeks he finally told me this is not the original CD, it is another version with different songs and a little speech between each song. It was too lat for me to returned. I just wished a little information somewhere. Very disappointed.

Al Stewart / Year of the Cat: The Title track is Al's biggest hit and it is indeed a great song. The rest of the album however is good (if disjointed), but nowhere near the quality of his previous three albums. Four Stars