“…Listen To The Wind Of My Soul…”
[featuring "Mona Bone Jakon" and "Tea For A Tillerman" from 1970]
Essentially a
scaled-down reissue of the 4CD long box "On The Road To Find Out"
that came out in October 2001 - this 2008 "Cat Stevens" Book Set
repackaging is just as beautifully presented and even more convenient in size.
Here are the catty details:
Released June
2008 - "Cat Stevens" (aka " On The Road To Find Out") by
CAT STEVENS is a 4CD Book Set on Universal/Island/A&M 0600753028032
(Barcode 600753028032) and breaks down as follows:
Disc 1 - THE CITY - 65:34 minutes:
1. Back To The
Good Old Times (Previously Unreleased First Recording from 1965)
2. I Love My Dog
3. Portobello
Road
4. Here Comes My
Baby
5. Matthew And
Son
6. The Tramp
(tracks 2 to 6 are from his debut LP "Matthew And Son" - released
March 1967 in the UK on Deram DML 1004 (Mono) and SML 1004 (Stereo) and in the
USA on Deram DE 16005 (Mono) and DES 18005 in the USA - Stereo mix used)
7. I'm Gonna Get
Me A Gun
8. School Is Out
(tracks 7 and 8 are the non-album A&B-sides of his debut 7" single
released March 1967 in the UK on Deram DM 118 and Deram 85006 in the USA)
9. A Bad Night
10. The Laughing
Apple (tracks 9 and 10 are the non-album A&B-sides of his 2nd single
released July 1967 in the UK on Deram DM 140 and on Deram 85015 in the USA)
11. Kitty
12. Blackness Of
Night
13. The First
Cut Is The Deepest
14. Northern
Wind
15. Moonstone
16. Come On Baby
(Shift That Log) (tracks 11 to 16 are from his 2nd LP "New Masters" -
released December 1967 in the UK on Deram DML 1018 (Mono) and SML 1018 (Stereo)
and in the USA on Deram DES 18010 in 1968 (Stereo Only) - Stereo Mix used)
17. Lovely City
(When Do You Laugh?) - non-album track, February 1968 UK 7" single on
Deram DM 178
18. Here Comes
My Wife - non-album track, October 1968 UK 7" single on Deram DM 211
19. The View
From The Top - non-album track, B-side to "Where Are You" released
June 1969 in the UK on Deram DM 260. Mistakenly credited in the booklet as the
B-side of "Kitty" (the A-side of Deram DM 156)
20. Where Are
You - non-album track, A-side of “The View From The Top”
21. If Only
Mother Could See Me Now (Demo) - previously unreleased recording from 1968 -
between "New Masters" and "Mona Bone Jakon")
22. Honey Man
(with ELTON JOHN) - previously Unreleased October 1967 recording featuring
Elton John on Piano and Duet Vocals - co-written with Ken Cumberbatch
23. The Joke -
Previously Unreleased September 1970 recording - features the same group that
did the backing on Jimmy Cliff's version of "Wild World" which Steven
recorded for "Tea For A Tillerman"
Disc 2 - THE
SEARCH - 76:14 minutes:
1. Time/Fill My
Eyes
2. Lady
D'Arbanville
3. Trouble
4. Pop Star
5. Katmandu
6. Lilywhite
(tracks 1 to 6 from his 3rd album "Mona Bone Jakon" (debut with
Island) - released April 1970 in the UK on Island ILPS 9118 and A&M SP-4260
in the USA)
7. I've Got A
Thing About Seeing My Grandson Grow Old - Previously Unreleased mix of a
"Mona Bone Jakon" outtake- an alternate mix was used for "The
Very Best Of Cat Stevens" CD compilation in 2000
8. Where Do The
Children Play?
9. Wild World
10. Sad Lisa
11. On The Road
To Find Out
12. Father And
Son (tracks 8 to 12 are from his 4th album "Tea For The Tillerman" -
released November 1970 in the UK on Island ILPS 9135 and on A&M SP-4280 in
the USA)
13. Love Lives
In The Sky - Previously Unreleased "Tea For The Tillerman" outtake
recorded July 1970 - it's an early version of "Land O' Freelove &
Goodbye"
14. Don't Be Shy
15. If You Want
To Sing Out Sing Out (tracks 14 and 15 first appeared in the motion picture
"Harold & Maude" in 1971)
16. The Day They
Make Me A Tsar - Previously Unreleased Demo for the "Teaser And The
Firecat" album recorded February 1971
17. The Wind
18. Moonshadow
19. Morning Has
Broken
20. How Can I
Tell You
21. Peace Train
(tracks 17 to 21 are form his 5th album "Teaser And The Firecat" -
released September 1971 in the UK on Island ILPS9154 and A&M SP-4313 in the
USA)
22. I Want To
Live In A Wigwam - non-album track, B-side of "Morning Is Broken" -
December 1971 UK 7" single on Island WIP 6121
Disc 3 - THE
HURT - 70:26 minutes:
1. Crab Dance -
non-album instrumental track, B-side of "Sitting" - a UK 7"
single released December 1972 on Island WIP 6152
2. Sitting
3. Silent
Sunlight
4. Angelsea
5. Can't Keep It
In
6. 18th Avenue
(Kansas City Nightmare) (tracks 2 to 6 are from his 6th album "Catch Bull
At Four" - released September 1972 in the UK on Island ILPS 9206 and in
the USA on A&M Records SP-4365)
7. The Hurt
8. Foreigner
Suite (tracks 7 and 8 are from his 7th album "Foreigner" - released
July 1973 in the UK on Island ILPS 9240 and in the USA on A&M Records
SP-4391
9. Oh Very Young
10. Music
11. Sun/C79
12. King Of
Trees (tracks 9 to 12 are from his 8th album "Buddah And The Chocolate
Box" - released March 1974 in the UK on Island ILPS 9274 and in the USA on
A&M Records SP-3623)
13. Bad Penny
(Live)
14. Lady
D'Arbanville (Live) (tracks 13 and 14 are from the album "Saturnight-Cat
Stevens Live In Tokyo"- a Japan-Only single LP album released August 1974
on A&M Records GP-228)
15. Another
Saturday Night - first released as a UK 7" single August 1974 on Island
WIP 6206 and later included on the "Greatest Hits" album released
June 1975 on Island ILPS 9310
Disc 4 - THE
LAST - 69:05 minutes:
1. Whistlestar
2. Novim's
Nightmare
3. Majik Of
Majiks
4. Banapple Gas
(tracks 1 to 4 are from his 9th album "Numbers" - released November
1975 in the UK on Island ILPS 9370 and in the USA on A&M Records SP-4555)
5. Blue Monday -
Previously Unreleased cover version of a Fats Domino classic - recorded
November 1975
6. Doves
(Majikat Earth Tour Theme Song) - non-album track, B-side to "(Remember
The Days Of The) Old Schoolyard" released May 1977 in the UK on Island WIP
6387
7. Hard Headed
Woman (Live) - Previously Unreleased - recorded 22 Feb 1978 at the College Of
William & Mary, Virginia, USA
8. Tuesday's
Dead (Live) - as per 7
9. Ruins (Live)
- as per 7
10. (Remember
The Days Of The) Old Schoolyard (A-side of 6)
11. Life
12. (I Never
Wanted) To Be A Star
13. Child For A
Day (tracks 10 to 13 are from his 10th album "Izitso" - released May
1977 in the UK on Island ILPS 9451 and in the USA on A&M Records SP-4702)
14. Just Another
Night
15. Daytime
16. Last Love
Song
17. Never
(tracks 14 to 17 are from his 11th album "Back To Earth" - released
December 1978 in the UK on Island ILPS 9565 and in the USA on A&M Records
SP-4735)
18. Father And
Son (Live) - Previously Unreleased - recorded at The Year Of The Child Concert
in Wembley Arena 22 Nov 1979
19. God Is The
Light - from the album "Syuku" (1997) and "Bismallah"
(2001)
The presentation
is has to be said is gorgeous - a 98-page colour booklet is attached inside the
hard back book sleeve - every sepia-page festooned with live photos, publicity
shots, a sort of time line of photos across the bottom of each two-page spread
cataloguing both his career and personal life, the logos from the early Island
albums artwork, stills from the cartoons that surrounded "Tea For The
Tillerman" and "Teaser And The Firecat", some lyrics and
extensive track-by-track breakdowns. It's beautifully done and a genuine feast
for fans.
TED JENSEN and
SUHA GUR have handled the superb remasters - mastered from the original
analogue two-track master tapes (these are names familiar to those who seek out
quality reissues - Jensen and Gur have handled literally hundreds of
prestigious catalogues between them). The audio quality is really sweet
throughout.
Disc 1 covers
his Sixties Deram period - the "Matthew And Son" and "New Masters"
albums with some non-album single sides and previously unreleased thrown in.
The Stereo impact of stuff like "Here Comes My Baby", the acoustic
"Portobello Road" and "Blackness Of The Night" and the
lovely "The First Cut is The Deepest" is fantastic - but tunes like
"I'm Gonna Get Me A Gun" are insufferable Sixties pap. Disc 1 wisely
ends with the beginning of the Island Records period by giving us three
rarities in a row. His voice had already changed by 1968 when he recorded the
demo of "If Only Mother Could See Me Now" even though it has that
Sixties arrangement and not the simplicity of the Seventies stuff. The duet
with Elton John "Honey Man" is better than I'd expected but the
"The Joke" is the prize here - a strangely 'Rock' tune for Cat Stevens.
Things go
stratospheric with Disc 2 when we hit that incredible run of albums in 1970 and
1971 - "Mona Bone Jakon", "Tea For The Tillerman" and
"Teaser And The Fire Cat". The audio quality of "Time/Fill My
Eyes" is truly gorgeous and what a forgotten nugget it is. The hits start
coming with "Lady D'Arbanville" but again its trumped by a forgotten
LP ballad - "Trouble". The pretty "Lilywhite" is still
hissy (it always was) but it's a gorgeous Nick Drake type melody with those
fabulous strings. We're then hit with a cool one - a "Mona Bone
Jakon" outtake - the decidedly good "I've Got A Thing About Seeing My
Grandson Grow Old". A very clever run of four rarities follows. The first
is an outtake from "Tea For A Tillerman" called "Love Lives In
The Sky" which turns out to be an early version of "Land O' Freelove
& Goodbye" and it's really sweet (beautifully remastered too). But
long time fans are going to adore "Don't By Shy" and "If You
Want To Sing Out, Sing Out" both from the 1971 movie "Harold &
Maude" - gorgeous melodies from his best period (especially "Don't Be
Shy").
His songwriting
capabilities took a leap into space with "Tea" and
"Teaser"(probably everybody's favourite albums) and they dominate the
rest of this stunning disc. I can remember as a 12-year old first hearing
"Sad Lisa" at a friend's house in Clontarf in Dublin - I stood there
stunned - the beautiful piano melody washing over me (its doing so again this
day). And even with five tracks from "Teaser" - if you think about
brilliance like "If I Laugh" and "How Can I Tell You?"
being absent - you could add the other five and still not have enough. "I
Want To Live In A Wigwam" was always a dodgy B-side - but "Love Lives
In The Sky" is a wonderful "Tillerman" outtake - simple, pretty
and affecting. I nailed my first kiss dancing to "Moonshadow" - so
she and it are seared into my (slightly battered) heart and immortalised in a
poem I wrote called "Debs" which was published in the Eighties in a
book called "Hard Lines 2" (oh dear).
Disc 3 is probably
where people loose interest - but they shouldn't because again its chock full
of choice picks. The superb instrumental "Crab Dance" has long been
absent from CD for Cat Stevens fans - so it's a properly great opener. Fans
will notice that the acoustic masterpiece "The Boy With A Moon And A Star
On His Head" from "Bull" is AWOL (mores the pity) but the
fantastic groove of acoustic and synth of "Angelsea" makes up for it.
But for me the unsung masterpiece in his entire canon of work is "The
Foreigner Suite" that took up the whole of Side 1 and weighed in at a
whopping 18-minutes. It was essentially three songs linked together with
musical interludes and it's going to be great surprise to those to stopped
buying his albums after 1972. It's commonly thought that Stevens was running on
empty almost from "Numbers" onwards - yet when you cherry pick the
goodies out - the tracks here tell a different story. Stuff like
"Sun/C79", "Majik Of Majiks" and the lovely instrumental "Whistlestar"
are full of great melody and clever funky breaks. I can live without hearing
"Schoolyard" or "Another Saturday Night" even again - but
tunes like "Child For A Day" and "Never" show some of that
early Seventies magic - lovely songs.
Amongst the
Previously Unreleased - the properly recorded cover of Fats Domino's "Blue
Monday" is shockingly good - his voice suiting the R'n'B classic far
better than you would think. Fans will appreciate having the "Doves"
B-side on CD at last - it feels like one of the funky piano stretches in the
middle of "Foreigner Suite" - a cool little instrumental. His voice
is in fantastic form for the three live takes of "Hard Headed Woman",
"Tuesday's Dead" and Catch Bull At Four's "Ruins" recorded
in 1978 (you can hear the crowd loving it) - his female backing singers adding
a lot to the power of the performance.
For most a 2CD
set like "Gold" will probably suffice - but this 4-disc retrospective
is a winner on all the right fronts - sound, song choice, listener surprises
and beautiful presentation.
"I left my
happy home to see what I could find out..." - Cat Stevens sang on the
gorgeous "On The Road To Find Out". Take time out to fill your mind
with this journeyman's musical and spiritual travels...
