Track Listing

1. The Wind
2. Rubylove
3. If I laugh
4. Changes IV
5. How Can I Tell You
6. Tuesdat's Dead
7. Morning Has Broken
8. Bitterblue
9. Moonshadow
10. Peace Train

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #765 in Music
• Released on: 2000-05-29
• Number of discs: 1
• Formats: Original recording reissued, Original recording remastered
• Dimensions: .22 pounds
• Running time: 33 minutes

CD Description
Following in the tradition of his previous effort, with a similar cover design and feel, Cat continued his painful journey through life. Even then, there was a sadness linked to his happy songs such as "Moonshadow", "How Can I Tell You" and "Tuesday's Dead". Our favourite school hymn was also giventhe treatment - how did he manage to make such a happy verse sound so sad? The answer, as we have all seen, was in himself; he was a rare songwriter but he was mostly a very troubled soul, something he seems to have resolved through his conversion to the Muslim faith. He won, we lost him.

Customer Reviews

Brilliant!
What an absolutely wonderful album! I am currently on my fifth copy (CD). The other four being vinyl and cassettes which subsequently wore out! I loved it the first time heard it 30 years ago and have never tired of listening to it! Every track is an absolute masterpiece. Not only is every track beautifully crafted in the musical sense but every song also has a lot of meaning lyrically and at various times of my life have related to each and every one of them. Not only was this a classic album 30 years ago but new generations (including my son) have been discovering it ever since! If I could only have one album in my collection this would be it!

HIS BEST ALBUM
This legendary album contains at least four classics: Rubylove with its prominent bouzouki and verses sung in Greek is atmospheric and beautiful; Morning Has Broken sounds like a medieval hymn, a gentle lilting ballad with spiritual undertones; Moonshadow is a moving and melodic love song, while Peace Train, though less immediate, will grow on you. I don't know if Cat Stevens can be considered a "heavyweight" in the singer/songwriter genre, but he ceretainly reached a creative peak with these beautiful compositions. Never quite as melancholy as Nick Drake, nor as psychedelic as Donovan, Stevens touched all the right chords here with these simple but timeless songs, the sparse backing and his lovely vocals. This is definitely his best album and the music has stood the test of time very well.

The complete album?
Not a weak song to be found, this album repays endless listening. If you've never heard it before, I envy you! Buy it and be blown away - beautiful voice; great lyrics; sublime meoldies; minimal arrangments. It all adds up to a superlative example of the singer-songwriter's art. When I first bought this album it was for the well known 'wind' 'morning has broken' and 'moonshadow'...but when I heard it through for the first time I was immediately struck by Peace Train, Rubylove, If I laugh and Tuesday's Dead...every one of these is a gem.

Buy it. It's an album you will go back to again and again and again...