Anyhoo, when I was young and in high school, there were a fair amount of my fellow students who thought Cat Stevens was the shit...and I wasn't one of them. In fact, I really never gave him much thought after his heyday had passed until 10,000 Maniacs released a nice cover version of his song "Peace Train" when I began to give my previous lack of interest a second thought, and it was cemented when my youngest son, who is a huge fan of our moon, liked when I sang this week's tune every time we were ensconced in our very own moonshadows. While he'll never be Bruce Springsteen to me, he's certainly had his share of tunes that I now greatly enjoy, and serves as a reminder to me of how my musical tastes have evolved (devolved?) through the years.
Cat Stevens (now Yusuf Islam) has certainly had a most interesting life. He had his first hit in 1967 in his native England at the age of nineteen, with his debut album hitting #7 on the U.K. charts and featuring two top ten singles. Two years later he had contracted tuberculosis and spent months in the hospital and a year recuperating. After his nearly dying, Stevens decided to change his career trajectory from that of pop star to folk singer--with excellent results. From 1970 to 1977, Stevens released eight albums, six of which hit the top ten (including one #1), and had twelve singles reach the top 40. At the height of his popularity, Stevens came close to drowning off the coast of California and promised God if he lived he'd devote his life to working for Him. Shortly thereafter Stevens' brother gave him a copy of the Quran, and Stevens eventually converted to Islam. Not feeling comfortable with the rock and roll lifestyle and his new religion, Stevens walked away from the spotlight in the late 70's and devoted himself to Muslim causes. In the mid 90's he began playing Islamic music and by the mid 2000's had come to believe that music was a way of sharing God's love and returned to touring and making music. Stevens was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2014. There's a lot more to Stevens' life--much of it involving his Muslim faith and not all of it easy or good for him--but in the end, Stevens literally put his money where his mouth was, donating a substantial portion of his earnings to charitable causes.
Fun Fact: Stevens return to the music of his youth in the 2000's was aided by his son bringing a guitar home--Stevens began to play for the first time in many years and had an epiphany of sorts. Behold the power of the guitar!
Released in 1970 as a single in his native U.K. and later on his wonderfully named LP Teaser and the Firecat here in the States, "Moonshadow" would reach #30 (with a bullet!) on the Billboard Hot 100. Stevens says it's his favorite song of his older material, and it has been made into an animated short film and a musical.
Stevens was a young and successful pop star on vacation in Spain when he saw his shadow in the moonlight for the first time (growing up in London he said the lamplights were too powerful to allow the showcasing of the moon's rays), and then wrote a song about his experience. The song is sparse--it's just Stevens playing an acoustic guitar and singing, with a touch of backing vocals (which may or may not be just Stevens), but through his playing and vocals Stevens captures the joy (I'd say almost giddiness) of his discovery of his shadow in the moonlight. There's a whimsical quality, almost childlike, to the song, and even today, though he's thirteen now, my youngest son will still on occasion ask me to sing it when the moon is full and while we're basking in our very own moonshadows reflecting off our driveway.
Lyric Sheet: "Oh, if I ever lose my eyes, if my colours all run dry/Yes, if I ever lose my eyes, oh if...I won't have to cry no more..."
Enjoy:
Fuck Donald Trump,
emaycee
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