One of the things I'm going to do on this blog is listen to full albums (some I've heard before, others only songs or nothing at all from it) and tell you my opinion on it, I am not going to call them reviews though I've called them album review in the labels, I'm just going to say they are my opinion.
It's probably not cool to say you are a fan of Cat Stevens (or Yusuf Islam), but he's probably a very good example of what my varied music tastes are that you will find out (seriously the album by a different performer was miles apart from the work of Stevens). Stevens was one of them artists I remember my parents playing as a kid that I didn't find objectionable, as 99% of what you remember them listening too does tend to be offensive to your ears.
Tea For The Tillerman, originally recorded and released in 1970 is an album I have listened to many, many times, easily more then anything else from Cat Stevens, and it happens with a lot of albums you suddenly realized years have passed without you
Listening to the first track my memory instantly came back of Where Do The Children Play a song I haven't listened too in so long, and it's probably a song that should be on my iTunes shuffle - it falls into the category of songs I can say I like but not in love with if that makes sense.
The second track Hard Headed Woman is arguably my favourite song of his full stop (Sitting, is the song it would mainly be in competition with for me). The third track, Wild World come to think of it would place 3rd in my all time favourite Cat Stevens tracks. As far as I'm concerned with the three opening tracks it's a great beginning.
track number four - Sad Lisa - is not bad it's just too downbeat really after having Stevens unique energy for the first three songs, it's not necessarily a bad thing it slows the album down and the piano tune is good it's just I think I kind of wish it kept going, which I think Wild World should have gone straight into Miles To Nowhere (which is track number 5), I think it compliments the first 3 songs much better.
But I Might Die Tonight (track 6) is short and doesn't make too much impact on your ears in the long run, and while I like Longer Boats (track 7), it feels like other songs I can't place (if that makes sense - I'm trying to say it sounds like I've heard it before multiple times from different artists) but it's still overall a nice song. While Into The White (track 8) doesn't overall do much for me, so there is not much I can say about that and On The Road To Find Out (Track 9) ends up being the albums longest track and doesn't really deserve it in the long run but it's a good song.
Track 10, is arguably Stevens' most famous song Father and Son (I know some smart-arses will disagree) and there's really nothing of him to be ashamed about of the fame, adding different inflections to the voices of the Father and Son is brilliantly done, which makes the Boyzone cover from the 90's kind of ironic - there was five of them and they all made it all one bland tone (the Boyzone fans will be out attacking me with pitchforks).
The final track (11) is the short title track, popularized as the end credits song for Extras, the song was familiar to me well before then, the major criticism of this is seriously at coming in at just over a minute it's too short even just another minute would have been welcome.
Overall, it's a good place as any to start if you wanted to delve into world of Cat Stevens album, it's fair to say in my opinion, the strongest few songs are at the beginning and the middle of the album, leaving the middle portion not as strong but still musically pleasant on the ears. Recommended.
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