Cat Stevens

In almost every respect, this four-CD, 79-track package conforms to the usual standards of box sets for major artists. All of Cat Stevens' hits, and his most popular album tracks, are here, and the four discs span his entire career, from the mid-'60s to the end of the 1970s (with just one cut, the late-'90s finale "God Is the Light," postdating his change of name to Yusuf Islam). The usual ribbons on the wrapping are also properly tied, with a few previously unissued demos/outtakes/live performances, some non-LP singles and B-sides, and a couple live 1974 recordings from Saturnight (Live in Tokyo) that have never been available on CD before. The only surprise, in fact -- at least, to the many listeners who are likely unaware of Yusuf Islam's increasing willingness to acknowledge his Cat Stevens past in the 21st century -- is the active participation of Islam in the set, to the point of contributing the principal essay in the liner notes (as well as adding some printed comments for many of the tracks). Refreshingly, the box also does not shun his false start as a British pop star in 1966 and 1967, with almost the entirety of the first disc devoted to pre-1970 recordings. While overly orchestrated and not much like the folky singer/songwriter music for which Stevens became most famous, those early sides are valuable both for documenting his first impact on the pop world and for containing some material that's worthwhile in and of itself.

The hardcore fan will naturally be most interested in the rarities, and while none of these are on par with Stevens' finest work, they both carry historical interest and fit in well with the lengthy program. There's a 1965 folk-rock-poppish demo, "Back to the Good Old Times"; a sparse, haunting acoustic 1968 demo, "If Only Mother Could See Me Now"; a January 1970 demo, "Honey Man," with Elton John on piano; another January 1970 demo, "Time/Fill My Eyes," that would have not been out of place on his Mona Bone Jakon album; "Don't Be Shy" and "If You Want to Sing Out, Sing Out," both of which were used in the Harold and Maude soundtrack; the quirky, instrumental 1972 B-side "Crab Dance"; and the live November 1979 version of "Father and Son" (for the Year of the Child concert in London) that marked his final concert appearance. To be unkind, there's another way this anthology is entirely typical of major box sets: the final disc is much inferior to what precedes it, Stevens' material becoming considerably blander as he approached the end of the '70s. But it's certainly likely to stand as the best thorough retrospective of his career, with a superb 98-page booklet that, in addition to Islam's essay and comments, also includes quotes from Stevens' producers and side musicians, as well as a detailed time line of his career. ~ Richie Unterberger, All Music Guide