Cat Stevens on his Glastonbury ‘legend slot’, words of wisdom for King Charles and new album King of a Land
A LEGEND, a king and a Beatle.
That’s quite a combination so bear with me while I explain how they’re connected.
Firstly, this year’s Sunday tea-time “legend slot” at Glastonbury deservedly goes to Yusuf, also known by his old stage name of Cat Stevens.
His timeless songs, Father and Son, Peace Train, Wild World, Morning Has Broken and the rest, make him the perfect candidate to follow Dolly Parton, Neil Diamond, and Ray Davies on to the Pyramid Stage.
Secondly, Yusuf has perceptive views on the character and role of King Charles III and offers words of wisdom to our new monarch as he begins his reign.
Lastly, his new album is appearing on the revived Dark Horse label, founded by kindred spirit George Harrison, the “quiet” Beatle.
Yusuf calls 12-track King Of A Land “a summation of not just my songwriting journey but my life journey”.
It’s the work of an older, wiser artist but there are plenty of echoes, both musically and lyrically, of his great early albums, Tea For The Tillerman and Teaser And The Firecat.
“I’m not frightened of being myself on this album because I’m not frightened of sounding like Cat Stevens,” he says.
“There was a time when I was trying to run away from being pigeonholed.”
For my Zoom audience with Yusuf, he’s sitting in the cosy confines of the garage studio he calls “Dubville” in his adopted home of Dubai.
His soundtrack to student bedsits
He gestures to his surroundings and says: “In here, it’s as close as you can get to being in my sinews, my mind and my psyche.
“I’m free to express myself without feeling I’ve got to please my producer or anyone. I am the producer, I am the engineer.”
Yusuf is looking well and relaxed with trim grey hair and beard framing his ever-smiling eyes.
It’s strange to think that this is the tousle-haired troubadour Cat Stevens who provided the soundtrack to student bedsits everywhere in the early Seventies.
He also famously converted to Islam in 1977 after a near-death experience, then turning his back on music for more than two decades before launching a miraculous comeback.
It feels as if everything has been building up to King Of A Land, his 17th studio album, conceived and recorded when Queen Elizabeth II still reigned over us but with a prophetic choice of title.
“It’s completely coincidental that it’s arriving at the same time as King Charles,” he affirms.
“We share the same birth year and I’ve been watching him. He’s got sensitivities that need to be exploited by the nation, not dampened.”
When the title track was released as a single recently, Yusuf simultaneously put out a ten-point “manifesto for a good King”.
He has high hopes for Charles, who shares his environmental and geo-political concerns for the planet’s future, but calls on him to be an inclusive and caring leader.
The manifesto contains heartfelt guidance such as: “Be just and don’t show favouritism. Listen to constructive criticism. Be a guardian to all faiths, and the precious Earth we all share.”
Yusuf joined the dots between his song and the King “after I found out that he was going to be crowned”.
“Its whole meaning is: Don’t forget, there’s One above you (as in God) and be very careful about those below you.”
Even though Charles heads a constitutional monarchy, Yusuf maintains that His Majesty can still hold considerable influence.
“He has the power to warn, the power to encourage and the power to be informed,” he says.
“Whereas his mother was much more reserved, I think he could really utilise these freedoms.”
So what does Yusuf think of the Coronation on May 6?
“Well, he is 74,” he replies. “It’s a really strange time in one’s life to suddenly become King. Even though he’s been prepared, it must be a hard job.”
Next, Yusuf describes how King Of A Land came to be his first album for Dark Horse Records and why it’s such a good fit.
“Dark Horse represents a dying breed of independent and bespoke record labels,” he says.
“Because it’s being cared for by the son of George Harrison, Dhani, it’s got so much connection for me.
“In a way, my spiritual journey began after being inspired by George’s own excursion towards the east.”
Harrison’s search took him to India where he embraced Hinduism in the Hare Krishna tradition and brought its influence to The Beatles and his solo work — most notably on My Sweet Lord.
Yusuf’s quest involved reading a Buddhist book while recovering from TB in 1969 and discovering the Quran in 1976 after nearly drowning off the coast of California. The following year, he converted to Islam and changed his name.
“George and I were coming from different angles but we were looking for the same thing,” he says. “I really feel a connection with him and that’s why, in the last 15 years, I’ve been able to sing George songs rather than John Lennon’s.”
Which particular Harrison compositions resonate with him? “Well, let’s start in the material world with Taxman (from Revolver),” laughs Yusuf. “That resonated with me because Harold Wilson was taxing everybody at 90 per cent!
“I’ve covered All Things Must Pass and a beautiful song called The Day The World Gets ’Round — I love that one, it’s special to me.
“Recently, I’ve been singing Here Comes The Sun. Despite their whole incredible back catalogue, it’s the No1 listened to Beatles song — and it’s by the dark horse.”
A real thrill for Yusuf is that his new record was mixed in Harrison’s old studio at Friar Park, the Neo-gothic Victorian mansion outside Henley-On-Thames where he lived with wife Olivia until his death.
Yusuf says: “We were very privileged. There was an incredible atmosphere. Just imagine the manicured gardens with lakes, rock formations and Japanese-style sections.
“When you’re in the studio, you’re always stuck behind a control room desk but I did take a few walks out there.”
During his time at Friar Park, Yusuf got to know Dhani Harrison, George’s son and keeper of the flame.
“I’m sure George would be incredibly proud of what Dhani’s doing to maintain his father’s legacy and to make it grow. Now I’m part of that.”
Yusuf reveals that new track, All Nights, All Days, is his nod to the Traveling Wilburys, the supergroup Harrison formed with Bob Dylan, Roy Orbison, Jeff Lynne and Tom Petty.
“You’ll hear a slide guitar that sounds just like George’s,” he says.
The song takes aim at politicians who “keep telling lies” and “steal hope from the people’s hearts”.
Yusuf also adds humour to his message when he sings: “Lock those leaders in London Zoo!”
Without quite naming names, he tells me: “Politics has taken a really dangerous turn. I think it began in alphabetical terms with ‘B’. I’ll say no more!”
If there’s a track which captures the essence of Yusuf/Cat Stevens, it is the orchestrated How Good It Feels, complete with a passage from Tchaikovsky’s ballet Swan Lake.
“I started writing it in 1968,” he says. “It has almost everything I ever wanted to say in a song.
“But, because it was inspired by Swan Lake, I felt I was borrowing it and never bothered to finish it — until now.”
Talking to Yusuf, I discover there’s a fascinating back story to each of King Of A Land’s 12 tracks. Opening song, the intimate, understated Train On A Hill revisits similar territory to his much-loved Peace Train.
“Only here, I describe the train as being stuck,” he says. “Where is it going? If everything in this world is so negative, it’s hard to find a station.
“You still have the Peace Train ready to roll but this is a wake-up call.”
Quite a shock to the system is hard-rocking Pagan Run, which literally explodes out of the speakers.
It proves Yusuf’s willingness to be genre fluid. “It’s a refreshing and unlikely track to find on a Cat Stevens record,” he says.
“I had a riff which wouldn’t escape from me and I think we cracked it. Electric guitars are not what people know me for but I’ve always been an admirer.”
Yusuf recalls touring with the great Jimi Hendrix in the late Sixties. “So I knew Jimi more intimately than most,” he says. “He was a soft-spoken guy but his music was transcendent, amazing. Eric Clapton couldn’t play the guitar for months after seeing him.”
As for the lyrics to Pagan Run, they hark back to the time when Cat Stevens had barely begun his search for answers to life’s big questions.
Another thought-provoking effort is Son Of Mary, which, along with He Is True and Highness, are profound expressions of Yusuf’s faith.
“Nobody can go to a Roman Catholic school and come out not loving Mary,” he says.
“One of the beautiful things I found in the Quran was a whole chapter dedicated to her.
“It united everything within my heart. I didn’t have to look anywhere else, any more.”
At 74, Yusuf’s journey “through so many doorways” may not be over but he sums up his progress by quoting the actress Ingrid Bergman.
“Getting old is like climbing a mountain; you get a little out of breath, but the view is much better!”
When he walks out on to the Glastonbury stage at 3.15pm on June 25, Yusuf will feel as if he’s reached the summit.
“It’s time I bowed to the occasion,” he says. “I didn’t consider it until I realised I should showcase my musical journey, going back to my earliest songs like The First Cut Is The Deepest.”
Will he find Glasto daunting? “Now I can use a bit of the wisdom I’ve picked up,” he answers.
“We all began from one soul so, if you think about it, I’m only singing to one soul, one person. There may be 100,000 names out there but that doesn’t matter.”
As we go our separate ways, I ask Yusuf if he has any remaining ambitions.
“The world still needs a whole lot of fixing and that’s not a job anyone can give up on,” he says.
It’s also not something he can do by himself but at least the life-affirming music of Yusuf/Cat Stevens, old and new, makes planet Earth a better place.
