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Cat Stevens
British musician (born 1948)
Yusuf Islam, commonly known by his stage names Cat Stevens or Yusuf/Cat Stevens, is a British singer-songwriter and musician. He has sold more than 100 million records and has more than two billion streams.
His musical career has explored folk, rock, pop, and, later in his career, Islamic music. Following two decades in which he performed only music which met strict religious standards, he returned to making secular music in 2006.
He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2014. He has received two honorary doctorates and awards for promoting peace as well as other humanitarian awards.
real name: Steven Demetre Georgiou (Name used from July 21, 1948 until July 04, 1978) / Yusuf Islam (Name used from July 04, 1978 until present)
labels: Island Records, A&M Records, Atlantic Records, Decca, Deram
genres: rock music, pop music, traditional folk music, Islamic music
awards: Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, honorary doctor of the University of Exeter
plays: guitar, piano, bass guitar, voice
Facts from Wikidata and Discogs, free to use.
folk rockrocksinger-songwriter2008 universal fire victimbaroque popcontemporary folk
The Elsewhere GazetteExtra
Early life and education
Steven Demetre Georgiou, born on 21 July 1948 in the Marylebone area of London, was the youngest child of a Greek Cypriot father, Stavros Georgiou (1900–1978), and a Swedish mother, Ingrid Wickman (1915–1989). He has an older sister, Anita, and a brother, David Gordon. The family lived above the Moulin Rouge, a restaurant his parents operated on the north end of Shaftesbury Avenue, a short walk from Piccadilly Circus in the Soho theatre district of London. All family members worked in the restaurant. His parents divorced when he was about eight years old but continued to maintain the family restaurant and live above it. Stevens has a half-brother, George Georgiou, born in Greece, presumably from his father's first marriage in Greece.
Georgiou began performing his songs in London coffee houses and pubs. At first he tried to form a band, but realised he preferred performing solo. Thinking his birth name might be difficult to remember, he chose the stage name Cat Stevens, partly because a girlfriend said he had eyes like a cat, but mainly because "I couldn't imagine anyone going to the record store and asking for 'that Steven Demetre Georgiou album'. And in England, and I was sure in America, they loved animals."
Islam gradually resumed his musical career in the 1990s. These initial recordings did not include any musical instruments other than percussion, and they featured lyrics about Islamic themes, some in spoken word or hamd form. He invested in building his own recording studio, which he named Mountain of Light Studios in the late 1990s, and he was featured as a guest singer on "God Is the Light", a song on an album of nasheeds by the group Raihan. In addition, he invited and collaborated with other Muslim singers, including Canadian artist Dawud Wharnsby.
Artists who have cited Stevens as a musical influence and lauded the quality of his music include Paul McCartney of The Beatles, Dolly Parton, Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull, Lindsey Buckingham of Fleetwood Mac, John Frusciante of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Peter Gabriel, Nile Rodgers of CHIC, Carly Simon, Rick Wakeman, Paul Rodgers of the bands Free and Bad Company, Bonnie "Prince" Billy, Dale Crover of The Melvins, James Morrison, and Ville Valo of HIM.
British singer-songwriter born in London on July 21, 1948. His musical career was interrupted in 1969 when he contracted tuberculosis. He converted to Islam in 1977, adopting the name Yusuf Islam the following year. Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 2014.
Brother of David Gordon (3).
Also known as: C Stevens, C at Stevens, C. S., C. S. Choir, C. Stephens
From Discogs (free to use). Their entry
Liner notes
Cat Stevens, the records, oldest first
Kitty
1966 ep
New Masters
1967 album
Matthew & Son
1967 album
Matthew and Son
1967 ep
Mona Bone Jakon
1970 album
Tea for the Tillerman
1970 album
wanted
Teaser and the Firecat
1971 album
wanted
Catch Bull at Four
1972 album
Foreigner
1973 album
The Hoaxer’s Midnight Daydream
1974 album
Buddha and the Chocolate Box
1974 album
Numbers: A Pythagorean Theory Tale
1975 album
Izitso
1977 album
Back to Earth
1978 album
Tea for the Tillerman²
2020 album
Records from MusicBrainz; covers from the Cover Art Archive.
"If You Want To Sing Out, Sing Out" is a song by Cat Stevens for the 1971 film Harold and Maude. It was finally released in 1984 as a promo single for Stevens's compilation Footsteps in the Dark: Greatest Hits, Vol. 2.
In addition, it has appeared on the UK edition of his 2003 album The Very Best of Cat Stevens.
Cover versions
The song has been covered by Bloomington, Indiana's folk punk pioneers Ghost Mice under the shortened title "Sing Out".
