Yusuf/Cat Stevens has just announced that he will be releasing a reimagined version of his 1970 album Tea for the Tillerman which contains some of the acclaimed artist’s most beloved songs.
Titled Tea for the Tillerman², the talented British singer-songwriter will rework the 11 songs that featured on the incredible original album which was first released in 1970.
Yusuf/Cat Stevens is celebrating Tea for the Tillerman‘s 50th anniversary by reimagining and recording each song from the album.
Yusuf/Cat Stevens was inspired by his son to reimagine the album, with the new knowledge and wisdom that 50 more years on the planet has given the acclaimed artist. A press release about the re-recorded album stated:
“Tea for the Tillerman² resonate again, as loud today as ever. The album speaks anew of concern for the natural world and examines some of our most profound relationships, generation to generation, underpinned by a longing for spiritual union in an unpredictable and increasingly broken materialistic world.”
While the artist was only 22 when most of these songs were written, he has been able to look at them with fresh eyes after a lifetime of diverse experiences, raw inspirations and newfound perspectives on the world. In a reflection on the album and its importance to him, Stevens stated:
“Though my songwriting adventures were never limited to Tillerman, the songs on that album certainly defined me and pointed the way for my mysterious life’s journey. Since those originative sessions in Morgan Studios, Willesden, in 1970, Tillerman has grown and developed its own gravitas and influence on music history and as the soundtrack to so many people’s lives. Like it was destiny waiting to happen, T4TT² feels like the timing of its message has arrived again.”
To bring the album new life, Yusuf reunited with producer Paul Samwell-Smith and guitarist Alun Davies, who both worked on the original album. They will also be joined by an array of talents including Bruce Lynch on bass, Eric Appapoulay on guitar, and multi-instrumentalist Kwame Yeboah, with additional support from Jim Cregan and Peter Vettese.
Tea For The Tillerman included some of best-known works by the British singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, such as Where Do the Children Play?, Hard Headed Woman, Wild World, Sad Lisa, Into White, as well as Father and Son.
If you are as excited as us to hear the reimagined version of Tea For The Tillerman, you can pre-order the album here.
