Singer-songwriter announces 50th anniversary reissue of Teaser and the Firecat, out this fall

Days after Yusuf/Cat Stevens released a global version of “Peace Train,” the singer-songwriter has announced a new box set in honor of the 50th anniversary of Teaser and the Firecat.

Firecat, Stevens’ third album and follow-up to Tea for the Tillerman, was originally released in October 1971. In addition to “Peace Train,” it included gems like “Moonshadow,” “The Wind,” “Rubylove,” and “Morning Has Broken,” the latter of which featured Yes’ Rick Wakeman on piano. To accompany the announcement, Yusuf has dropped an intimate demo of “Moonshadow” from 1970, which you can hear above.

The “super deluxe edition” box set, out November 12th, contains 41 previously unreleased audio tracks and 21 live performances, across four CDs, Blu-Ray, two LPs, and a seven-inch record. Similar to when Yusuf rerecorded Tillerman in full, the edition contains a new version of the Firecat track “Bitterblue,” titled “Bitterblue².”

Encased in a clamshell box, the collection also includes a hard-cover essay book and a replica of the original Teaser and Firecat book, which has been out of print since the Seventies. The massive reissue follows last year’s box set for Tillerman, a classic that was featured on Rolling Stone‘s 500 Greatest Albums podcast.

cat stevens box set

Teaser and the Firecat Super Deluxe Edition Box Set 

CD 1: Teaser and the Firecat (50th Anniversary Remaster)

1. The Wind
2. Rubylove
3. If I Laugh
4. Changes IV
5. How Can I Tell You
6. Tuesday’s Dead
7. Morning Has Broken
8. Bitterblue
9. Moonshadow
10. Peace Train

CD 2: Demos, Alternate Versions, Bonus Tracks

1. The Wind (Dubville Sessions 2020)
2. Rubylove (Studio Demo)
3. If I Laugh (Studio Demo)
4. Changes IV (Alternate Mix, 1971)
5. How Can I Tell You (Studio Demo)
6. Tuesday’s Dead (Studio Demo)
7. Morning Has Broken (Basing Street Rehearsal)
8. Bitterblue (Basing Street Rehearsal)
9. Moonshadow (Olympic Studio Demo, 1970)
10. Peace Train (Extended String Mix, 1971)
11. The Day They Make Me Tsar (Studio Demo)
12. I Want to Live in a Wigwam
13. Fisherman Song (Studio Demo)
14. Changes IV (Studio Demo)
15. Tuesday’s Dead (Alternate Mix, 1971)
16. Morning Has Broken (Studio Demo)
17. Bitterblue² (Reimagined 2021)

CD 3: Live On Air, UK, 1971

1. Moonshadow (BBC Radio Session, 8th November 1970)
2. Tuesday’s Dead (BBC Radio Session, 23rd March 1971)
3. How Can I Tell You (BBC Radio Session, 23rd March 1971)
4. Peace Train (BBC Radio Session, 23rd March 1971)
5. Moonshadow (BBC Radio Session, 23rd March 1971)
6. Bitterblue (BBC Radio Session, 23rd March 1971)
7. Moonshadow (Out Front: Cat Stevens And Friends, Yorkshire Television, 7th September 1971)
8. Where Do the Children Play? (Out Front: Cat Stevens And Friends, Yorkshire Television, 7th September 1971)
9. Longer Boats (Out Front: Cat Stevens And Friends, Yorkshire Television, 7th September 1971)
10. Tuesday’s Dead (Out Front: Cat Stevens And Friends, Yorkshire Television, 7th September 1971)
11. Sad Lisa (Out Front: Cat Stevens And Friends, Yorkshire Television, 7th September 1971)
12. Hard Headed Woman (Out Front: Cat Stevens And Friends, Yorkshire Television, 7th September 1971)
13. Father and Son (Out Front: Cat Stevens And Friends, Yorkshire Television, 7th September 1971)
14. If I Laugh (The Old Grey Whistle Test, BBC TV, 5th October 1971)
15. Changes IV (The Old Grey Whistle Test, BBC TV, 5th October 1971)
16. Moonshadow (Cat Stevens In Concert, BBC TV, 27th November 1971)
17. Tuesday’s Dead (Cat Stevens In Concert, BBC TV, 27th November 1971)
18. How Can I Tell You (Cat Stevens In Concert, BBC TV, 27th November 1971)
19. Bitterblue (Cat Stevens In Concert, BBC TV, 27th November 1971)
20. Changes IV (Cat Stevens In Concert, BBC TV, 27th November 1971)

CD 4: Live In Montreux, 2nd May 1971

1. Intro (Live In Montreux, 2nd May 1971)
2. Hard Headed Woman (Live In Montreux, 2nd May 1971)
3. On the Road to Find Out (Live In Montreux, 2nd May 1971)
4. Wild World (Live In Montreux, 2nd May 1971)
5. Longer Boats (Live In Montreux, 2nd May 1971)
6. Maybe You’re Right (Live In Montreux, 2nd May 1971)
7. Sad Lisa (Live In Montreux, 2nd May 1971)
8. Miles From Nowhere (Live In Montreux, 2nd May 1971)
9. Katmandu (Live In Montreux, 2nd May 1971)
10. Lady D’Arbanville (Live In Montreux, 2nd May 1971)
11. Father And Son (Live In Montreux, 2nd May 1971)
12. Where Do the Children Play? (Live In Montreux, 2nd May 1971)
13. Peace Train (Live In Montreux, 2nd May 1971)

Blu-Ray: HD 24bit/48kHz Audio

Teaser and the Firecat (50th Anniversary Remaster)

1. The Wind
2. Rubylove
3. If I Laugh
4. Changes IV
5. How Can I Tell You
6. Tuesday’s Dead
7. Morning Has Broken
8. Bitterblue
9. Moonshadow
10. Peace Train

Video
1. The Wind
2. Moonshadow

Cat Stevens Live In Montreux, Switzerland (2nd May 1971)

1. Longer Boats
2. Sad Lisa
3. Wild World
4. Katmandu
5. Lady D’Arbanville
6. Where Do the Children Play?
7. Peace Train

Out Front: Cat Stevens And Friends (Yorkshire TV) (7th September 1971)

1. Moonshadow
2. Where Do the Children Play?
3. Longer Boats
4. Tuesday’s Dead
5. Sad Lisa
6. Hard Headed Woman
7. Father And Son

The Old Grey Whistle Test (BBC TV) (5th October 1971)

1. If I Laugh
2. Changes IV

Cat Stevens In Concert (BBC TV) (27th November 1971)

1. Moon Shadow
2. Tuesday’s Dead
3. How Can I Tell You
4. Bitterblue
5. Changes IV

LP1: Teaser and the Firecat (Alternative Versions)

1. The Wind (Dubville Sessions 2020)
2. Rubylove (Studio Demo)
3. If I Laugh (Studio Demo)
4. Changes IV (Studio Demo)
5. How Can I Tell You (Studio Demo)

1. Tuesday’s Dead (Studio Demo)
2. Morning Has Broken (Basing Street Rehearsal)
3. Bitterblue (Basing Street Rehearsal)
4. Moonshadow (Olympic Studio Demo, 1970)
5. Peace Train (Extended String Mix, 1971)

LP2, Side 1: Live In Montreux, 2nd May 1971

1. Hard Headed Woman
2. Wild World
3. Lady D’Arbanville
4. Father And Son
5. Peace Train

LP2, Side 1: Live At The BBC, 1971

1. Moonshadow (BBC Radio Session, 23rd March 1971)
2. If I Laugh (The Old Grey Whistle Test, 5th October 1971)
3. Tuesday’s Dead (Cat Stevens In Concert, 27th November 1971)
4. How Can I Tell You (Cat Stevens In Concert, 27th November 1971)
5. Bitterblue (Cat Stevens In Concert, 27th November 1971)
6. Changes IV (Cat Stevens In Concert, 27th November 1971)

7″ Single

1. Moonshadow
2. Spike Milligan narration

VIBE celebrates '106' with a countdown of the videos retired from The Countdown.

106 & Park was a cultural moment celebrating the best, brightest stars of Hip-Hop and R&B.

Kicking things off in 2000, the show was hosted by personalities A.J. Calloway and Marie “Free” Wright, with the intent to recognize the most popular music and music videos at the time. And while the show added bits like Wild Out Wednesday, Throwback Thursday, and Freestyle Fridays, the true star of the show was the countdown, where fans enjoyed the art of the music video, all curated by them. Fans would vote for the chance to include their favorite artist’s latest releases on the coveted Top 10 Countdown.

Some videos were so beloved, that they wound up having to be placed on the 106 & Park Video Hall of Fame, where the music video would be “retired” after appearing on the countdown list 65 times—a true testament to the power of fandom and the impact that some of these visuals had on the culture. As BET issues yet another tease of a potential 106 & Park reboot for its 25th Anniversary, VIBE thought it would be great to walk you through the music videos that had the honor of being retired and placed into the show’s Hall of Fame. Watch the videos below.

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