Cat Stevens, rock music reviews by jpoc

Although he started out as a sort of pretty boy pop artist singing inconsequential songs, Cat Stevens eventually became the quintesential British Folk Rock musician. To the disappointment of his fans, his musical output came to a halt all too soon when he embraced Islam and turned his back on Western popular music.

As a performer, he was a very versatile instrumentlist always leading from the front whether, playing guitar or keyboard. This was combined with a charismatic voice which he could fill with expression and feeling. Those performing abilities were combined with a songwriting talent as distinctive as John Lennon's.

What all that means is that every Cat Stevens song is unmistakably his work but at the same time, no two of his songs sound alike. It is very hard indeed for a musician to achieve that.