King of a Land
As Yusuf / Cat Stevens' sixth solo release, King of a Land spends its 43 minutes pacing back and forth between treacly folk themes, sultry country jams, and feathery pop light-ups where a wishful boy occupies the spotlight as the protagonist of 12…
Yusuf is a talented singer and songwriter with an interesting past -- in the 1960s and '70s he was the internationally famous pop singer Cat Stevens, whose thoughtful, soulful songs often had a spiritual bent. After the release of his 1978 album Back to Earth, Stevens walked away from his career in music, embracing the Muslim faith and taking the name Yusuf Islam. In 2006, he released the album An Other Cup, credited to Yusuf, that found him gingerly easing back into the folk-influenced pop that made him famous, and since then, Yusuf has been making music that aims to strike a balance between the musical personality of his most famous work, his present-day spiritual focus, and his dreams of a more just, peaceful, and generous world. In terms of this match of form and content, 2023's King of a Land may be the best album Yusuf has delivered since returning to popular music (and like his last several releases, it's credited to Yusuf/Cat Stevens, suggesting he's at peace with his musical past while wanting to remind us he's not exactly the man he used to be). Working with Paul Samwell-Smith, who produced the bulk of his '70s work, on King of a Land Yusuf writes melodies that are more artful than his best-known hits but have a very recognizable warmth, and a mood that finds room for both joy and gravity.
While Yusuf / Cat Stevens has not always sung specifically about his religious faith, King of a Land finds him addressing this topic in inspiring words and beautiful voice.
Yusuf/Cat Stevens is not afraid to get political ahead of his Glastonbury Legends slot, Queens of the Stone Age are all gutteral machismo
If you can hack the God stuff there are some lovely tunes along the way. Review by Thomas H Green.