‘Findout’ About Yusuf/Cat Stevens

A new collection covers his entire recorded output for the very first time

November 4, 2025November 3, 2025 Ron Hart 0 Comments 2025, Cat on the Road to Findout, Cat Stevens, Cat-O-Log Records, Island Records, Yusuf Islam, Yusuf/Cat Stevens

Yusuf/Cat Stevens *Cat on the Road to Findout*, Genesis Publications 2025

One of the biggest disappointments of this dumpster fire of a year was the fact that Yusuf/Cat Stevens had to cancel his tour of North American theaters in support of his new memoir, Cat on the Road to Findout.

“Sadly, my Cat on the Road to Findout Book Tour in the U.S. and Canada looks like it won’t go ahead as scheduled in October,” Stevens wrote on his website. “Waiting months for visa approvals, we held out as long as we could. However, at this point, the production logistics necessary for my show cannot be arranged in time.

“I am really upset! Not least for my fans who have bought tickets and made travel plans to see me perform.

“North American audiences may still get a chance to see the tour if visa approvals eventually come through. Those dates would be some time away because of other travel tour plans but, hopefully, fans will be able to hop on the Peace Train route at some time in the future.

“Meanwhile, tour delays should not affect the book, which you’ll still be able to enjoy… the obvious benefit of it being — books don’t need visas!”

Indeed. Despite the xenophobic reasons behind why Cat was denied entry into the United States, the Powers that Be cannot stop us from reading his book or listening to his music. Well, at least not yet.

So then, the time is now for longtime fans and new ones alike to celebrate nearly 60 years of Cat Stevens’ music with the release of this new two-CD collection, the very first of its kind to cover the entirety of his career.

Cover art for the deluxe edition of On the Road to Findout. (Image: UMe)

“My ambition was to be an artist,” Yusuf writes in the liner notes to the collection. “I loved animation and cartoons, that was my plan, but The Beatles got in the way. They just suddenly changed everything. I picked up a cheap guitar for £8 in Tin Pan Alley and began writing my own songs.”

And these 47 tracks serve as the singular best road map to find out about the brilliance of this gifted songwriter whose music evolved with his spirituality and experience. From his first hit single in 1966, the sweet and direct “I Love My Dog” to “Take the World Apart” — a highlight from his latest album, 2023’s King of a Land — On The Road to Findout paves the way for fans to experience the full spectrum of Yusuf’s creative journey.

Of course, there’s the timeless hits, namely 1967’s “The First Cut is the Deepest” (which would become a big hit for both Rod Stewart and Sheryl Crow), the tearful “Father and Son” from 1970’s seminal Tea for the Tillerman, “Don’t Be Shy” from the beloved cult film Harold And Maude, Teaser and the Firecat’s “Moonshadow” and “Oh Very Young” off 1974’s Buddha and the Chocolate Box. Can’t forget about “Banapple Gas” from 1975’s Numbers, either.

Cover art for the standard edition of On the Road to Findout. (Image: UMe)

But those imperial selections are balanced by music from the Yusuf era that kicked off in 2006 with the release of An Other Cup, represented here in three songs: “Heaven/Where True Love Goes,” “Maybe There’s A World” and a cover of The Animals’ “Please Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood.” 2009’s Roadsinger, 2014’s Tell ‘Em I’m Gone, 2017’s The Laughing Apple and 2020’s Tea for the Tillerman² are also prominently represented on this anthology as well, giving the material equal shine in the spotlight alongside the canonical stuff.

There’s also key non-album cuts featured on here as well, including the 1974 single “Another Saturday Night,” “Butterfly” from the recording sessions of his underrated 1978 secular swan song Back To Earth and an acoustic rendition of the George Harrison-penned Beatles tune “Here Comes The Sun” from 2023.

“I have to say that my heart always held on tight to a hope of finding answers about life and its purpose, never really worrying about where they may come from,” Stevens writes in the liners of On The Road To Findout. “The exploration of love — both human and divine — and the bridge between the self and the Absolute, were always floating just beneath the surface of my songs.”

With this stellar collection, we finally get to enjoy the full arc of Cat’s mission in its totality.