Tea for the Tillerman

A perfect little package of 3-minute acoustic guitar pop gems. Great song writing, beautifully recorded, sequenced and presented. Has Father and Son on it - objectively an all-time great song.

Mona Bone Jakon only began Cat Stevens' comeback. Seven months later, he returned with Tea for the Tillerman, an album in the same chamber-group style, employing the same musicians and producer, but with a far more confident tone. Mona Bone Jakon had been full of references to death, but Tea for the Tillerman was not about dying; it was about living in the modern world while rejecting it in favor of spiritual fulfillment. It began with a statement of purpose, "Where Do the Children Play?," in which Stevens questioned the value of technology and progress. "Wild World" found the singer being dumped by a girl, but making the novel suggestion that she should stay with him because she was incapable of handling things without him. "Sad Lisa" might have been about the same girl after she tried and failed to make her way; now, she seemed depressed to the point of psychosis. The rest of the album veered between two themes: the conflict between the young and the old, and religion as an answer to life's questions. Tea for the Tillerman was the story of a young man's search for spiritual meaning in a soulless class society he found abhorrent. He hadn't yet reached his destination, but he was confident he was going in the right direction, traveling at his own, unhurried pace. The album's rejection of contemporary life and its yearning for something more struck a chord with listeners in an era in which traditional verities had been shaken. It didn't hurt, of course, that Stevens had lost none of his ability to craft a catchy pop melody; the album may have been full of angst, but it wasn't hard to sing along to. As a result, Tea for the Tillerman became a big seller and, for the second time in four years, its creator became a pop star.

A masterpiece by a musical genius. Cat Stevens is a master storyteller. Wish we could have more music by him, but his personal and religious choices are his own. Songs of my youth all abound here (it's before my time, but Cat Stevens was a mainstay in my house growing up). Wild World and Father and Son are some of the best songs ever to grace my ears and I get tears listening to them to this day. Some weaker songs make this a 4.5/5, but I just can't give this album, that meant so much to me growing up, anything other than a 5/5.

A few good songs here and there, but otherwise utterly boring.

I don't know how you can listen to this and not have a smile on your face. Just a joy. Best track: Father and Son

Il est arrivé dans ce générateur avec un statut de favori, et force est de constater qu'il n'a pas déçu. Après une entame tonitruante, Cat Stevens ayant déjà creusé l'écart avec ses principaux concurrents (Gene Clark qui ?) au bout de quatre chansons décide de poser le jeu et faire courir ses adversaires. Une dernière action de classe en fin d'album avec Father And Son permet à Yusuf de terminer la partie sur une bonne note sans avoir été mis en difficulté une seule seconde.

Great fan of this album- was all set to give it 4* (purely for preferring Teaser and the Firecat) but then listened again and was hit by the emotional depth, the wonderful melodies, the great simplicity of the songwriting and arrangements across the record. Bookends don't come much better than "Where do the Children Play" and "Father and Son" (plus the brilliant title track).

It’s full of heart and soul. Incredible guitar work and earnest vocals. Father and Son made me tear up.

I've never really been a Cat Stevens fan, TBH. He's a little too chill for my taste. That said, the songwriting is pretty damn solid. This album was apparently his big "here I am world" moment and it shows with songs like "Wild World" that have stood the test of time and been covered a thousand times. Mostly, this album is kind of ho-hum for me. It's not offensive or exciting. It just... is.

In my opinion, Tea for the Tillerman (and his followup Teaser and the Firecat) are the two best folk albums of the 1970’s. Just great from start to finish. “Wild World” is an obvious standout and gives the album it’s needed pop hit, but “Father and Son” is one of the best songs - in any genre - ever written.

This is my favorite album of all time, must listen!

Started this record on the way to drop the kid off at daycare, toying with a joke around Cat Stevens singing “where do the children play”; ended it half a day later driving back with the kid listening to “Father and Son” wondering what portion of my eyes’ moistness I could ascribe to hayfever. One of our group’s silent members loves Cat Stevens and will shake his head for my finding the man’s records too earnest for my taste, taking me back to misty recollections of weird, late 70’s children’s’ tv optimism, but the sheer commitment, the smart production, and the ear worms put him up there regardless of my never-trust-a-hippy reflexes.

This is an absolutely amazing start to this project! This is my first time ever listening to Cat Stevens. Such clean guitar acoustics and soulful lyrics.

Far be it from me to come barging back in here and start throwing my weight around but this is so good. I've always thought Cat Stevens has some good tracks but existed all on one level, a sort of airy fairy very light folk sound. I've had him all wrong, this album is really really good. When Wide World came on I was pleased to hear this was a Cat song, but Sad Lisa really got me listening. From then on there are regular gut punches and tear jerks. It's got a rich, full sound and his voice has a wonderful quality that can jump from lightness to great depth at the spin of a wheel.

Instant 5 stars for me. This is one of my all time favorites, and one I revisit frequently. Another one I have a hard time even putting into words. What can be said about Father and Son? or But I Might Die Tonight? Spent the day listening to various mixes of this album. Tea for the Tillerman 2 is wild. Love the addition of strings.

My mom wore through 2 Lps of this one. I really enjoy it too.

Listened to Cat Stevens multiple times before, but haven't heard any tunes in a while, so this is a quite pleasing listening experience.

4.5/5, some of my favorite Cat Stevens songs on this one

Absolutely love this album. Spoke to many moments and thoughts currently experiencing. 11/11/2020

I mean, it's Cat Stevens

The over-amped mic capturing the plectrum scraping the strings on "Wild World" is, in my opinion, the single worse recording decision in the history of popular music. Otherwise a great album

I have recently bought a turntable to play my handful of high school and university vinyls. It's a bluetooth turntable so that I can listen to surviving 7 record albums on my speakers. Somewhere along the way, I suppose it was "on the road to find out", this much played & beloved album disappeared. Cat Stevens music is unique in both sound and lyrics.

How happy I was to listen to this today. I wish I had better words to talk about it. It's beautiful. It's both nostalgic and timeless. A few limited observations among many: The lyrics of "Into White" intrigued me. I love the build-up in "Miles from Nowhere" as his search progresses. And as the father of a teenage son, "Father and Son" caught me by surprise and took the wind out of me.

Beautiful songwriting and great lyrics, but the dynamics are really what got me. Stevens is equally powerful whether he be a whispering breeze or a howling gale. In a genre that can often find itself with the dynamics of a snack pack of vanilla pudding, this was quite refreshing.

Flawless.

Really enjoyed way more than I thought I would!

In my collection already

Love this album

Beautiful. Truly.

5 stars!

Trevligare än när han dömer Salman Rushdie till döden i alla fall. Duktig låtskrivare med en lätt frikyrklig ton.

Less spaced-out than Donnovan, less insincere than James Taylor, Stevens is undeniably melodic, consistently rhythmic and surprisingly not annoying; everything I'd expected he wouldn't be. Given how insanely catchy the closer/title track is, I'm shocked it's only lasts a minute. But given his virility as a folk-pop peddler, leaving them wanting more is exactly the right thing to do.

A real banger, from start to finish.

Yes

Beautiful album - such a delicate tenderness to it.

Peaceful and sweet. Put me at ease.

Cat Stevens or Yusuf, his now adapted stage name, had already a couple of projects released when this dropped but this hit like a bomb. Especially 'Wild World' was and still is a huge success. The album is full of peacefull and soft Folk Pop tunes that are all really cute and interesting. 'Where Do the Children Play?' opens the album with soft guitar notes and slowly builds up into more and more but not anxious tension that releases into a final vocal climax. A beautiful song with a great structure and sound that keeps you interested throughout. This is an incredible song with many great moments both lyrically and instrumentally. The following 'Hard Headed Woman' is a much softer approach with the strings that at one point take most of the attention before the vocals explode out of nothing and completley contradict the start. It is a lovely song but I feel that at times it is a little streched rather than needed especially near the end. The already mentioned 'Wild World' follows and I do think that it's the best song on the album. The chorus is super catchy and the structure is a great mix between conventional and special. The same can be said about the tension that it creates and releases perfectly for the chorus to start again. A perfect song with perfect execution. This is how a Folk Pop song should be done. The more sentimental 'Sad Lisa' switches the guitar with a piano and creates a very sad sounding and emotionally dense track that is amplified even more with the mourning strings that let the song flow through the bridge. 'Miles From Nowhere' closes the albums first half with another great song that really shows the more fast-paced side of the album. It is a really great blend between the Folk Pop of before with more Rock influence. The only thing that I criticise about this song is that the verse can feel a little bland compared to chorus and bridge. The short but sweet 'But I Might Die Tonight' starts the second side with another really good song that again has a little bit of Rock sprinkled in. The "ah-ah-ah" part is really good and for being so short, the song has quite the moments. 'Longer Boats' starts by sounding a lot like a Beach Boys inspired song and that typical vocal harmony style is kept throughout even if it is much less present than what is standard with the Beach Boys. But overall the song is much more average and isn't all that interesting compared to most this project offers. The much more classic Folk inspired 'Into White' is a similar case of being not bad but much more average than most other songs. It's really cute and all but a very peaceful guitar and vocal sound but I'm just not widely interested with what is going on. The by far longest song is 'On the Road to Find Out' is again a rather uninteresting song with the few moments that are being pretty overshadowed. But the length doesn't really matter here which is a pretty good sign because it doesn't get super tiring. Just before the album finishes we get another classic. This time 'Father and Son' is a really simple but hypnotising song that shows the lyrical and songwriting abillity Cat Stevens has in the fullest potential. It's a really lovely song that really sticks out in this second half. This is a really emotional and deeply connecting song. The one minute long title track 'Tea for the Tillerman' closes the album as a kind of outro that mainly plays with piano to create a song that sounds like a final symphonic end to this album. favourites: Wild World, Where Do the Children Play?, Father and Son least favourites: On the Road to Find Out, Into White Rating: decent 8 https://rateyourmusic.com/~Emil_ph for more ratings, reviews and takes

This is pretty much the gold standard for singer songwriters of the 1970s, both for it's quality and for its themes of reflection and search for meaning. Beautiful, melodic songs, with balanced, elegant arrangements. There's something in Stevens' delivery that makes him seem like he was beamed in from another time, long ago - a pop star Thoreau come to tell us, "Simplicity, simplicity, simplicity!" He's still on the journey himself at this point, of course. But it's delightful to ride along with him for a while. Listen in a sunny window, cup of tea at hand. Fave Songs: Wild World, Sad Lisa, Father and Son, Hard Headed Woman

Classic Cat right here. In my adolescence I used to think this guy was corny as fuck, but in my adulthood his earnest charm has been slowly eroding my defenses and, at 40, I reckon I could say I'm a fan. I'm a guitar teacher and have taught his tunes for years, but it was more from wanting to share the wider repertoire of guitar with students than from being a fan. Well... rock on... no, that's not right.. folk on, Mr. Cat!

Cat Stevens reflects on the world in front of him as he sees it, asking fundamental questions and offering humble advice. He tends to come at you slowly and then all at once with a jolt of emotion as if his patience has run out. It’s during these 0-60 moments with this sense that he’s betrayed or surprised himself with outburst that he carries a unique sincerity. Where do the children play. Miles from nowhere. On the road to find out.

Yusuf/Cat Stevens has a great voice and great lyrics. Not a single instrument is out of place on this album.

Cat Stevens was also a regular on the potty training playlist, but my interest didn't make it past childhood even in a Greatest Hits style. Listening to this, I am reminded of why - songs are pretty but simple, with my overall impression on the nursery rhyme side of things. Still, "Father And Son" offers good mystical advice, "Miles From Nowhere" would make a neat cremation epitaph, and the title track is odd and majestic.

Folk music framed as a children's book: whimsical, playful, and a bit intense at times. Stevens is particularly good at building songs with this intensity, giving it a sort of build and fall. To that extent, I think Stevens is an excellent songwriter. That being said, it doesn't resonate with me very much. No fault of the music, it just doesn't stick with me.

Growing up, mum used to play this album a lot and I always loved it. Listening was an exercise in nostalgia and I still love it. Cat Stevens has a real ability to evoke emotion while making you sing and bop along. Rating: 5

This album is priceless. A remarkable voice.

Cool vibe, it has 2 of my favourite songs

Really good all bangers

Nice easy listening. Great vocal work and instrumentals. 'Wild World' was my fave.

First impression.. weird fucking cover, it is very Tolkienesque. Listening to the music I'm noticing that Tenacious D's ballads sound quite a lot like this and I never would have expected that. I didn't expect to, but I am loving this album. The folk-rock mix is pretty good. Then I get to "Father and Son" and that song always makes me fucking cry. I'm sitting it work crying my eyes out and trying to hide it. I didn't realize it was from this album.... goddamnit.

Plenty of gold in here

Father and son gives me shivers

36 minutes of utter beauty. No one does it like Cat Stevens and this is one of his best!

“Father and Son” has a whole new meaning now that I have two sons. Great album.

Great singer songwriter album. I enjoyed this one tremendously.

Classic album with some of his best songs, find myself singing along to a lot of these.

You mean Yusuf- what a wild world.

Awesome

Alright

I remember the first time I listened to "Father and Son" when I was 16, and it hit so hard in my soul at the time, it seemed that the song were speaking directly to me. Since then, Cat Stevens been on my waiting list, and finally my chance came, and boy... why dind't I had listen to this before? I wasted so much time. This is wonderful. It's my kind of music you know, it just fills my soul! Of course I knew "Wild World" too, but all of the songs are amazing. 5 stars without a doubt!

Father and Son is so heartbreakingly beautiful.

This is not my style but this is a great album. It’s folk. It’s great lyrically. It’s straight forward and easy to listen to and enjoyable. The hits are Wild World and Father and Son, but I really enjoyed Hard Headed Woman and hadn’t hear it before listening.

great

Beautifully done ❤️

I met Cat Stevens backstage at one of the enormous London pro-Palestine rallies in 2024 and he was incredibly kind, despite me losing my shit over sharing a stage with him.

Unparalelled songwriting and one of the purest voices to ever grace the world. I always forget how much I love Cat Stevens in between listenings.

I have always considered this an excellent album that deserves the plaudits it has received.

Great album. Never listened to any of Cat Stevens before and this was really enjoyable

I liked it.Don’t know why,but it touched my heart

Didn't expect this to hit the way it did

Gorgeous

Fun, relaxing music

tearing up listening to “Father and Son”

I have quite complicated feelings with Stevens’ music in general — regarding a friend who passed away a few years ago who would always play a couple of Cat Stevens songs whenever I saw him play live — so I always worry I’m putting too much of my own emotions into his music and inflating it’s standing in my mind. But no, on listening to it again this album is genuinely brilliant. There’s the big singles everyone knows (Father And Son might just be one of the all time great songs), but every other song on this album is no slouch either. Coming in at just a squeak over 30 minutes there’s not an ounce of fat on this thing, and to end with such a flash of excellence as the title track shows real skill and dedication to Stevens’ artistic vision. I’m not a big fan of the reimagined album he released in 2020, but we were all going through some things then weren’t we.

Love this stuff

OOOO BABY BABY IT’S A WILD WORLD Listened to this one twice through and could honestly do a third.

This album is good. There are few songs so good it would bump up the rating but I like how well they are spread aparat giving you a chance to enjoy whole album.

I came to hear this album later in life and I've always liked it. I think Father/Son will always be the standout track to me, I'd heard it here and there over the years, enjoying it enough, but a few years ago I was driving cross country on the highway by myself, coming home after my dad's funeral. For whatever reason it hit me like a ton of bricks. Since then its always been a difficult but good listen. The rest of the album was fantastic as well and I'm glad I got to experience it.

I’ve loved this album for years! Yusuf has such a unique voice. Sounds weak but has a lot of power. Beautiful lyrics and catchy songs. Seriously every song on here is fantastic! “Miles From Nowhere” was the standout track on this listen. Just a great song about the journey of life

Я КОНЧИЛ. 5/5

Biased but I love cat Stevens. Nice album that we listened to waking up with Lottie

Classic

A classic. Every song is so precise and aware of what it’s trying to do. Stevens has a voice like no other - first time I heard Father and Son I cried. I cried every other time, but I cried then, too.

Now this is an album that absolutely deserves a place on any listen before you die lists.

god tier

AN UNREAL ALBUM. All of my youth in 11 songs

Beautiful album. Contains the hits "Wild World" and "Father and Son".

I hadn’t listened to this in more than 50 years, surprised at how good it is.

Tea for Stealerman by Cat Stevens is an exceptional acoustic driven album that stands out from start to finish. Though I am not usually a fan of purely acoustic records, this one is something else, beautifully recorded, with high quality compositions that feel both refined and effortless. There is a certain aura to it, an intangible vibe that keeps you engaged throughout. While I do not always focus on lyrics because of language barriers, the music alone carries a strong emotional weight. It is hard to put into words, but this album has a presence, a soul. A truly immersive listen, and an absolute banger.

Tears 😭

Beautiful album.

Harold and Maude fans unite.

Im not a native english speaker and often in english music i dont really get what they are saying without reading the lyrics. At this Album i didnt need or want to read the lyrics. I Just feel what he is saying without actually understanding it. Its wonderful and somehow Sad. Also "wild world" was featured in a very sad szene of skins uk so i got like a emotional Connection to it.

One of the best album's I've ever heard in terms of pure song-writing. Faves are Father & Son, and Wild World, because I'm basic as fuck :)

Great listen.

I really love Cat/Yusuf and his exploration of life and love and meaning and death. He has a very calming effect on me, and I admire the emotion and wisdom he sings with. The instrumentation really adds more layers to the feelings he evokes too. Especially love the piano and violin in Sad Lisa and the violin again in Into White. Wild World is a classic and a great song, and my fave 'new to me' songs were Miles from Nowhere and Father and Son. This was really beautiful from start to finish. While his life is certainly not free of controversy, and I'm mildly confused at where his spiritual journey led him, he somehow makes it feel like it will be perfectly ok to float away someday after this journey is done.

Uwielbiam! Łagodny głos, delikatne melodie, teksty, które trafiają do samego środeczka. Bardzo kojąca płyta. 9/10

Actually listened to this yesterday. Up to a few years ago cat was 1 of those guys from the 70s that I had heard the odd hit replayed on tv or radio, or someone covered his song. Then when the rerelease campaign came up a website gave it a listen on streaming and have been listening regularly since. Great sounding recording, playing and vocal, wonderfully written pop folk rock songs, emotional resonance, 5 star.

gentle, thoughtful, art

Tea For The Tillerman ist ein zeitloses Album, das mit jeder Hörsitzung wächst. Es fängt die Gefühlswelt der 1970er Jahre ein und bleibt dennoch universell nachvollziehbar. Ob für Fans des Folk-Rock oder für Neulinge – dieses Werk ist ein Muss. Locker gesagt: Ein Album wie eine gute Tasse Tee – wärmt die Seele und regt zum Nachdenken an!

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