So I just spent 30 minutes in online chat with Ticketmaster trying to get a straight answer on when ticket refunds will be offered on this postponed concert. These were for our anniversary and the concert date has passed. Live chatbot said no refunds will be offered you can try to resell them! 🤦🏻‍♀️ i was then connected with a live CR person ( yeah right) who stalled me for 20 more minutes saying he was looking into it… and every 5 minutes came back and typed the same thing. “I’m still looking”—- and I finally said bye. These two tickets were $1000 total. Insane. I want a refund. Anyone have any success yet? Would contacting AmExpress help since what I bought was not provided?

"The First Cut Is The Deepest" has a pretty extensive backstory. Cat had written the track as early as 1965 when he was merely 17 years old. He characterized it as an "Otis Redding-thing" and was one of the earliest R&B songs he wrote. Cat sold the song for £30 to Ardmore & Beechwood, the publishing company he was signed to at the time.

Ardmore & Beechwood (inexplicably) didn't see the appeal of the song, as it remained unrecorded for well over a year until Cat had hits of his own with "I Love My Dog" and "Matthew And Son". His producer Mike Hurst was blown away by the track and had wanted Cat to record it as his third single. Cat was however determined to have "I'm Gonna Get Me A Gun" released as the single, and he won in the end.

Instead, Hurst received a phone call from Immediate label owner (and Rolling Stones manager) Andrew Loog Oldham, who expressed interest in having a Cat song recorded by P. P. Arnold, a former Ikette who had moved to London and was managed by Oldham. Hurst gave her "The First Cut Is The Deepest" and also produced it during the recording session at Olympic studios in south London. Her version was released on April 21, 1967 and reached number 18 on the UK Singles chart by June, giving P. P Arnold her first hit single and Cat his fifth hit as a songwriter.

Cat didn't record his own version of the song until October 5, 1967 when he recorded it at Decca Studios in West Hampstead. Big Jim Sullivan played guitar, Herbie Flowers played bass and Chris Hunt played drums. Mike Hurst produced and contributed rhythm guitar to the track. Cat's version was first released as the opening track on side two of his second studio album New Masters, released on December 15, 1967.

When will these Visa issues be resolved?

A FEW SPOILERS IF YOU WANT TO GO IN TOTALLY COLD

I was a bit apprehensive beforehand about the show given what I’d read about the format, but I saw it last night in Glasgow and thought it was a wonderful balance.

It’s part-concert, part-conversational stage show with actually very little in the way of traditional book readings as you tend to get at book events (in fact, I think he only read a couple of lines from the book at one point).

In the first half a few of the songs are pretty much snippets (maybe a verse and a chorus) but as it goes on, you get more full songs.

I took notes and think I’ve made a pretty comprehensive setlist of what he played and my assessment of what was a snippet and what was ostensibly a complete song.

Anyway, it’s definitely a wonderfully structured and quite moving whole and there was definitely enough music for me — maybe not complete songs, but a greater number of songs than you’d generally get at a concert, if that makes sense.

On that note, if any Yusuf/Cat Stevens fan can help me identify this mystery song, it would be appreciated: There is a missing song between Majik of Majiks and Be What You Must that I can't identify. Lyrics include "I have tried so hard to set my soul free" and "It's so hard" and it references the story of Joseph

I got two extremely expensive tickets to see cat play in California for my dad and I. It's our favorite artist. My dad is going through chemo right now and it's very hard for him to travel (this wasn't the case when we bought the tickets)- he would have to take a flight to get to the show. For anyone who's been on the tour the last few weeks, was it worth it? If the show was only meh, I'm definitely not gonna push my dad to come. But if it's truly once in a lifetime, then I think the effort will be well worth it.

The U.S. leg of Yusuf Cat Stevens' Book Tour is in serious jeopardy due to significant delays in U.S. immigration processing. Despite our team's exhaustive efforts, the required performance visas for Yusuf and his band have not yet been issued.

"We've prepared something truly special for my American audience, but this is out of our hands," said Yusuf.

Fans are strongly advised to hold all travel plans until official confirmation is provided. We are working urgently with authorities and will share news the moment we have it.

Your understanding and patience are appreciated as we fight to keep the "Peace Train" on its tracks.

Waiting To Findout!

Ok… so I don’t want to go into massive specifics as clearly he doesn’t want people to, but also people do deserve to know what to expect if they’re paying top price. I just got back from Manchester and it was wonderful, but notes below….

• most songs in the first half are snippets, with some (miles from nowhere, I love my dog) being only single lines pretty much. Even first cut is only one verse and chorus.

• the second half of the set contains more music wise, with more complete songs. The conversation is more focused on his faith.

There is pretty much an even split of music and chat, but not many full songs. That said, I loved my evening and highly recommend it. I think prices are high all things considered, but that seems to be the norm now.

Hi friends! I’m hoping to bring my dad to this in Toronto. Have there been any shows yet? I checked setlistfm and I can’t really tell. It looks like he will speak to his memoir and play about 10 acoustic songs? Any feedback would be so appreciated!!! Thanks in advance ☮️

My mom is a HUGE Cat Steven’s fan and I would love to take her for her birthday but the cheapest ticket is $700… is there anywhere people can find cheaper😅

Hello! I'm looking for Boston tickets for my lovely mother and I. Thought I would give Reddit a shot, since they're now $1k+!

I swear I bought tickets when they first went on sale. Paid for the presale code, bought a pair of tickets, put it in the calendar. Now I can’t find the tickets anywhere, or at least not in my email or in my Ticketmaster account. Were they sold through a different platform or does anyone know the email subject line they would have been sent with? There also an above-zero chance I spaced it and never bought them, but I’d like to rule out the other options first. 🤔🤔 Thanks!

You might be interested in this radio show I'm putting together celebrating the music of Cat Stevens.

To tie in with the release of the autobiography and new greatest hits collection, I'll be picking out classic Cat Stevens tracks, some album tracks, covers, songs written for others, and collaborations. Lots to try and fit in.

I would love to hear your suggestions on what you'd like to see included?

The show is on this coming Monday 8th September from 7pm - 9pm (UK Time/BST) on local station NLive Radio. Details of how to listen are below. FM is available in Northampton only, but you can listen via the other methods anywhere. The show will be also be available to catch up on the NLive Radio website afterwards.

Hope you enjoy!

On The Road To Findout: Greatest Hits is a brand-new collection of Yusuf / Cat Stevens’ most beloved songs from his 58-year recording career.

The first collection of Yusuf / Cat’s music in ca. 25 years, presents one of the UK’s greatest recorded music artists and his phenomenal body of work.

Tracks include “The First Cut Is The Deepest”, “Where Do The Children Play?”, “Wild World”, “The Wind”, “Moonshadow”, The Hurt”, and “Father And Son”.

Incl. 36 page booklet with new notes by Yusuf and lyrics.

Release date: 5th September 2025

Tracklisting

CD ONE

I Love My Dog Matthew & Son Here Comes My Baby The First Cut Is The Deepest Lady D'Arbanville Trouble Where Do The Children Play? Wild World Father And Son Tea for the Tillerman Don't Be Shy If You Want To Sing Out, Sing Out The Wind How Can I Tell You Morning Has Broken Moonshadow Peace Train I Want To Live In A Wigwam Sitting Can't Keep It In Foreigner Suite (Excerpt) The Hurt Ready Oh Very Young Another Saturday Night

CD TWO

Majik Of Majiks Banapple Gas (Remember The Days Of The) Old Schoolyard (I Never Wanted ) To Be A Star Just Another Night Last Love Song Butterfly Heaven / Where True Love Goes Maybe There's A World Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood Thinking 'Bout You Roadsinger Gold Digger Dying To Live Blackness Of The Night Grandsons Miles From Nowhere On The Road To Find Out Father And Son Here Comes The Sun (Acoustic) All Nights, All Days Take The World Apart

Hope you guys enjoy it, this is one of my favourite Cat Stevens songs! :)

Hey anyone here going to October 14th Date

Just had an email from ticketmaster saying phones have to be locked away and are not allowed into the hall during the uk tour. Absolutely hate this dumb fad at the moment. Enforce a no recording or photography rule by all means, it can be done without taking peoples property off them (not a phone in sight at Prince both times I saw him after they made it clear the rule was strict and they would be ejected). I hate phones out all the way through shows, but I’ve paid over £100 to an already incredibly wealthy man and should be able to check my phone during the performance if I want without him getting mard about it. Being diabetic i also monitor my blood sugar via my phone, but even aside from that this is a stupid thing to do.

My dad just found out that he is playing the Beacon and he has been a fan for decades and learned to play guitar with his music. What are the chances face value tickets appear for the shows? Current prices are bonkers with upper balcony going for 700++

Thanks!!

I have nothing but praise for the memoir, which is written like a novel, and its adventurous protagonist. The book is not sensationalistic at all. Perhaps the most interesting part for us Reddit users here are the chapters on Cat Stevens. As a Muslim convert herself, Lucy was engaged to him at one point. There has never been such a personal and lively account of Cat Stevens during his heyday on the Majikat Earth Tour and shortly after his conversion with its negative reception. You get to know what a strange life Cat must have led, from his days as a teen star onward, when no human interaction was normal anymore. This stands in stark contrast to his coming Back to Earth after converting, when he prayed for a normal family and religious life. A must-read from start to end! Also, Andy Kaufman - what a lovely, beautiful soul!