Cat Stevens: Foreigner Suite
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Topic: Cat Stevens: Foreigner Suite
Posted By: pirkka
Subject: Cat Stevens: Foreigner Suite
Date Posted: July 24 2006 at 05:20
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Not the most important issue but something that has troubled my mind for long now. I like Cat Stevens alot. I know that he is a pop singer but there are also elements of folk and rock in his music. Foreigner suite in particular might be a great prog epic or not?
Pirkka
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Replies:
Posted By: Phil
Date Posted: July 24 2006 at 05:27
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Trouble no more; it isn't!
Seriously...no.....sounds like you are making the equation: "It lasts more than 3 minutes, has a number of influences, I like it, so therefore it must be prog".
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Posted By: Mandrakeroot
Date Posted: July 24 2006 at 08:21
AND ALL IS TRUE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ------------- 
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Phil wrote:Posted By: iguana
Date Posted: July 24 2006 at 08:21
NOT prog. and his drively stuff has always made me quite very sick indeed.  ------------- progressive rock and rural tranquility don't match. true or false? |
Posted By: A'swepe
Date Posted: July 24 2006 at 09:56
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I wouldn't call it prog - but I really like it just the same. ------------- David - Never doubt in the dark that which you believe to be true in the light. http://www.myspace.com/aardvarktxusa - Instrumental rock http://www.soundclick.com/aardvarktxusa |
Posted By: bruin69
Date Posted: July 24 2006 at 19:26
| I don't believe it's prog, but Cat Stevens was a tremendous composer of interesting music and shouldn't be dismissed as a mere folk/pop star |
Posted By: soundsweird
Date Posted: July 25 2006 at 00:09
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He could've been a prog star; many of his songs, with a few long instrumental passages added, would've qualified. Odd time signatures, multi-keyboard arrangements, heavy lyrics.... a bit of tweaking, and suddenly he would've fit the definition. But he chose to do it the way he did; good music's good music.
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Posted By: bhikkhu
Date Posted: July 25 2006 at 00:15
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Love Cat Stevens. I was listening to "Tea for the Tillerman" yesterday. He's a great composer, but not prog. If he had taken a different turn in the road, who knows? He probably could have made a good prog artist. ------------- a.k.a. H.T. http://riekels.wordpress.com" rel="nofollow - http://riekels.wordpress.com |
Posted By: Bilek
Date Posted: October 27 2006 at 05:43
I hope you guys are watching this "ancient" topic 
Just listening to Foreigner suite; I can't decide yet, but one album took my attention: Numbers is a concept album, and is of very strong musical quality.
Cat Stevens is a very talented musician/songwriter; and some of his works are considered within psychedelia, so at least in that respect he's prog-related.
but suggesting for the archives? I wouldn't open that can of worms
 !He (not Yusuf Islam!) still must get an honourable mention every now and then!  ------------- Listen to Turkish psych/prog; you won't regret: Baris Manco,Erkin Koray,Cem Karaca,Mogollar,3 Hürel,Selda,Edip Akbayram,Fikret Kizilok,Ersen (and Dadaslar) (but stick with the '70's, and 'early 80's!) |
Posted By: SouthSideoftheSky
Date Posted: July 10 2008 at 13:45
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I downloaded this (legally) a while back, and I voted yes. Even, if it surely is a borderline case. But it is good actually.
A question: regardless of wheter you think it is prog or not, is this song the closest Cat Stevens ever came to prog or did he do other near-prog songs/albums?
I have only heard Teaser and the Firecat (bought it just because Rick Wakeman plays on it) and that is certainly not even remotely proggy. And I don't like it very much!
Are any of his albums worth checking out?
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Posted By: Easy Livin
Date Posted: July 10 2008 at 14:01
| "Catch bull at four" is by far his best, and has distinct prog tendencies too! |
Posted By: SouthSideoftheSky
Date Posted: July 10 2008 at 14:10
Ok, thanks! So this Catch Bull at Four album is more similar to Foreginer Suite than to Teaser and the Firecat then? I hope
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Posted By: Dick Heath
Date Posted: July 11 2008 at 05:29
"distinct prog tendencies" could also be said in theis case: influenced by what was going around him at the time, especially amongst his Island Records stable mates wrt underground music, ergo not that surprising or unusual. Does he continue to use them and develop beyond them??? Cliche time: One swallow doesn't make a summer.
------------- The best eclectic music on the Web,8-11pm BST/GMT THURS. CLICK ON: http://www.lborosu.org.uk/media/lcr/live.php - http://www.lborosu.org.uk/media/lcr/live.php Host by PA's Dick Heath. |
Posted By: SouthSideoftheSky
Date Posted: July 11 2008 at 05:57
Yeah, as opposed to "real" prog artists who created their music in a vacuum, not at all influenced by what was going on around them at the time |
Posted By: SouthSideoftheSky
Date Posted: July 11 2008 at 06:02
I am listening to Catch Bull at Four right now, I agree it has distinct prog tendencies. And it is very much better than Teaser and the Firecat, enormous difference really! However, I don't think that Cat Stevens ever will be any of my favored artists, but maybe I will buy this album as well as Foreigner some day. |
Posted By: Bilek
Date Posted: July 11 2008 at 06:57
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^^ for some strange reason I also like "Numbers" album, maybe because of its odd concept. (wait, I already mentioned this in my previous post!!!) I listened to "Bull" once today, and I didn't really find those "progressive tendencies"... I admit not having listened to Foreigner album entirely, well, just the title track, which makes up half of it anyway  . Apart from Numbers, all I know of Cat Stevens is the tracks in greatest hits compilations... I need to find albums, then make up my mind... (most tracks from his earlier albums sound quite good, though...)------------- Listen to Turkish psych/prog; you won't regret: Baris Manco,Erkin Koray,Cem Karaca,Mogollar,3 Hürel,Selda,Edip Akbayram,Fikret Kizilok,Ersen (and Dadaslar) (but stick with the '70's, and 'early 80's!) |
Posted By: jammun
Date Posted: July 11 2008 at 20:08
| There was a time I listened to Cat Stevens. But sorry folks, anyone who openly advocates the murder (on religious grounds) of another artist no longer deserves any consideration for anything. |
Posted By: Logan
Date Posted: July 11 2008 at 20:47
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I like Cat Stevens' music best when watching Harold and Maude, and I love his version of "Morning has Broken." I don't consider "Foreigner Suite" to be a prog epic, or even prog. Oh, here's a video that some people may like to see: http://www.google.ca/url?q=http://www.youtube.com/watch%3Fv%3DtaVIJEo6uUk&sa=X&oi=video_result&resnum=1&ct=thumbnail&usg=AFQjCNGudaP1GrjWYQalXpR4T33vYl3lZg">  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=taVIJEo6uUk - YouTube - Cat Stevens - Foreigner Suite "Slide show of original foreigner suite. Great pics.7 min -"
Strangely, and it shows my particular bias, I'd be rather more sympathetic towards an artist that advocated the murder of another artist on artistic grounds. But on religious grounds? Gee whizz. Cat Stevens has claimed to be misrepresented by the media concerning his comments about Rushdie (whom I've had the pleasure of meeting), but it seems clear to me that he was at the least condoning the Ayatollah's Fatwah as he considered it justified by Islamic law.... He later wrote on his website:
------------- Watching while most appreciating a sunset in the moment need not diminish all the glorious sunsets I have observed before. It can be much like that with music for me. |
Posted By: SouthSideoftheSky
Date Posted: September 02 2008 at 07:49
Ever since I wrote this I have been listening to Foreigner Suite on a regular basis. And everytime I hear it I like it more than the previous time. It is a fantastic piece of music! And is it prog? Yes, I no longer consider it a border line case, it is prog. And I don't think it is prog just becasue it is long and I like it. It features several interconnected themes or "songs within songs", connected by instrumental passages. Some parts remind me of Genesis. The instruments involved are typical in 70's prog; electric pianos, A.R.P. synthezisers, string arrangements, some woods, electric and acoustic guitars etc. Give it another chance.
I am not suggesting that Cat Stevens is a prog artist, only that Foreigner Suite is prog. His other stuff is not prog. But I must thank Easy Livin' for recommending Catch Bull at Four. It is a great album, but not prog. I got both albums on cd this week. I must check out Numbers and Buddha and the Chocolate Box too.
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Posted By: npjnpj
Date Posted: September 02 2008 at 08:36
| I voted 'Yes' on this, for the same reason that SouthSideOftheSky named. |