Mona Bone Jakon

Product Information

Newly signed to Island Records, Stevens’ Mona Bone Jakon album (released in April 1970) wasn’t a really a hit at all, but it did deliver a top ten UK single in ‘Lady D’Arbanville’ and its standing grew when Tea for the Tillerman was a major success – driven by the single ‘Wild World’– when released only seven months later, in November of that same year. Tillerman followed ‘Mona Bone Jakon’ only seven months later that same year, confirming the sensational rebirth of Cat Stevens as a spiritual seeker capable of drawing from a seemingly bottomless well of imaginative inspiration. Here, his new-found gentle and folk-oriented style was artfully weaved with urgent, morally demanding questions beneath bewitching melodies. This soul-searching masterpiece felt simultaneously like a deliberate reaction to what Cat saw in the world as well as his own struggle for answers, and would continue to resonate through countless generations to come. During Stevens’ extended convalescence, he studied classical music, metaphysical literature, and meditative self-reflection. The album that emerged, Mona Bone Jakon, expressed the torment he had experienced but combined it with self-referential humour and a spiritual awakening. A notable creative partnership By her own account, D'Arbanville was about 14 years old at the time, although, having been born on 25 May 1951, she would have been 16 or 17 in 1968. Cat Stevens – Where Do The Children Play (Live At Plumpton Jazz & Blues Festival, 08-08-70) – 3:22 (426 kbps , 10.26 MB)

A similar deluxe reissue is also coming December 4 for 1970’s Tea For The Tillerman, which Yusuf/Cat Stevens released just seven months after Mona Bone Jakon. Cat Stevens/Yusuf, Mona Bone Jakon: 50th Anniversary Edition (originally Island LP ILPS-9118, 1970 - reissued A&M/UMe, 2020)

Notes

Cat Stevens – Lady D’arbanville (Live At Plumpton Jazz & Blues Festival, 08-08-70) – 3:39 (397 kbps , 10.35 MB) A blu-ray in both sets provides a hi-res stereo of the new mix of each album, plus various videos of live and/or TV appearances and both box sets come with vinyl versions of the new 2020 mixes and 12-inch EPs with further content. Hitting shelves that day will be 50th anniversary editions of Mona Bone Jakon and Tea For The Tillerman. Released within 7 months in 1970, these albums saw Stevens redefining his sound. Following a battle with tuberculosis and a lengthy stay at in the hospital, Stevens had begun looking inward, exploring literature and meditation, and reflecting on who he was as an artist. Beginning on these two albums, he stripped away many of the production excesses of his late-'60s Deram albums in favor of a more soulful, introspective sound that would dovetail with the burgeoning singer-songwriter movement. This metamorphosis began with Mona Bone Jakon, produced by ex-Yardbird Paul Samwell-Smith and featuring longtime collaborator Alun Davies on guitar along with John Ryan on bass and Harvey Burns on drums. According to a 1972 interview with Stevens, the inspiration for the title was a name he created to describe his penis: "'Mona Bone Jakon' is another name for my penis. It's the name I give it. It's not some sort of secret vocabulary, it's just something I made up." [1]

The collectible set also includes a 12” etched vinyl EP offering a rare audience recording of Live At Plumpton Jazz & Blues Festival from August 1970, as well as a trove of ephemera. The songs themselves were darker in tone: the madrigal-inspired ballad " Lady D'Arbanville" elevated the tragedy of a lost lover (in this case, Stevens' former girlfriend Patti D'Arbanville) to that of a deceased one and " Trouble" was a plea to stave off death. There were also lighter songs: "Pop Star" showcased Stevens' dramatic change in voice by satirising the triviality of celebrity. Mona Bone Jakon is the third studio album by singer-songwriter Cat Stevens, released in April 1970 on the Island Records label in the United Kingdom and on A&M in the United States and Canada. Cat Stevens – Maybe You’re Right (Cat Stevens In Concert, BBC Live Recording, 27-11-71) – 4:03 (370 kbps , 10.71 MB) I cried when I heard it, because that's when I knew it was over for good. [3] Musical genre and sound [ edit ]

On The Go

trans. Michael Valenzuela, "Majicat – Cat Stevns (sic) in a French Magazine Pop Musigue (sic)", Pop Musique interview, Majicat: Cat Stevens Scrapbook, c. 1972 , retrieved 24 February 2012 {{ citation}}: CS1 maint: others ( link) The album began his long-running creative partnership with producer Paul Samwell-Smith, formerly of the Yardbirds, and featured such highlights as the spiritually uplifting “I Think I See The Light,” the tongue-in-cheek “Pop Star,” the heart-rending “Trouble,” and the highly romantic UK Top 10 single “Lady D’Arbanville.” A wealth of unreleased gems

Both super deluxe editions include demos CD, and unlike Tea for the Tillerman, Mona Bone Jakon has never been given expanded reissue treatment before, so these are all previously unreleased. The remixed version does what a good overhaul should;brings out subtleties in the performance that had been hidden before, boosts the vocals, and generally adds more presence without desecrating or commercializing the overall initial recording.

D'Arbanville, Patti; Warhol, Andy (1970). "Patti D'Arbanville in Andy Warhol's Interview". Interview. Warholstars . Retrieved 1 December 2008. Anniversary Super Deluxe Editions of ‘Mona Bone Jakon’ and ‘Tea for the Tillerman’ will be released on December 4th via UMC / Island. Full format details are listed below.

Answer: Stevens approached the writing process with utmost vulnerability and openness. He aimed to authentically express his emotions and experiences, crafting lyrics that resonate with listeners on a deeply personal level. 4. Can you explain the meaning behind the line “Wrapped by sorrow’s lonely gown, the poet hides in tears”? The original, glorious album on which dandified pop star was reborn as bedsit poet is augmented in this expanded 50th-anniversary “super deluxe” edition with a new 2020 mix, a disc of stripped-down demos that sound even more introspective than the fully worked album versions, and a further disc of contemporaneous live performances. Answer: “Mona Bone Jakon” encourages listeners to embark on their own journey of self-discovery and embrace their authentic selves, despite societal pressures or constraints. 6. How did “Mona Bone Jakon” resonate with audiences at the time of its release?In 1970, the song was recorded in both French and Italian by French-Italian Singer Dalida and released on singles in France and Italy. Italian singer Gigliola Cinquetti also recorded the song in Italian the same year. There are also half-a-dozen other semi-rarities, all of which were previously released on the 2008 boxset On The Road To Find Out. “If You Want To Sing Out, Sing Out” and “Don’t Be Shy” were written for Hal Ashby’s 1971 coming-of-age movie Harold & Maude after Elton John had dropped out and recommended Stevens as his replacement. “Honey Man” is a sprightly duet with Elton from around the same time. “The Joke” is a surprisingly soulful electric blues with a hippie-friendly lyric about “too many schemers and not enough dreamers”, while the whimsical “I’ve Got A Thing About Seeing My Grandson Grow Old” sounds improbably like something The Incredible String Band might have recorded. Inspired by a near-fatal battle with TB and extended period of convalescence during which he studied classical music, metaphysical literature and meditative self-reflection, Mona Bone Jakon is equal parts painful torment, self-referential humour and spiritual awakening. It is deeply revealing of the man he was becoming and the journey he was embarking on that would last a lifetime. Through its stunning and often overlooked crop of songs we encounter an artist who has discovered himself but is unsure of whether the world will accept what he has become. The album has a deeply personal, almost vulnerable quality that, arguably, makes it the most compelling and human of all of Yusuf / Cat Stevens’ work.