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Tag: Cat Stevens

  • Cat Stevens AKA Yusuf Islam Performs On “The Tonight Show” [Video]

    Fans got a special treat while watching The Tonight Show on Tuesday when Cat Stevens showed up to perform a couple of his classic songs. Following his conversion to Islam, Stevens changed his name to Yusuf Islam, and has released albums under that name since.

    The singer is set to be inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame on Thursday, and showed why with his performance on the show this week. He was responsible for many hits throughout the 1970s, and has several songs that continue to get people to sing along.

    Cat Stevens’ music was the basis for the soundtrack of the classic film Harold and Maude, and has also insipired a number of cover versions of his songs, including “The First Cut Is The Deepest,” which was made even more famous by both Sheryl Crow, and Rod Stewart.

    “The First Cut Is The Deepest” is one of the two songs that he played while on The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon, along with his classic “Wild World.” He also perfromed a verison of the poetic song “The Wind,” which only the studio audience was able to see at the time, and was later posted online.

    Cat Stevens’ big week will be continuing on Thursday, as he is finally being inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, where he will be performing again. Yusuf may be accepting his past career a bit more with the songs he chose to sing, but he still hasn’t had an official concert in New York despite the 2006 private show at Jazz at Lincoln Center.

    It was a special night on The Tonight Show to feature a veteran musician such as Cat Stevens, and he played a memorable performance days before his Hall Of Fame introduction. It seems that he still has it in him to play his classics, and is still one of the greatest songwriters around.

    Post by Yusuf / Cat Stevens.

    In addition to Cat Stevens, Fallon featured the musical talents of Academy-Award winner Anne Hathaway, and the two of them performed their own versions of hip hop songs including Snoop Dogg’s “Gin N Juice” and 50 Cent’s “In Da Club.”

    Image via Facebook

  • Nirvana Among Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductees

    The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame officially announced its 2014 inductees today, with upcoming members including Nirvana, Kiss, Peter Gabriel, Hall and Oates, Cat Stevens and Linda Ronstadt.

    Beatles manager Brian Epstein and original Rolling Stones manager Andrew Loog Oldham will both receive the Ahmet Ertegun Award for non-performers, and The E Street Band will be given the Award for Musical Excellence.

    Musicians are eligible for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 25 years after the release of their first album or single. The induction ceremony will be held at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center on April 10th, 2014. The general public will be able to attend the event for the first time in New York City, and tickets go on sale in January. HBO will broadcast the ceremony in May.

    Below is Nirvana’s video for “Smells Like Teen Spirit.” Ah, middle school:

    Commenting on Nirvana’s swift induction, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame President and CEO Joel Peresman said, “People see the relevancy of that band (Nirvana). We’re just getting into the creative of the show, so I don’t know what’s going to happen with that performance. They have to figure it out.”

    Kiss, being very serious:

    Some have wondered why Kiss, who has been eligible for induction for 15 years now, were finally selected. Peresman commented, “The Kiss Army has descended on Cleveland in recent years. And we’ve gotten thousands of letters. They also did extremely well in the public vote.”

    Peter Gabriel’s “Sledgehammer:”

    Gabriel was previously inducted into the Hall of Fame as a member of Genesis in 2010, but was unable to attend the ceremony “This time I will definitely go,” the singer told Rolling Stone. “I’m very grateful to have gotten in again. It’s a huge honor since it’s for your whole body of work and not just a specific project.”

    Image via YouTube.

  • Hall & Oates to be Inducted into Rock Hall of Fame

    In surprising news to Daryl Hall and John Oates, their band Hall & Oates will be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn next April.

    A band becomes eligible for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 25 years following their first music release, whether it be an album or a single. Following this metric, Hall & Oates would have been eligible for induction in 1997. However, this is the first year the group has appeared on the ballot.

    In an interview with Rolling Stone, Daryl Hall commented on why he believed it has taken so long for his band to receive the recognition it deserves: “I didn’t think it would happen as long as the people who were in power stayed in power. I’ve always been sort of on the other side of the fence with the old guard and the powers-that-be. So it was a bit of a surprise to me… It’s probably because they had their own opinions about what constituted exceptional music in that period of time and it was based on a lot of things that I wasn’t really interested in. I have slightly different roots than most of the writers.”

    His band-mate, John Oates, shared Hall’s sentiments: “I felt that the Rock Hall, the powers that be, had a point of view and that we didn’t fit into that point of view and it didn’t bother me because if that’s how it is, that’s how it is. I kept saying, ‘If it happens it happens, and if it does it’s going to be great.’ ”

    That being said, both Hall and Oates are extremely grateful to be receiving the award, with Oates stating, “I will be there with bells on. I’m dusting off my suit, man… So I’m really going to enjoy it and I think it’s a great class, so to speak. I think the artists are really cool and I’m honored to be in this particular class and with all the other prior inductees.”

    Other inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2014 include Cat Stevens, Peter Gabriel, Linda Ronstadt, KISS, and Nirvana. This was Nirvana’s first year to be eligible for induction, yet it is no surprise the band made the list on their first attempt: “For once … I’m speechless. From the basements, to the dingy clubs, to the broken down vans, to … the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. I’d like to thank the committee not only for this induction, but also for recognizing Nirvana for what we were: pure rock and roll,” stated Dave Grohl, former drummer for Nirvana and current front-man for the Foo Fighters.

    Voting for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is conducted in two stages, with voting from 700 Rock Hall members and also from fans. This year, fans cast nearly 1.4 million votes to determine who would be inducted into the Rock Hall of Fame. The top fan nominees to not be inducted were Yes and Deep Purple, each receiving approximately 150,000 votes and besting all the inductees besides KISS and Nirvana. Fortunately for the other 4 new members, fan results only count for one vote.

    The 29th annual Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony will take place on April 10, 2014 at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. Tickets will go on sale next month, and the induction will be aired live on HBO.

    Image via RockHall.com