Cat Stevens - Singer-songwriter, Career and Facts
Cat Stevens's Personal Details
Cat Stevens is a British singer-songwriter who spends a lot of his time in philanthropic and educational causes for the Muslim society
| Information | Detail |
|---|---|
| Birthday | July 21, 1948 |
| Nationality | British |
| Famous | Alcoholics, Humanitarian, Philanthropists, Guitarists, Singers, Folk Singers, Singer-songwriter |
| Spouses | Fawzia Ali |
| Siblings | Anita Georgiou, David Georgiou |
| Known as | Yusuf Islam, Steven Demetre Georgiou |
| Childrens | Aminah Yusuf, Hasanah Yusuf, Yoriyos |
| Universities |
|
| Founder / Co-Founder |
|
| Birth Place | Marylebone |
| Religion | Islam |
| Height | 178 |
| Gender | Male |
| Father | Stavros Georgiou |
| Mother | Ingrid Wickman |
| Net Worth | $5 million as of Jan 15,2017 |
| Sun Sign | Cancer |
| Born in | Marylebone |
| Famous as | Singer-songwriter |
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Cat Stevens's photo
Who is Cat Stevens?
Cat Stevens is a British singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and humanitarian. In his childhood he was inspired by the musicians performing at the Denmark Street, which was a centre of the British music industry. Listeners of the 1970s remember him as the soft and romantic singer whose singles always tore through the charts and were Top Ten mainstays. His success and recognition can be adjudged by the fact that several of his albums achieved gold-record status and he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. At the peak of his career, he had a life-altering experience and accepted Islam as his religion. Stevens stopped writing and singing music for a couple of decades and devoted his life to educational and philanthropic causes for Muslim community. He received two honorary doctorates for the work he did in promoting peace. He returned to music in the 1990s after properly understanding the message about music in Islamic culture and believes it is vital to preach to the world the finer aspects related to Islam. In 1979, he married Fauzia Mubarak Ali who bore him five children. The whole family currently lives in London
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Childhood & Early Life
Cat Stevens, was born as Steven Georgiou, on July 21, 1948 in London. His parents Stavros Georgiou and Ingrid Wickman were restaurateurs. Steven had two elder siblings, Anita and David.
His parents divorced when he was eight, but continued to live above their restaurant, Moulin Rouge. The children often helped by working in the restaurant after coming back from the St Joseph Roman Catholic Primary School where they studied.
His first musical instrument was the family's baby grand piano. Thrilled by The Beatles, he bought a £8 guitar at the age of 15 and began playing and writing songs.
He and his mother went to Gavle, Sweden for a brief time. There he attended the primary school and developed his drawing skills. After attending several other local West End schools he took a one year course at Hammersmith School of Art to become a cartoonist.
This impulse was quickly overtaken by the will to become a musician and he performed at a local bar named Black Horse under the stage name 'Steve Adams', in 1964, for the first time.
He signed his first publishing deal as a songwriter in 1965 with Ardmore and Beechwood and adopted the stage name 'Cat Stevens'.
Career
In 1966, Mike Hurst was impressed with Cat Stevens’ talent and got him a record deal. His singles 'Matthew and Son' and 'I'm Gonna Get Me a Gun' charted at No. 2 and No. 6 respectively. The album 'Matthew and Son' reached No. 7 on the UK Albums Chart.
In the next two years he released several singles that occupied the British Pop Music charts and toured England and Europe with Jimi Hendrix and Engelbert Humperdinck. Pirate station Wonderful Radio London is credited for furthering his popularity.
After gaining recognition he wanted to release some seasoned tracks, but his producer declined as Stevens’ image was more of a teen pop star. This shocked Steven and he went into a depression and became an alcoholic.
In 1968, he was diagnosed with tuberculosis and he spent a year in convalescence. This period gave him the time to reflect on his life and spirituality and he started doing yoga and meditation. On the musical front, he penned over 40 songs.
His new agent Barry Krost got him an audition with Chris Blackwell of Island records. On Blackwell's assurance that Stevens could make any type of music with any artist he wished for, Stevens signed the deal in 1970 and Paul Samwell-Smith became his producer.
His next album 'Mona Bone Jakon' (1970) was a folk rock based album and also featured guitarist Alun Davies. It sold over 500,000 copies and was awarded a gold status in 1971. The album was released in the US by A&M Records.
He released the album 'Teaser and the Firecat' in 1971 and it peaked at No. 2 on the charts. The album was a huge hit as it achieved gold record status in just three weeks of its release.
His album 'Izitso' came out in 1977 and had extensive use of synthesizers. The techno-pop tracks developed by music sequencers proved to be a precursor to the 1980s electric music genre.
He took a long break from his musical career following his conversion to Islam in 1977.
He resumed his music career in the 1990s with songs on Islamic themes. He launched his own recording studio named 'Mountain of Light' and a record label 'Jamal Records'.
He performed at the Nelson Mandela's 46664 concert in 2003; his first English performance after a 25 year hiatus. He re-recorded 'Peace Train' along with David Bowie and Paul McCartney.
He released a song 'Indian Ocean' about the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami disaster along with A R Rahman, Magne Furuholmen and Neil Primrose in early 2005. The proceeds were used to help those affected by the tsunami.
Major Works
His album 'Catch Bull at Four' spent three weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and 15 weeks at the top of Australian ARIA Charts.
Awards & Achievements
He was honoured with the World Award in 2003 and the Man of Peace Award of the World Summit of Nobel Peace Laureates in 2004.
Stevens was awarded an honorary doctorate by the University of Gloucestershire in 2005 and by the University of Exeter in 2007.
He won the ASCAP Songwriter of the Year Award in 2005 and 2006, and the ECHO "Special Award for Life Achievements as a Musician and Ambassador Between Cultures", in 2007.
He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2014.
Personal Life & Legacy
In 1976 he nearly drowned off the coast of Malibu, US. After he was washed ashore he took this as a sign of divine intervention and started reading the Qur'an given to him by his brother. He felt very familiar with Joseph's life and converted to Islam in 1977 and adopted the name Yusuf Islam in 1978.
Stevens was engaged to Louise Wightman for a short time. Then he married Fauzia Mubarak Ali on September 7, 1979 in London and the couple have five children.
When asked about his view on the fatwa calling for the death of Salman Rushdie in 1989, he merely recounted the legal Islamic punishment. His comments were misinterpreted by the media as a supporter of the fatwa.
Net Worth
Cat Stevens’ estimated net worth is $5 million.
Trivia
Cat Stevens has done a lot of philanthropic work till now. He founded the Islamia Primary School in 1983. In 1992, he founded ‘The Association of Muslim Schools’, a charity that brought together all Muslim schools in the UK. He was the chairman of the Muslim Aid charity organisation from 1985 to 1993.
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Cat Stevens's awards
| Year | Name | Award |
|---|---|---|
Other | ||
| 0 | 2004 - Man of Peace | |
| 0 | 2003 - World Award | |
| 0 | 2007 - Echo Award for Lifetime Achievement Award International | |
Cat Stevens biography timelines
- // 21st Jul 1948Cat Stevens, was born as Steven Georgiou, on July 21, 1948 in London. His parents Stavros Georgiou and Ingrid Wickman were restaurateurs. Steven had two elder siblings, Anita and David.
- // 1964This impulse was quickly overtaken by the will to become a musician and he performed at a local bar named Black Horse under the stage name 'Steve Adams', in 1964, for the first time.
- // 1965He signed his first publishing deal as a songwriter in 1965 with Ardmore and Beechwood and adopted the stage name 'Cat Stevens'.
- // 1966In 1966, Mike Hurst was impressed with Cat Stevens’ talent and got him a record deal. His singles 'Matthew and Son' and 'I'm Gonna Get Me a Gun' charted at No. 2 and No. 6 respectively. The album 'Matthew and Son' reached No. 7 on the UK Albums Chart.
- // 1968In 1968, he was diagnosed with tuberculosis and he spent a year in convalescence. This period gave him the time to reflect on his life and spirituality and he started doing yoga and meditation. On the musical front, he penned over 40 songs.
- // 1970His new agent Barry Krost got him an audition with Chris Blackwell of Island records. On Blackwell's assurance that Stevens could make any type of music with any artist he wished for, Stevens signed the deal in 1970 and Paul Samwell-Smith became his producer.
- // 1970 To 1971His next album 'Mona Bone Jakon' (1970) was a folk rock based album and also featured guitarist Alun Davies. It sold over 500,000 copies and was awarded a gold status in 1971. The album was released in the US by A&M Records.
- // 1971He released the album 'Teaser and the Firecat' in 1971 and it peaked at No. 2 on the charts. The album was a huge hit as it achieved gold record status in just three weeks of its release.
- // 1976 To 1978In 1976 he nearly drowned off the coast of Malibu, US. After he was washed ashore he took this as a sign of divine intervention and started reading the Qur'an given to him by his brother. He felt very familiar with Joseph's life and converted to Islam in 1977 and adopted the name Yusuf Islam in 1978.
- // 1977His album 'Izitso' came out in 1977 and had extensive use of synthesizers. The techno-pop tracks developed by music sequencers proved to be a precursor to the 1980s electric music genre.
- // 1977He took a long break from his musical career following his conversion to Islam in 1977.
- // 7th Sep 1979Stevens was engaged to Louise Wightman for a short time. Then he married Fauzia Mubarak Ali on September 7, 1979 in London and the couple have five children.
- // 1983 To 1993Cat Stevens has done a lot of philanthropic work till now. He founded the Islamia Primary School in 1983. In 1992, he founded ‘The Association of Muslim Schools’, a charity that brought together all Muslim schools in the UK. He was the chairman of the Muslim Aid charity organisation from 1985 to 1993.
- // 1989When asked about his view on the fatwa calling for the death of Salman Rushdie in 1989, he merely recounted the legal Islamic punishment. His comments were misinterpreted by the media as a supporter of the fatwa.
- // 2003He performed at the Nelson Mandela's 46664 concert in 2003; his first English performance after a 25 year hiatus. He re-recorded 'Peace Train' along with David Bowie and Paul McCartney.
- // 2003 To 2004He was honoured with the World Award in 2003 and the Man of Peace Award of the World Summit of Nobel Peace Laureates in 2004.
- // 2004 To 2005He released a song 'Indian Ocean' about the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami disaster along with A R Rahman, Magne Furuholmen and Neil Primrose in early 2005. The proceeds were used to help those affected by the tsunami.
- // 2005 To 2007Stevens was awarded an honorary doctorate by the University of Gloucestershire in 2005 and by the University of Exeter in 2007.
- // 2005 To 2007He won the ASCAP Songwriter of the Year Award in 2005 and 2006, and the ECHO "Special Award for Life Achievements as a Musician and Ambassador Between Cultures", in 2007.
- // 2014He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2014.
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Cat Stevens's FAQ
What is Cat Stevens birthday?
Cat Stevens was born at 1948-07-21
Where is Cat Stevens's birth place?
Cat Stevens was born in Marylebone
What is Cat Stevens nationalities?
Cat Stevens's nationalities is British
Who is Cat Stevens spouses?
Cat Stevens's spouses is Fawzia Ali
Who is Cat Stevens siblings?
Cat Stevens's siblings is Anita Georgiou, David Georgiou
Who is Cat Stevens childrens?
Cat Stevens's childrens is Aminah Yusuf, Hasanah Yusuf, Yoriyos
What was Cat Stevens universities?
Cat Stevens studied at Ealing, Hammersmith and West London College
Which company or organization was founded by Cat Stevens?
Cat Stevens was the founder/co-founder of Islamia Primary School, Brondesbury College
What is Cat Stevens's religion?
Cat Stevens's religion is Islam
How tall is Cat Stevens?
Cat Stevens's height is 178
Who is Cat Stevens's father?
Cat Stevens's father is Stavros Georgiou
Who is Cat Stevens's mother?
Cat Stevens's mother is Ingrid Wickman
What is Cat Stevens's sun sign?
Cat Stevens is Cancer
How famous is Cat Stevens?
Cat Stevens is famouse as Singer-songwriter