“I had no control whatsoever. I was about to drown. I saw my life disappearing in front of me”: The epic story of Cat Stevens, the 70s superstar who turned his back on music

Cat Stevens smoking a cigarette and wearing a leather jacket in the early 70s.

Cat Stevens was one of the most successful singer-songwriters of the late 60s and 70s. But then a near-death experience prompted a conversion to Islam, a change of name to Yusuf Islam and a retirement from the music industry. In 2004, a few months after he made his tentative return to the stage, he looked back over a career like no other.

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