<span data-atex-cstyle="$ID/[No character style]" data-atex-fs="Light Italic" data-atex-track="5" data-atex-uat="{KerningMethod:JElEL09wdGljYWw=}"><em>The Laughing Apple</em></span><span data-atex-cstyle="$ID/[No character style]" data-atex-track="5" data-atex-uat="{KerningMethod:JElEL09wdGljYWw=}"> is something of a recording curiosity, mixing new material from Yusuf Islam with reimagined versions of his earlier work as Cat Stevens. "Many of my earlier recordings were overcooked," the artist has said, and certainly this new release is an album of paired-down arrangements and crisp, uncluttered productions.</span> <span data-atex-cstyle="$ID/[No character style]" data-atex-uat="{KerningMethod:JElEL09wdGljYWw=}">Many people will no doubt be most intrigued by the naming convention attached to the album. Having made his name in the late 1960s and early 70s as Cat Stevens, the artist turned his back on popular music in 1978 after the release of </span><span data-atex-cstyle="$ID/[No character style]" data-atex-fs="Light Italic" data-atex-uat="{KerningMethod:JElEL09wdGljYWw=}"><em>Back to Earth</em></span><span data-atex-cstyle="$ID/[No character style]" data-atex-uat="{KerningMethod:JElEL09wdGljYWw=}"> and his well-publicised conversion to Islam. It would be almost 30 years until he returned to releasing mainstream music with his 2006 album </span><span data-atex-cstyle="$ID/[No character style]" data-atex-fs="Light Italic" data-atex-uat="{KerningMethod:JElEL09wdGljYWw=}"><em>An Other Cup</em></span><span data-atex-cstyle="$ID/[No character style]" data-atex-uat="{KerningMethod:JElEL09wdGljYWw=}">, which he recorded as Yusuf. Two further albums followed in 2009 and 2014, and both were released under the same name. </span><span data-atex-cstyle="$ID/[No character style]" data-atex-fs="Light Italic" data-atex-uat="{KerningMethod:JElEL09wdGljYWw=}"><em>The Laughing Apple</em></span><span data-atex-cstyle="$ID/[No character style]" data-atex-uat="{KerningMethod:JElEL09wdGljYWw=}"> nods more firmly to his storied past and is credited to Yusuf/Cat Stevens. It is, effectively, the first Cat Stevens album in nearly four decades. In keeping with the general historical feeling at work, the album is released by Cat-O-Log Records via Decca, the label that put his first two albums out in the Sixties.</span> <span data-atex-cstyle="$ID/[No character style]" data-atex-uat="{KerningMethod:JElEL09wdGljYWw=}">It is a sweet if mildly soporific release. Through the course of its 11 songs it's easy to immerse yourself in his beautiful word play, skilfully structured songs and sharp vocal performances and be gently lulled into a serene state. That probably underplays what is, at times, a wonderful album. The opening </span><span data-atex-cstyle="$ID/[No character style]" data-atex-fs="Light Italic" data-atex-uat="{KerningMethod:JElEL09wdGljYWw=}"><em>Blackness of the Night</em></span><span data-atex-cstyle="$ID/[No character style]" data-atex-uat="{KerningMethod:JElEL09wdGljYWw=}">, originally released<br/> in 1967, is reimagined as a far less bombastic affair in 2017 and it is all the better for that reworking. Other reborn old favourites include </span><span data-atex-cstyle="$ID/[No character style]" data-atex-fs="Light Italic" data-atex-uat="{KerningMethod:JElEL09wdGljYWw=}"><em>Northern Wind</em></span><span data-atex-cstyle="$ID/[No character style]" data-atex-uat="{KerningMethod:JElEL09wdGljYWw=}"> and the album's title track. </span><span data-atex-cstyle="$ID/[No character style]" data-atex-fs="Light Italic" data-atex-uat="{KerningMethod:JElEL09wdGljYWw=}"><em>Mary and the Little Lamb</em></span><span data-atex-cstyle="$ID/[No character style]" data-atex-uat="{KerningMethod:JElEL09wdGljYWw=}"> is a cute, infectious mid-album lullaby, while </span><span data-atex-cstyle="$ID/[No character style]" data-atex-fs="Light Italic" data-atex-uat="{KerningMethod:JElEL09wdGljYWw=}"><em>Don't Blame Them</em></span><span data-atex-cstyle="$ID/[No character style]" data-atex-uat="{KerningMethod:JElEL09wdGljYWw=}">, is a playful and soft lament. All told, </span><span data-atex-cstyle="$ID/[No character style]" data-atex-fs="Light Italic" data-atex-uat="{KerningMethod:JElEL09wdGljYWw=}"><em>The Laughing Apple</em></span><span data-atex-cstyle="$ID/[No character style]" data-atex-uat="{KerningMethod:JElEL09wdGljYWw=}"> is, undoubtedly, a welcome return by the sometime Dubai resident.</span> <a href="https://www.thenational.ae/arts-culture/yusuf-islam-s-new-book-a-brief-chronicle-of-a-lifelong-spiritual-quest-1.306274"></a><br/> <br/> <span data-atex-cstyle="$ID/[No character style]"> </span>