Teaser and the Firecat

Teaser and the Firecat is an album released by Cat Stevens in 1971. It contains 10 songs including hits such as "Morning Has Broken," "Moonshadow," and "Peace Train." It is also the title of a children's book written and illustrated by Stevens. The story features the title characters from the album cover, top-hatted young Teaser and his pet Firecat, who attempt to put the moon back in its place after it falls from the sky. Published in 1972, the book has been out of print since the mid-1970s.

The album was a commercial success, surpassing the heights achieved by Stevens' previous album, Tea for the Tillerman, reaching both the UK and US Top 3 and also spending an impressive fifteen weeks at the top of the Australian charts, becoming the biggest-selling album of the country in 1972.

In 1977 an animated version, narrated by Spike Milligan and using the song "Moonshadow", was a segment in Fantastic Animation Festival.

In November 2008, a 'Deluxe Edition' was released featuring a second disc of demos and live recordings.

Track listing

All songs were written by Cat Stevens, except where noted.

Side one

1. "The Wind" – 1:42
2. "Rubylove" – 2:37
3. "If I Laugh" – 3:20
4. "Changes IV" – 3:32
5. "How Can I Tell You" – 4:24

Side two

1. "Tuesday's Dead" – 3:36
2. "Morning Has Broken" (Traditional, arr. Stevens; words Eleanor Farjeon) – 3:20
3. "Bitterblue" – 3:12
4. "Moonshadow" – 2:52
5. "Peace Train" – 4:04

Deluxe Edition

Disc two

1. "Moonshadow [Live at the Troubadour]" – 3:06
2. "Rubylove [Demo Version]" – 2:53
3. "If I Laugh [Demo Version]" – 4:04
4. "Changes IV [Demo Version]" – 3:36
5. "How Can I Tell You [Demo Version]" – 4:03
6. "Morning Has Broken [Demo Version]" (Eleanor Farjeon) – 2:49
7. "Bitterblue [Royal Albert Hall 1972]" – 3:38
8. "Tuesday's Dead [Majikat Earth Tour 1976]" – 4:09
9. "Peace Train [Royal Albert Hall 2003]" – 4:12
10. "The Wind [Yusuf's Café]" – 1:59

Personnel

• Cat Stevens – guitar, keyboards, vocals
• Alun Davies – guitar
• Larry Steele – bass, congas
• Gerry Conway – drums
• Harvey Burns – drums
• Rick Wakeman – piano on "Morning Has Broken" (uncredited)
• Andreas Toumazis – bouzouki
• Angelos Harzipavli – bouzouki
• Del Newman – string arrangements

Charts

Album

Single

Certifications

References