Blackpool singer Leoni Jane Kennedy's gift of song for Cat Steven's 50th anniversary virtual festival

Blackpool songstress Leoni Jane Kennedy is to perform on a star bill for a virtual festival celebrating 50 years of music of legendary British singer and songwriter Yusuf Cat Stevens.
Blackpool singer songwriter Leoni Jane KennedyBlackpool singer songwriter Leoni Jane Kennedy
Blackpool singer songwriter Leoni Jane Kennedy

The chance opportunity will see the Academy of Contemporary Music graduate , present an acoustic recreation of single Longer Boats for the CatSong Festival.

Billed as a musical celebration, marking the 50th anniversary of classic 1970 albums Tea for the Tillerman and Mona Bone Jakon, Leoni joins 40 artists including HAIM, James Morrison, Passenger, Jack Johnson, and Dave Matthews on the virtual line-up.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The event will premiere tomorrow December 5 at 8pm on the YouTube channel of Cat Stevens, 72, whose real name is Yusuf Islam.

Speaking of her chance to be part of the project, Leoni, from Thornton, said: “I’m just so excited to be taking part alongside all these amazing artists.

“It was a real surprise to be asked, just right place and time and I’m so honoured.

“Yusuf’s management were so nice about my interpretation of the song and I really hope people enjoy it.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“With everything this year to be part of something as big as this is really special.”

CatSong Festival premieres on December 5 on Cat Steven's You Tube channel.CatSong Festival premieres on December 5 on Cat Steven's You Tube channel.
CatSong Festival premieres on December 5 on Cat Steven's You Tube channel.

The festival has been put together by Cat Stevens and his team to mark the milestone in his career and honour the records, which propelled him to worldwide fame.

Songs from his entire back catalogue will make up the set with the artists recreating them in their own style. They will include Wild World, Peace Train, Father And Son.

Leoni debuted her first single Life Like This with renowned producer of Mötorhead, John Gallen, in October. She began her music career at the age of just 11.

Tea for the Tillerman 50th anniversary

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Tea for the Tillerman was released on November 23 1970. Speaking of the album’s importance Cat Stevens said: “Though my songwriting adventures were never limited to Tillerman, the songs on that album certainly defined me and pointed the way for my mysterious life’s journey.”

Despite the ongoing pandemic and a tumultuous year felt universally across the music industry, 2020 has seen a huge year for the singer.

The newly released Tea for the Tillerman 2 debuted at number four in the UK albums chart, marking Cat Steven’s ninth UK top 10 album and his highest charting studio release in over 40 years.

Related topics:

Comment Guidelines

National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.