"
Peace Train" is the title of a
1971-Events:*February 1 – after months of feuding in the press, Ginger Baker and Elvin Jones hold a "drum battle" at The Lyceum.*February 8 – Bob Dylan's hour-long documentary film, Eat the Document, is premièred at New York's Academy of Music...
hit song by
Cat StevensYusuf Islam , commonly known by his former stage name Cat Stevens, is an English singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, educator, philanthropist, and prominent convert to Islam....
, taken from his album
Teaser and the FirecatTeaser 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 song climbed to #7 on the
Billboard Hot 100The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
chart during the week of October 9, 1971, becoming Stevens' first US Top 10 hit. The song also spent three weeks at #1 on the
adult contemporary chartThe Adult Contemporary chart is a weekly chart published in Billboard magazine that lists the most popular songs on adult contemporary and "lite-pop" radio stations in the United States...
. It is also featured on
The Very Best of Cat Stevens compilation album.
Along with
John Lennon'sJohn Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
"
Give Peace A Chance"Give Peace a Chance" is a song written by John Lennon, originally under the moniker Lennon–McCartney, released as a single in 1969 by the Plastic Ono Band on Apple Records, catalogue Apple 13 in the United Kingdom, Apple 1809 in the United States. It is the first solo single issued by Lennon, and...
/
Imagine"Imagine" is a song written and performed by the English musician John Lennon. It is the opening track on his album Imagine, released in 1971...
",
Barry McGuire'sBarry McGuire is an American singer-songwriter best known for the hit song "Eve of Destruction", and later as a pioneering singer and songwriter of Contemporary Christian Music.-Early life:...
"Eve of Destruction" and
Dire Straits'Dire Straits were a British rock band active from 1977 to 1995, composed of Mark Knopfler , his younger brother David Knopfler , John Illsley , and Pick Withers .Dire Straits' sound drew from a variety of musical influences, including jazz, folk, blues, and came closest...
"
Brothers in Arms"Brothers in Arms" is a 1985 song by Dire Straits, appearing as the closing track on the album of the same name. It is in G# minor.-History:There are two studio recorded versions of this song: the album version which is 6:55 seconds, and the shorter version which is 6:05 seconds and features...
", it is reputedly one of the most famous war-protest songs in history.
Cat Stevens later
convertedReligious conversion is the adoption of a new religion that differs from the convert's previous religion. Changing from one denomination to another within the same religion is usually described as reaffiliation rather than conversion.People convert to a different religion for various reasons,...
to
IslamIslam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
, changed his name to
Yusuf IslamYusuf Islam , commonly known by his former stage name Cat Stevens, is an English singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, educator, philanthropist, and prominent convert to Islam....
, and went into reclusion, but later made some public comments about the plight of children in the
Iraq War. Stevens said "'Peace Train' is a song I wrote, the message of which continues to breeze thunderously through the hearts of millions. There is a powerful need for people to feel that gust of hope rise up again. As a member of humanity and as a Muslim, this is my contribution to the call for a peaceful solution." He re-recorded the song for
War ChildWar Child is a non-governmental organisation founded in the UK 1993, which focuses on providing assistance to children in areas of conflict and post-conflict. They use their film and entertainment background to raise money for aid agencies operating in former Yugoslavia...
in 2003. The song has also been covered by
Tony MeléndezJosé Antonio Meléndez Rodríguez is a Nicaraguan American guitar player, composer and singer and songwriter who was born without arms. His mother took Thalidomide while pregnant, which caused his disability. Meléndez has learned to play the guitar with his feet.-Career:Meléndez began playing and...
in 1987,
Jann ArdenJann Arden is a Canadian singer-songwriter.-Life and career:Arden was born and raised near Calgary in Springbank, Alberta and attended Springbank Community High School. Her breakthrough came with her critically acclaimed 1993 debut album Time for Mercy and her first single "I Would Die For You"...
in 2007, and
Zain BhikhaZain Bhikha is an Indian South African singer-songwriter, who has achieved success as a performer of Islamic nasheed songs. Associated with prominent Muslim personalities, including Yusuf Islam and Dawud Wharnsby, Bhikha has collaborated on albums and also released several solo albums...
in 2008.
Aside from Stevens' original recording, a
cover versionIn popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
of "Peace Train" was recorded by the
AmericanThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
alternative rockAlternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
band
10,000 Maniacs10,000 Maniacs is a United States-based alternative rock band, which formed in 1981 and continues to be active with various line-ups.-1981–1993:...
. The song originally appeared on the band's 1987 album,
In My TribeIn My Tribe is an album by American alternative rock band 10,000 Maniacs. It was their second major-label album and their first to achieve large-scale success. John Lombardo, Natalie Merchant's songwriting partner on previous albums, left the band in 1986...
, but it failed to chart. After
Stevens' commentFollowing Ayatollah Khomeini's February 14, 1989 death threat fatwa against author Salman Rushdie, convert to Islam and recording artist Yusuf Islam, previously known as Cat Stevens, made statements that were interpreted as endorsing the killing of Rushdie...
which some interpreted as calling for the death of
Salman Rushdie, 10,000 Maniacs lead singer
Natalie MerchantNatalie Anne Merchant is an American singer-songwriter and musician. She joined the alternative rock band 10,000 Maniacs in 1981 and left it to begin her solo career in 1993.-Early life:...
had "Peace Train" removed from all copies of the album in the U.S.
In 1996,
Dolly PartonDolly Rebecca Parton is an American singer-songwriter, author, multi-instrumentalist, actress and philanthropist, best known for her work in country music. Dolly Parton has appeared in movies like 9 to 5, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, Steel Magnolias and Straight Talk...
included a version of "Peace Train" on her album of covers
TreasuresTreasures is a 1996 Dolly Parton album, made up of covers of rock and country hits from the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. It was her 33rd studio album. Among the selections were work by Merle Haggard, Neil Young, Kris Kristofferson, Cat Stevens and Mac Davis...
. Parton produced a CBS television special, airing in November 1996, to promote the album, in which she described "Peace Train" as a personal favorite song of hers. The special also included a brief interview of Yusuf Islam, describing how he came to write the song. (Islam later joined Parton on a cover of another of his songs, "
Where Do the Children Play?Where Do the Children Play? is a song by British folk-rock musician Cat Stevens, now known as Yusuf Islam. It was the opening track of the album Tea for the Tillerman, released in 1970....
", playing guitar on the track.) In May 1997, Parton filmed by a music video for the song, directed by
Christopher CicconeChristopher G. Ciccone is an American artist, film director, artistic director, dancer, best selling author, and interior and furniture designer. He is the younger brother of Madonna, and began his career working as Madonna's assistant, dresser, backup dancer, stylist, and artistic director...
, brother of entertainer
MadonnaMadonna is an American singer-songwriter, actress and entrepreneur. Born in Bay City, Michigan, she moved to New York City in 1977 to pursue a career in modern dance. After performing in the music groups Breakfast Club and Emmy, she released her debut album in 1983...
.
Stevens performed the song live at the 2006
Nobel Peace PrizeThe Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes bequeathed by the Swedish industrialist and inventor Alfred Nobel.-Background:According to Nobel's will, the Peace Prize shall be awarded to the person who...
ceremony when
Muhammad YunusMuhammad Yunus is a Bangladeshi economist and founder of the Grameen Bank, an institution that provides microcredit to help its clients establish creditworthiness and financial self-sufficiency. In 2006 Yunus and Grameen received the Nobel Peace Prize...
of
BangladeshBangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
received the award. The interlude during the song where the background singers chant "Kumbayaba" was removed for this version.
The song has appeared in the films,
Remember the TitansRemember the Titans is a 2000 American sports film produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and directed by Boaz Yakin. Inspired by real events, the plot was conceived from a screenplay written by Gregory Allen Howard. The film starts as a new coach of the Titans, a football team previously coached by the...
and
We Are MarshallWe Are Marshall is a 2006 American drama film directed by Joseph McGinty Nichol about the aftermath of the 1970 plane crash that killed 37 football players on the Marshall University Thundering Herd football team as well as five coaches, two athletic trainers, the athletic director, 25 boosters and...
.
The song was also performed with the accompaniment of The Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain.
Islam (Stevens) performed the song as part of a comedic skit at
Jon StewartJon Stewart is an American political satirist, writer, television host, actor, media critic and stand-up comedian...
's Rally To Restore Sanity.
This song has also been covered by Swedish singer Laleh who is Iranian born. It has been covered live.
The song was also remixed by
Junior VasquezJunior Vasquez, , is an American club DJ and remixer/producer.-Career:...
, a well-known house music DJ, during his nightclub tenure at an event called "Arena" in New York City.
See also
- List of number-one adult contemporary singles of 1971 (U.S.)
Rob Tobias and Friends recorded the Cat Stevens song "Peace Train" as a medley with the song "Salaam" which was written by the Arab/Israeli group called "Sheva." The track appears on the 2003 CD release "World in the World."
External links