Cat Stevens - Father and Son

It was the summer during which I turned 13. I was on an extended camping trip with my Uncle Steve, and as we drove from campsite to campsite throughout Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming, he "made" me listen to a bunch of his mixed tapes. That's when I first met Cat Stevens.

"Father and Son" is by far his best song. It is lyrically poignant, and also cleverly performed.

It begins with the father, lower in tone and slower, more deliberate.

It then turns to the son, and you can tell because the octave changes (higher) and because the voice sounds more restless, desperate even.

It alternates and in the studio version, there is a soft back and forth dialog that sweetly pervades the background of the last two verses.

I've heard that the song is supposed to tell the story of a father trying in vain to keep his son from joining a revolution. Whether it is the American Revolution or any other is not important. It's a conversation that has gone on for eons.

My favorite line is, "For you will still be here tomorrow, / But your dreams may not."