Cat Stevens - Tea For The Tillerman




Mastered by George Marino at Sterling Sound from the original analog master tapes to vinyl and PCM. The DSD was sourced from the PCM. George listened to all of the different A/D converters he had before he chose which to use, and he felt the George Massenburg GML 20 bit A/D produced the best and most synergistic sound for the project.


"I think we've gotten something quite a bit better than what was originally issued," Marino says. "I think this version is much more representative of what was on the tape. And that's not a criticism of what was originally done." - George Marino

Tea For The Tillerman
is one of Cat Stevens' finest albums and a gem in the crown of early 1970s singer/songwriterdom. Stevens manages to have his cake and eat it too, simultaneously achieving pop accessibility and artistic relevance. The feel is decidedly gentle and spare. Apart from the occasional string section, Stevens is accompanied only by a three-piece band as he sings his introspective lyrics with appreciable favor.



1. Where Do the Children Play?
2. Hard Headed Woman
3. Wild World
4. Sad Lisa
5. Miles From Nowhere
6. But I Might Die Tonight
7. Longer Boats
8. Into White
9. On The Road To Find Out
10. Father And Son
11. Tea For The Tillerman

Customer Reviews (4.33 Stars) 12 person(s) rated this product.

Remarkable Work of Music - Buy It

posted on 05/01/2020
5 Stars
Reviewer: John F. - Maryland, USA
By my count, Cat Stevens was only 23 when this album was released November of 1970. The words and music are remarkable. The sound is melodic and clear with transparency and depth of soundstage. Dynamics are excellent. It shows that he really put his heart into it and did not hold back. Great job George Marino for your remastering of this gem.

My listening system for this SACD was a Sony UBP-X1100ES Blu-ray player, Parasound 23 amplifier, Fosgate Audionics Model 5 preamp, Speaker Factory Micro Monitors + an Athena 12" subwoofer AS-P-6000, & Speaker Factory solid core silver wire interconnects.

I am just an older guy miles from nowhere who enjoyed having Cat Stevens (Yusuf Islam) perform in my in my living room tonight and in the future.


Good improvement over the RB.

posted on 11/09/2018
4 Stars
Reviewer: Gibbsy
Always been one of my favourite albums and the SACD does not disappoint. I have the original RB produced in France which has an exceptional dynamic range but the SACD manages to flesh it out with a greater soundstage. There is more detail in the instrumentation, a worthy upgrade.

The disc stands up well to critical listening with Oppo PM1 headphones driven by a Lehmann amp with no sign of harshness in the treble and reaches quite deep in the bass.


best album of all time

posted on 01/30/2015
5 Stars
Reviewer: clasvi
IMHO- this album (SACD) is as good as it gets. Superb quality audio. Every song on this release is great. I listen to this with a cold brew often, just to decompress. (Marantz AV 5004 receiver/amp, matching BD player, 2 PSB Image T6's.


5 Stars!

posted on 12/15/2012
5 Stars
Reviewer: quickster2
Best recording of this title yet. Sold my Gold CD in favor of this. Highly recommended!


Analog Distortion comes through too clearly

posted on 07/09/2012
4 Stars
Reviewer: Trevor
The problem with SACDs is that they're so transparent. The SACD of Tea for Tillerman allows the master tape distortion to shine through clearly. I doubt the control room engineers heard the distortion in this album as clearly as current listeners with decent equipment can. It's still a wonderful album, however, and I'm grateful that it's available in the SACD format.


Outstanding SACD

posted on 02/07/2012
5 Stars
Reviewer: Greg Nagley
I have the old CD purchased a long time ago and I love it but this SACD blows it away! I'm very happy I bought this one.


Similar sound to the cd

posted on 11/19/2011
3 Stars
This sacd sounds more or less the same as the remastered cd, the deluxe edition. I had high hopes for this sacd, but was a little disapointed.


Very Poor Sound Quality

posted on 10/21/2011
1 Stars
Reviewer: Alvin
Very disappointing sound quality considering the SACD format. A standard CD version sounds better using the same player (Ayre C-5xe). Dynamic range seems to be as compressed as the vinyl version.


Super Sweet SACD

posted on 11/22/2014
5 Stars
Reviewer: Roger
Having only a stereo headphone system, I can't comment on the multi- channel sound. I had never owned a copy of this particular album until now. When AS said they were coming out with a hybrid I put in my order after I seen all the good songs on it. With my HS800s this is one of my nicest sounding SACDs.


Superb SACD

posted on 10/17/2011
5 Stars
The sound on this disc is absolutely fabulous. Very clear with good depth of tone and not the least bit harsh. This disc has an analogue warmth. It's everything I always enjoyed in the vinyl version and then some.


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