Yusuf / Cat Stevens – Buddha and the Chocolate Box (50th Anniversary Edition)

Yusuf / Cat Stevens’ Buddha and the Chocolate Box arrived in February 1974, when he was deep into a run of hugely successful 1970s records but still writing with a searching, inward-looking streak. This sixth album for Island Records followed the more expansive Foreigner and, by several accounts, pulled Stevens back toward a leaner, more acoustic approach. That balance of spiritual curiosity and direct songwriting is a big part of why it still feels so inviting.

The set includes the hit “Oh Very Young,” plus “Ready” and the much-loved “King of Trees,” but the appeal is broader than its singles. Reviews at the time and since have noted the sparer arrangements, the emphasis on acoustic guitar, and a return to the melodic clarity associated with Stevens at his early-70s peak. Even with its gentler surface, the album keeps his religious imagery and reflective lyricism close at hand, opening with “Music” and closing with “Home in the Sky” in a way that underlines how central song itself was to his thinking.

This 2026 vinyl edition also helps explain the record’s renewed visibility: it has been newly remastered for its 50th anniversary and presented as a premium package on 180g black vinyl. For anyone coming to the album beyond the obvious classics, it is a warm, thoughtful reminder of how naturally Stevens could join pop craft, folk intimacy, and bigger questions about belief and purpose.

Features

• 180g, Black Vinyl, 50th Anniversary Premium Package
• Newly remastered

Reviews

• a return to the simpler style of earlier albums. - AllMusic.com