Cat Stevens’ ‘Buddha and the Chocolate Box’ Gets Reissue

Cat Stevens circa 1974 (Photo: Yusuf / Cat Stevens Archive; used with permission)

Yusuf / Cat Stevens’ 1974 album Buddha and the Chocolate Box has been newly remastered and is set for reissue on September 4, 2026, via Cat-O-Log Records/A&M/UMe, more than fifty years after it first appeared. The singer-songwriter’s sixth A&M Records LP — one of four consecutive albums to reach the top 3 on both sides of the Atlantic — will be available on CD, vinyl, and digitally for streaming and download. It can be ordered in the U.S. here, in Canada here and in the U.K. here.

From the label’s announcement: Originally released March 19, 1974, Buddha and the Chocolate Box marked the return of both producer Paul Samwell-Smith and guitarist Alun Davies, following their absence on the preceding album, Foreigner. Sonically, the record was a homecoming to the style of the Tea for the Tillerman and Teaser and the Firecat era — but with the arrangements and production reaching a new level of finesse and polish.

“Buddha and the Chocolate Box reopened the doors of my familiar melodious soft delivery and sentiments,” said Stevens, born July 21, 1948. “Although still experimental in compositional terms, it was what most of my fans desperately wanted to hear next. Following on from Foreigner, the Buddha album proved – especially to those who had no faith – that the missing Cat had simply wandered away from home for a while. My principle of independence was asserted as with most cats, don’t ever dare think you own them! As far as the critics were concerned, album-wise, it marked my heralded return to ‘Cat Stevens’ form.”

The album was a worldwide hit. In the United States it climbed to #2 on the Billboard 200, spending three weeks in the runner-up spot and it was certified Gold within weeks of its April 8, 1974, release, later going Platinum. In the U.K., it reached No. 3, earning silver and gold certifications on the same day that July, just months after release.

The album yielded two singles. “Oh Very Young” reached #10 on the Hot 100; the follow-up single, “Ready,” peaked at #26.

The 2026 release continues an acclaimed reissue program, following 2024’s Saturnight (Cat Stevens: Live in Tokyo) and 2025’s On the Road to Findout: Greatest Hits. Buddha has been meticulously remastered from the original Island U.K. production tapes and is presented with newly refreshed artwork. Stevens’ classic albums are available in the U.S. here, in Canada here and in the U.K. here. His long-awaited memoir, Cat on the Road to Findout, is available in the U.S. here, in Canada here and in the U.K. here.

YUSUF / CAT STEVENS – BUDDHA AND THE CHOCOLATE BOX TRACK LISTING
1. Music (4:19)
2. Oh Very Young (2:33)
3. Sun / C79 (4:34)
4. Ghost Town (3:08)
5. Jesus (2:11)
6. Ready (3:14)
7. King of Trees (5:08)
8. A Bad Penny (3:21)
9. Home in the Sky (3:36)