"Father and Son"
Cover of the German single edition
Single byCat Stevens
from the albumTea for the Tillerman
B-side	"Moonshadow"
Released	August 1970
Recorded	July 1970
Genre	Folk rock
Length	3:41
Label	Island A&M (US)
Songwriter	Cat Stevens
Producer	Paul Samwell-Smith
Cat Stevens singles chronology
"Lady D'Arbanville" (1970) "Father and Son" (1970) "Wild World" (1970)
Official video
"Father and Son" onYouTube

"Father and Son" is a popular song written and performed by Englishsinger-songwriterCat Stevens (now known as Yusuf/Cat Stevens) on his 1970 albumTea for the Tillerman. The song frames a heartbreaking exchange between a father not understanding a son's desire to break away and shape a new life, and the son who cannot really explain himself but knows that it is time for him to seek his own destiny.

Stevens sings in a deeperregister for the father's lines, while using a higher one for those of the son. Additionally, there are backing vocals provided by Stevens' guitarist and friend Alun Davies beginning mid-song, singing an unusual chorus of simple refrains. In 2021, it was listed at No. 408 onRolling Stone's "Top 500 Best Songs of All Time".^[1]

Cat Stevens originally wrote "Father and Son" as part of a proposed musical project starringNigel Hawthorne, calledRevolussia, that was set during theRussian Revolution, and could also have become a film; the song was about a boy who wanted to join the revolution against the wishes of hisconservativefarmer father. The musical project faded away when Stevens contractedtuberculosis in 1969. He was close to death at the time of his admittance to the King Edward VII Hospital inMidhurst, West Sussex.^[2] After a year-long period ofconvalescence in the hospital and acollapsed lung, the project was shelved, but "Father and Son" remained, now in a broader context that reflected not just the societal conflict of Stevens' time, but also captured the impulses of older and younger generations in general.

"Father and Son" received substantial airplay onprogressive rock andalbum-oriented rock radio formats, and played a key role in establishing Stevens as a new voice worthy of attention. In 1970, it was only put on theB-side of Stevens' single "Moon Shadow" (Island Records).

Interviewed soon after the release of "Father and Son", Stevens was asked if the song was autobiographical. Responding to the interviewer fromDisc, he said, "I've never really understood my father, but he always let me do whatever I wanted—he let me go. 'Father And Son' is for those people who can't break loose."^[2]

Speaking toRolling Stone, Stevens has said he is aware that "Father and Son" and several other songs mean a great deal to a large number of fans.

"Some people think that I was taking the son's side," its composer explained. "But how could I have sung the father's side if I couldn't have understood it, too? I was listening to that song recently and I heard one line and realized that that was my father's father's father's father's father's father's father's father speaking."^[3]

By 2007, Stevens (then known as Yusuf Islam) recorded the song again in "Yusuf's Cafe Sessions" of 2007 on DVD again withAlun Davies, and a small band playing acoustic instruments. The performance was presented in a video with two close camera shots of his wife and daughter, holding his infant grandchild.

In 2020, Stevens released a re-recorded version of "Father and Son". This version, which appears onTea for the Tillerman 2, features the original recording of Stevens' vocals (at the age of 22) alongside the present-day voice of Stevens (age 72). The animated music video of "Father and Son" also pays homage to the original release by featuring video clips from the 1970 music video released 50 years earlier.^[4][5]

"Father and Son" (1970)

Sample of "Father and Son", performed byCat Stevens. Appears onTea for the Tillerman.

---

Problems playing this file? Seemedia help.

The American rock bandthe Flaming Lips released a song titled "Fight Test" on their 2002 albumYoshimi Battles the Pink Robots. "Fight Test" was thought to be so musically similar to "Father and Son" that it resulted in a lawsuit.Sony/ATV Music Publishing, representing Yusuf Islam, andEMI Music Publishing, representing the Flaming Lips, agreed to divide the royalties for "Fight Test" equally between the two parties following a relatively uncontentious settlement.^[13] Flaming LipsfrontmanWayne Coyne claims that he was unaware of the songs' similarities until producerDave Fridmann pointed them out.

In an interview withThe Guardian, frontman Wayne Coyne stated:^[14]

I want to go on record for the first time and say that I really apologise for the whole thing. I really love Cat Stevens. I truly respect him as a great singer-songwriter. And now he wants his money. There was a time during the recording when we said, this has a similarity to 'Father and Son'. Then we purposefully changed those bits. But I do regret not contacting his record company and asking their opinion. Maybe we could have gone 50–50. As it is, Cat Stevens is now getting 75 percent of royalties from 'Fight Test'. We could easily have changed the melody but we didn't. I am really sorry that Cat Stevens thinks I'm purposefully plagiarising his work. I am ashamed. There is obviously a fine line between being inspired and stealing. But if anyone wanted to borrow part of a Flaming Lips song, I don't think I'd bother pursuing it. I've got better things to do. Anyway, Cat Stevens is never going to make much money out of us.

The song has been covered by many artists over the decades.

In the 1970s, Black folk singer,Richie Havens recorded an extended cover and pluralized the song title, as "Fathers & Sons" on his 1971 albumThe Great Blind Degree.Johnny Cash also recorded acountry duet version with his stepdaughter, Rosie Nix Adams.

The mid-1990s and early 2000s saw a revitalization of the song with Boyzone's and Ronan Keating's disparate pop version introducing Cat Stevens to a new generation of listeners. The latter version would feature Stevens cameoing in a duet.

After four years of recording and releasing four albums centered aroundGreat American pop standards,Rod Stewart directed his focus to covering contemporarypop rock songs, including this Cat Stevens song, for his 2006Still the Same... Great Rock Classics of Our Time album.

In 2024, James Arthur Garfunkel recorded and released a duet version featuring his fatherArt Garfunkel under the moniker, Garfunkel & Garfunkel. Similar to Cash and Adams version, the two singers musically explore the song as a generational endearing conversation between the two of them. Their orchestrally lush recording closed out their duets album that was aptly titled,Father & Son.

Johnny Cash recorded the song twice in his career. The first time he covered the song in 1974 for his 48th albumThe Junkie and the Juicehead Minus Me. This cover, titledFather and Daughter (Father and Son), was a duet with stepdaughterRosie Nix Adams (with lyrics adjusted to adhere to the different subject matter).^[15][16] This version presented the song as a back and forth conversation between a father and a daughter imploring each other how to approach one's life while the former asks his daughter to stay while she yearns to leave.

A new recording of theFather and Son cover appeared on Cash'sposthumous compilation releaseUnearthed (2003), which featured outtakes from hisAmerican Recordings sessions over the years. This duet featuredFiona Apple, and retained the lyrics of Stevens' original song.^[17][18]

"Father and Son"
Single byBoyzone
from the albumSaid and Done
B-side	"Should Be Missing You Now"
Released	13 November 1995 (1995-11-13)
Length	2:50
Label	Polydor
Songwriter	Cat Stevens
Producer	Ray Hedges
Boyzone singles chronology
"So Good" (1995) "Father and Son" (1995) "Coming Home Now" (1996)
Music video
"Father and Son" onYouTube

Irish boy bandBoyzone released a cover of "Father and Son" in November 1995 byPolydor Records, reaching number two on theUK Singles Chart and number one on theIrish Singles Chart. The cover received a platinum sales status certification from theBritish Phonographic Industry. The cover was the 13th-best-selling single of 1995 in the UK. In Ireland, it became their fourth consecutive number-one single, and it found international success, peaking at number two in Australia, number 11 in France, and number 15 in Germany.

Music Week gave Boyzone's version of "Father and Son" a top score of five out of five and named it Single of the Week, writing, "The song that got the audience choking back tears during the recent tour is Boyzone'sChristmas single. It's an emotional rendition of theCat Stevens song – and will be massive."^[19]Smash Hits gave it four out of five, naming it a "top ballad sung from the heart."^[20] In a separate review,Smash Hits editor Gill Whyte gave the single one out of five, writing, "This is a slowly, with lots of twinkly piano, crescendos and ooh-ah harmonious bits."^[21]

• UK CD1^[22]

1. "Father and Son" (radio edit) – 2:46
2. "Should Be Missing You Now" – 3:20
3. "Father and Son" (live)

• UK CD2^[23]

1. "Father and Son" (radio edit) – 2:46
2. "Should Be Missing You Now" – 3:20
3. "Should Be Missing You Now" (The Other Mix) – 4:40
4. "Father and Son" (the album version) – 2:50

• UK cassette single^[24]

1. "Father and Son" (radio edit) – 2:46
2. "Should Be Missing You Now" – 3:20

"Father and Son"
Single byRonan Keating featuringYusuf Islam
from the album10 Years of Hits
Released	13 December 2004 (2004-12-13)[60]
Length	3:23
Label	Polydor
Songwriter	Cat Stevens
Producer	Steve Mac
Ronan Keating singles chronology
"I Hope You Dance" (2004) "Father and Son" (2004) "Baby Can I Hold You" (2005)
Yusuf Islam singles chronology
"Peace Train" / "Angel of War" (2003) "Father and Son" (2004) "Indian Ocean" (2005)

"Father and Son" was covered byBoyzone frontmanRonan Keating and released as the second of three singles from his greatest hits compilation album10 Years of Hits (2004). The song features guest vocals from Yusuf Islam (Cat Stevens) in the form of avirtual duet. The song peaked at number two on theUK Singles Chart, becoming Keating's 11th top-10 single. Keating donated the profits from the single to theBand Aid Trust.^[61]

UK CD1^[62]

1. "Father and Son" – 3:21
2. "When You Say Nothing at All" (Spanish duet withPaulina Rubio) – 4:20

UK CD2^[63]

1. "Father and Son" – 3:21
2. "Father and Son" (Metrophonic Mix) – 3:57
3. "I Hope You Dance" (video CD-ROM)
4. "Father and Son" (video CD-ROM)

Stevens' original recording is featured in the final scene of the 2017 filmGuardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2,^[78] wherePeter Quill listens to the song during the funeral of his adoptive fatherYondu. On television, the song has been prominent onWelcome to Wrexham (season 1, episode 17),This Is Us (season 6, episode 3),Not Going Out (series 5, episode 2), and the season 3 finale ofTed Lasso (episode 12, So Long, Farewell). The song was also used at the beginning episode of "Beg, Bribe, Bully" for the TV series,Billions (season 5, episode 3).

• 1970 songs
• 1970s ballads
• 1972 singles
• 1995 singles
• 2004 singles
• A&M Records singles
• Boyzone songs
• Cat Stevens songs
• Fiona Apple songs
• Folk ballads
• Irish Singles Chart number-one singles
• Island Records singles
• Johnny Cash songs
• Polydor Records singles
• Pye Records singles
• Rock ballads
• Rod Stewart songs
• Ronan Keating songs
• Sandie Shaw songs
• Song recordings produced by Paul Samwell-Smith
• Song recordings produced by Ray Hedges
• Songs about fathers
• Songs about old age
• Songs written by Cat Stevens

• CS1 Italian-language sources (it)
• CS1 German-language sources (de)
• CS1 Icelandic-language sources (is)
• CS1 French-language sources (fr)
• CS1 Dutch-language sources (nl)
• CS1 Japanese-language sources (ja)
• CS1 Romanian-language sources (ro)
• Articles with short description
• Short description is different from Wikidata
• Use British English from January 2014
• All Wikipedia articles written in British English
• Use dmy dates from February 2021
• Articles with hAudio microformats
• Single chart usages for Dutch100
• Certification Table Entry usages for Germany
• Pages using certification Table Entry with streaming figures
• Certification Table Entry usages for Italy
• Certification Table Entry usages for New Zealand
• Certification Table Entry usages for Spain
• Certification Table Entry usages for United Kingdom
• Pages using certification Table Entry with streaming footnote
• Single chart usages for Australia
• Single chart usages for Austria
• Single chart usages for Flanders
• Single chart usages for Wallonia
• Single chart usages for France
• Single chart usages for Germany
• Single chart usages for Ireland2
• Single chart called without artist
• Single chart usages for Dutch40
• Single chart usages for New Zealand
• Single chart usages for Norway
• Single chart usages for Scotland
• Single chart called without song
• Single chart usages for Sweden
• Single chart usages for UK
• Certification Table Entry usages for Australia
• Pages using certification Table Entry with shipments figures
• Pages using certification Table Entry with shipments footnote
• Single chart usages for Flanders Tip
• Single chart making named ref
• Single chart usages for Switzerland