Cat Stevens: Buddha And The Chocolate Box

"Buddha and the Chocolate Box" was originally released on March 19, 1974, and marked the return of both Paul Samwell-Smith as producer and Alun Davies on guitar, neither of whom had been involved in the previous album, "Foreigner." Sonically, “Buddha and the Chocolate Box” undoubtedly feels like a return to the style of the “Tea for the Tillerman” and “Teaser and the Firecat,” albeit with musical arrangements and production that have reached a new level of finesse and sophistication. The album’s intriguing title came to Cat during a flight when he realized he was holding a small Buddha statue in one hand and a box of chocolates in the other. He reflected that, in the event of a plane crash, he would be found between these two objects, which symbolized the spiritual and the material. Following the reissue of the classic live album “Saturnight” (Cat Stevens: Live In Tokyo) from 2024 and the release of “On The Road To Find Out: Greatest Hits” in 2025, “Buddha and the Chocolate Box” was carefully remastered from the original production tapes at Island UK and presented with a redesigned cover.