Yusuf Islam ... sounds a lot like Cat Stevens

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Interviews, performances

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Dec. 6: Before being honored at a special gala at the Kennedy Center, five of the nation's best in entertainment and the arts were lauded by President Barack Obama. NBC's Lester Holt reports.

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Dubai is his safe haven
Islam says he holds no grudges against U.S. immigration authorities who denied him entry into the United States in 2004 because his name appeared on a terror watch list. When he tried again in December, he got in no problem.

“It was worked out beforehand and I got a very warm welcome when I arrived that time,” he said with a chuckle. “I do believe it was some cranky mistake in their computers. Once a person’s name gets on that list nobody quite understands how to take it off. People are still suffering from that kind of thing.”

But Dubai, he says, is a safe haven from the craziness afflicting the United States. He mentioned the massacre at Virginia Tech, where a deranged student killed himself and 32 others.

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“We’ve just been reading about what’s been going on in America. Can you imagine?” he says, a look of shock on his face. “There are certain comforts of living here in Dubai, the comforts of so many mosques and so much good food ... It’s just that much more secure. And may God keep it safe.”

Islam said his comeback has gotten a warm reception, and he wants to create a bridge to his old songs.

“A lot of people are nicely surprised to find it’s the same style of writing and the same melodic approach to songwriting,” he said. “A lot of my songs stand up today. They reflect the reality of my journey and my experience and my faults.”

In the concert airing on BBC, Islam was backed by a 12-piece band at London’s Porchester Hall, playing all the old hits. He did one other major gig since his hiatus, at New York’s Lincoln Center in December, to an invite-only crowd.

He said there is interest in his music now because the “tremendous conflicts that have been created by extremists” have created a longing for the peaceful sounds and positive messages of his songs, old and new.

“I don’t see it so much as a return as a fresh start. It’s a new era. Forty years have passed since my first record and times have definitely changed,” he said. “If John Lennon were alive he’d probably be singing something similar.”

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