Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member Cat Stevens is taking the "Peace Train" back on the road

Cat Stevens was one of biggest-selling singer songwriters of the early '70s. Before he was Yusef Islam he had such hits as "Peace Train," "Wild World" and "The First Cut Is the Deepest" which has been heavily covered by other artists. Cat Stevens has always been about spirituality and peace. The man who called himself Cat had his one of his first hits declaring his love of his dog. Although Cat and dogs found peace, has Stevens been dogged by controversy since he changed his name to Yusef Islam.

Cat Stevens announced his first U.S. concert tour since 1976. Yusuf Islam will begin his U.S. tour this fall at the Wang Center in Boston.

The singer songwriter also announced he is recording an R&B-influenced album which will be released on Sony Legacy on Oct. 27. "Tell 'Em I'm Gone," will be Cat Stevens' first new studio album in five years.

"I've been a bit slow in coming around to the United States, but there were so many people asking me to do that, that I just felt an obligation," Stevens told the Guardian newspaper in the U.K.

Stevens album comes out late next month. It was produced produced by Rick Rubin. "Tell 'Em I'm Gone"  features guest artists like Richard Thompson, Bonnie 'Prince' Billy and Tinariwen.

Last December, Yusef told Rolling Stone he might be making an new album, saying "It's taken time because for a long time I was involved with putting together a musical of my music in Australia. So that kind of diverted me away from the album for about a year."

On "Tell 'Em I'm Gone" Yusuf returns to the music he loved when he was young. In a statement, Cat said "Hidden in the background behind my renowned troubadour persona lurked an R&B alter-self waiting to be let free. What's powerful and profound, to me, is the overall message which emerged, lyrically. It suddenly stared me in the face: the innate struggle for Freedom! Isn't that what most human beings dream of? Music and the blues particularly was a means of escape for many chained to the destiny of the rich and powerful."

"Although I was to venture through many lyrical terrains, melodious valleys and cadences during my 50 year musical and spiritual exploration, and though many would agree that I have covered a lot of ground, there was always one path I meant to take. Hidden in the background behind my renowned troubadour persona lurked an R&B alter-self waiting to be let free". He adds: "What's powerful and profound, to me, is the overall message which emerged, lyrically [here]. It suddenly stared me in the face: the innate struggle for freedom! Isn't that what most human beings dream of? Music and the blues particularly was a means of escape for many chained to the destiny of the rich and powerful".

Cat Stevens, who was born Steven Georgiou, had huge hits with such songs as "Wild World," "Father and Son" and "Peace Train." He quit touring after he converted to Islam and changed his name to Yusef Islam. He put out a comeback album "An Other Cup," in 2006.

The Cat Steves tour is called "Peace Train ... Late Again." It begins in Toronto on Dec. 1 and will include performance in Boston on Dec. 4, in Manhattan at the Beacon Theater on Dec. 7, Chicago  on Dec. 9, San Francisco on Dec. 12 and Los Angeles on Dec. 14. The American tour will be followed by a European tour that runs from Nov. 4 to Nov. 25.

Tickets for "Peace Train ... Late Again" shows cost between $79 and $169, are available through Ticketmaster.