It delves into the universal theme of love and how even the smallest gesture of affection can have a profound impact on our lives. Sounding as fresh as the day it was recorded, the original album is represented here by a brand new 2020 remaster of Mona Bone Jakon by Geoff Pesche at Abbey Road, overseen by original producer Paul Samwell-Smith 2020 on CD, as well as a new 2020 Mix by David Hefti on both CD and LP. Later, he revised his review to a B− and expressed a newfound dislike for the songs " Lady D'Arbanville", " Trouble", and "I Wish, I Wish".

Samwell-Smith also produced the album and brought Stevens a high-fidelity sound that was not as present on his previous releases.Journalist Robert Chalmers reiterated this point for a 2003 interview with Yusuf Islam for The Independent on Sunday when he wrote: "When [Stevens] re-emerged in 1969, he had more than 40 new songs and released three triumphant albums in 15 months on Chris Blackwell's Island label: Mona Bone Jakon (his pet word for penis), Tea for the Tillerman and Teaser and the Firecat. Skiba sings it in a kind of exasperated way like He's tired of hearing this negative view constantly and just allowing that person to continue feeling the way they feel knowing he can't do anything about it.

Mona Bone Jakon, his first album for Island, showcased a markedly different change in direction for Cat, unveiling with it a remarkable set of new compositions that included classics like Trouble, Maybe You’re Right and the UK hit single Lady D’Arbanville. What rescues the record is, taken as a whole, it is a complete and dramatic journey of someone who is looking here and there and asking a lot of questions and ultimately, seeing fame and fortune for what it is. You can change your choices at any time by visiting Cookie preferences, as described in the Cookie notice.To calculate the overall star rating and percentage breakdown by star, we don’t use a simple average. To commemorate the album’s 50th anniversary comes this expanded 2CD edition which includes a stunning new 2020 remaster of ‘Mona Bone Jakon’ by Geoff Pesche at Abbey Road, overseen by original producer Paul Samwell-Smith, plus a second disc of demos and live rarities and booklet with full sleevenotes. After his recovery, he negotiated out of his contract with Deram Records and worked with former Yardbirds bassist Paul Samwell-Smith on a stripped-down sound.