"(Remember the Days of the) Old Schoolyard" is a song by English singer-songwriter

Cat Stevens Yusuf Islam (born Steven Demetre Georgiou; ), commonly known by his stage names Cat Stevens, Yusuf, and Yusuf / Cat Stevens, is a British singer-songwriter and musician. He has sold more than 100 million records and has more than two billion st ...

. It was first released by

Linda Lewis Linda Ann Fredericks (27 September 1950 – 3 May 2023), better known as Linda Lewis, was an English singer, songwriter and musician. She is best known for the singles "Rock-a-Doodle-Doo" (1973) and her version of Betty Everett's "The Shoop Sh ...

in February 1975 and included on her album ''Not a Little Girl Anymore'' (1975). Stevens' version was released as the lead single from his tenth studio album ''

Izitso ''Izitso'' is the tenth studio album by the British singer-songwriter Cat Stevens, released in April 1977. After the lacklustre ''Numbers'', the album proved to be his comeback. The album updated the rhythmic folk rock and pop rock style of his e ...

'' (1977) on 3 June 1977. It's a duet with

Elkie Brooks Elkie Brooks (born Elaine Bookbinder; 25 February 1945) is an English Rock music, rock, blues and jazz singer. She was a vocalist with the bands Dada and Vinegar Joe (band), Vinegar Joe, and later became a solo artist. She gained her biggest su ...

Lyrics and composition

The song begins with a recording of children playing. The synth-laden track features an arrangement of instruments dominated by horns. The lyrics of the song describe nostalgia for school. It was produced by

Jim Cregan James Cregan (born 9 March 1946) is an English rock guitarist and bassist, best known for his associations with Family, Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel, and Rod Stewart. Cregan is a former husband of the singer Linda Lewis and worked with her a ...

Critical reception

Stereo Review ''Sound & Vision'' was an American magazine, purchased by AVTech Media Ltd. (UK) in March 2018, covering home theater, audio, video and multimedia consumer products. Before 2000, it had been published for most of its history as ''Stereo Review' ...

described it as "a model of energy and vitality without a trace of the phony frenzy or fake hysteria that so many other young singers try to pawn off as high spirits".

Commercial performance

"Old Schoolyard" reached number 33 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, his last top 40 placement there to date. In the UK, it reached number 44, Stevens' last chart appearance there until 2004.

In popular culture

The song was featured in the opening of

Olivia Newton-John Dame Olivia Newton-John (26 September 1948 – 8 August 2022) was a British and Australian singer and actress. With over 100 million records sold, Newton-John was one of the List of best-selling music artists#100 million to 119 million record ...

's 1978 television special ''Olivia''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Remember the Days of the Old Schoolyard Cat Stevens songs Island Records singles 1977 songs 1977 singles