Artist formerly known as Cat Stevens releases new album

NEW YORK – Yusuf, the artist formerly known as Cat Stevens, doesn’t bear any grudges about being denied entry into the U.S. five years ago. He’s responded to the widely publicized episode with a whimsical new song, “Boots and Sand,” with a music video that he likens to “a spaghetti Italian cowboy movie.”

Yusuf got a little help from his friends — Paul McCartney, Dolly Parton, Alison Krauss, and Terry Sylvester (formerly of the Hollies) — who sing backup vocals on the recording that features a guitar and mandolin backdrop. (They do not appear in the music video.)