Matthew and Son is the first studio album by English singer-songwriter Cat Stevens . Stevens began writing songs during his early teenage years. His earliest influences included the sound of early British bands, such as The Rolling Stones and The Beatles , influenced by popular American R&B music. At the same time, folk influences from artists such as Bob Dylan and Simon And Garfunkel left a strong mark on him, along with some of the musicals being performed so close to his childhood home in Soho that he could often hear them drifting through his room.