QUICK TAKES - May 9, 2009

A new round of visa problems caused Yusuf Islam, the former Cat Stevens, to miss a scheduled concert in New York City last weekend and prompted the postponement of his appearance Friday on the air at KCRW-FM (89.9).

A spokeswoman for the singer-songwriter said a paperwork snafu delayed approval of his visa but said that it had since been approved and that he would play a showcase Monday night at the El Rey Theatre, as scheduled. While he is in town, he also will perform Wednesday on “The Tonight Show With Jay Leno.” A KCRW spokeswoman said the Santa Monica station hasn’t set a new date for his appearance there.

The El Rey show is chiefly an invitation-only event, and KCRW had been distributing some tickets to its subscribers, but in the wake of the visa problems, station officials stopped the ticket giveaways to the concert, his first in Los Angeles in about three decades.

Yusuf, who uses only his first name professionally, was turned away in 2006 by Homeland Security officers when he attempted to come to Nashville to record a new album because they said his name matched one on the department’s “no-fly” list assembled in the wake of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. He wrote a lighthearted song about the incident titled “Boots and Sand” and has since made several visits to the U.S.

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Randy Lewis