What is "Yacht Rock?"

One of the most recent emerging rock subgenres that have come up go by the name of "yacht rock." While not all yacht rock songs are straightforward "rock" many do have rock elements to them - in particular soft rock.
What Is 'Yacht Rock'? - Rolling Stone

It was only short-lived

 Yacht rock was most popular from the mid 1970s to about the early-mid 1980s. As stated in the opneing paragraphy, yacht rock is characterized by soft rock and is also sometimes referred to as adult-oriented rock. Yacht rock started dying down in the early 80s, but it did pave the way to other, albeit non-rock, genres such as quiet storm and adult contemporary.

Who are some of the popular artists?

 The Doobie Brothers: After Tom Johnston's health failed in 1975, Michael McDonald joined. Starting with their 1976 LP Takin' it to The Streets, the band developed a blue-eyed soul/yacht rock sound curteousy of McDonald. All this peaked with their 1978 album Minute by Minute, featuring the title track and What a Fool Believes, penned by McDonald in collaboration with another yacht rock artist - Kenny Loggins.

Hall&Oates: Daryl Hall and John Oates' late 70s/early 80s sound is one of the most underrated yacht rock sound. The sound was most prominent around the turn of the decade with their cover of the Righteous Brothers' You've Lost That Loving Feeling. It peaked in 1983 with the release of their greatest hits package, Rock and Soul Part 1 featuring the 1984 hit Adult Education.

Rupert Holmes: The one-hitter had a hit in 1979 with Escape(The Pina Colada Song).

Kenny Loggins: As mentioned earlier Loggins  wrote the Dobbies' 1978 hit What a Fool Believes with Michael McDonald. Loggins himself has been known for several light rock songs most noteably his 1979 collaboration with Stevie Nicks Whenever I Call You Friend.

Michael McDonald: McDonald has retained the yacht rock genre throughout his time with the Dobbies and solo. One of the most noteable examples of this is his 1982 hit I Keep Forgetting.

Have Canadians Made Yacht Rock?

 Yacht Rock is really rare beyond the west coast of the US; however, little-known Canadian band The Spoons had hits in the early 80s such as Romantic Traffic (1981) and Old Emotions (1984).

Canadian singer David Roberts also had a hit with The Boys of Autumn.

Is yacht rock prominent in today's music?

 Yacht rock has died down, but there are numerous influences present. Thundercat, of Suicidal Tndencies, released a 2017 album, Drunk, featuring Kenny Loggins and Michael McDonald on the track Show You The Way.

In the summertime, SiriusXM hosts a yacht rock channel. If you're somewhere like the Bay Area or the Pacific Northwest, give the channel a listen during the summer months. I promise you it will be enjoyable.



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