Yacht rock (originally known as the West Coast Sound or adult-oriented rock) is a broad music style and aesthetic identified with soft rock. Yacht rock was one of the commercially successful genres of its era, existing between the late 1970s and early 1980s. Drawing on sources such as smooth soul, smooth jazz, R&B, funk, and disco, common stylistic traits include high-quality production, clean vocals, and a focus on light, catchy melodies. Initially used pejoratively, its name was derived from its association with the popular Southern Californian leisure activity of sailing.
Video Yacht rock
History and definition
AllMusic's Matt Colier identifies the "key defining rules of the genre" as follows:
- "keep it smooth, even when it grooves, with more emphasis on the melody than on the beat"
- "keep the emotions light, even when the sentiment turns sad (as is so often the case in the world of the sensitive yacht-rocksman)"
- "always keep it catchy, no matter how modest or deeply buried in the tracklist the tune happens to be."
The term "yacht rock" did not exist while the genre was active. Initially described as "adult-oriented rock" or the "West Coast Sound", yacht rock music existed roughly between the years 1975-82 or 1976-84. "Yacht rock" was coined in 2005 with the online video series of the same name created by J.D. Ryznar. It was originally termed as a pejorative, although its stigma has lessened in later years. Ryznar states that he intended it to refer to the "more elite studio artists" of the period. Some of the most popular acts included Hall & Oates, Michael McDonald, Kenny Loggins, Steely Dan and Toto. In part, "yacht rock" refers to the stereotype of the yuppie yacht owner, enjoying smooth music while out for a sail. Additionally, since sailing was a popular leisure activity in Southern California, many "yacht rockers" made nautical references in their lyrics, videos, and album artwork, particularly the anthemic track "Sailing" by Christopher Cross.
Jacobin's Dan O'Sullivan traces the roots of yacht rock to the music of the Beach Boys, whose aesthetic was the first to be "scavenged" by acts like Rupert Holmes. Captain & Tennille, who were members of the Beach Boys' live band, won "yacht rock's first Best Record Grammy" in 1975, for "Love Will Keep Us Together". O'Sullivan also cites the Beach Boys' recording of "Sloop John B" as the origin point of yacht rock's predilection for the "sailors and beachgoers" aesthetic that was "lifted by everyone, from Christopher Cross to Eric Carmen, from 'Buffalo Springfield' folksters like Jim Messina to 'Philly Sound' rockers like Hall & Oates." According to Mara Schwartz Kuge, who worked in the LA music industry for two decades: "Soft rock was a genre of very popular pop music from the '70s and early '80s, characterized by soft, mostly acoustic guitars and slow-to-mid tempos ... most people have generalized the term to mean anything kind of soft-and-'70s-ish, including artists like Rupert Holmes. Not all yacht rock is soft, either: Toto's 'Hold the Line' and Kenny Loggins' 'Footloose' are both very yacht rock but not soft rock."
Maps Yacht rock
List of artists
References
External links
- Yacht or Nyacht - list of bonafide yacht rock songs as evaluated by the creators of Yacht Rock. Songs rated 50 and above are Yacht Rock, songs rated 49.99 and below are nyacht.
Source of article : Wikipedia
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