The History Of Yacht Rock

[moecurlythanu]

I've always been more interested in the Underground, or in this case, below the waterline. "Barnacle Rock" they call it.

[Rarebird]

And then there is Sailor. Probably not really luxury yachts, but more ships.

[Trane]

I've always been more interested in the Underground, or in this case, below the waterline. "Barnacle Rock" they call it.

Bathyscaphe Rock??

And then there is Sailor. Probably not really luxury yachts, but more ships.

Cargo rock??

[Firth]

Greg Lee established lyrical appropriateness as needed to qualify music as Yacht Rock. IMO that disqualifies Steely Dan and softer rock in general. In eastern North and South Carolina there is a sub genre mostly focused on music from the 60’s and 70’s called beach music which includes certainly Drifters, Coasters and Temptations. A band called the Embers from Raleigh, NC nails beach music. However having heard the band recently outside on a dock in Morehead City NC, it sounds like they do the beach music thing and added what nails Yacht rock. Great production and sound system there, and beautiful happy evening.

PS: Beach music has to have horns, and the Embers’ fans love BST and pop Chicago.

[Firth]

I feel Doobie Bros should be referred to as Michael McDonald Doobie Brothers in a Yacht rock context. Greg Lee stated as such. That’s the version of the Doobs I hate. Pre-Michael is good with me.

[Firth]

Kokomo is the one Beach Boy tune which is total Yacht rock. Surprised it wasnt mentioned even though it came out in 88.

Should have mentioned that Jim Messina is one engineer who could be called the Yacht engineer. He started the production thing in the 60’s and it was totally influential in Yacht, with Loggins and Messina being totally representative.

[Trane]

I feel Doobie Bros should be referred to as Michael McDonald Doobie Brothers in a Yacht rock context. Greg Lee stated as such. That’s the version of the Doobs I hate. Pre-Michael is good with me.

wwweeeeeellll, I dare say that the previous arrival of Skunk Baxter certainly didn't help, the wine was already seriouisly souring, before MMcD got there.
AFAIAC, I'm quite fine with their first four , but Stampede and Fault Line (love the cover picture, though) are definitely successive steps downwards.

Should have mentioned that Jim Messina is one engineer who could be called the Yacht engineer. He started the production thing in the 60’s and it was totally influential in Yacht, with Loggins and Messina being totally representative.

hence the album cover I posted on #2

[Firth]

I was purveying Yacht rock playlists on Spotify, and “The Cover of Rolling Stone” by Dr Hook came up. Really surprised Dr Hook want mentioned on this episode.

[Firth]

wwweeeeeellll, I dare say that the previous arrival of Skunk Baxter certainly didn't help, the wine was already seriouisly souring, before MMcD got there.
AFAIAC, I'm quite fine with their first four , but Stampede and Fault Line (love the cover picture, though) are definitely successive steps downwards.



hence the album cover I posted on #2

[QUOTE=Trane;1008245]

I saw the Doobs live in 76 with Skunk Baxter. Not Yacht, but that show with Skunk rawked!

[proggy_jazzer]

And then there is Sailor. Probably not really luxury yachts, but more ships.

Only if you pronounce it "Throat Warbler Mangrove".

...a stretch, I know...

[SunRunner2]

wwweeeeeellll, I dare say that the previous arrival of Skunk Baxter certainly didn't help, the wine was already seriouisly souring, before MMcD got there.
AFAIAC, I'm quite fine with their first four , but Stampede and Fault Line (love the cover picture, though) are definitely successive steps downwards.
hence the album cover I posted on #2

I concur with you that the pre-MMD Doobies were better, but I believe that a bold exception to their downturn was "I Cheat The Hangman" from "Stampede", which in my view is the only song by them that displays a "prog" element. Patrick Simmons wrote that excellent number and I didn't even know about it until a few years ago when I heard it on the radio. Man, that thing has an amazing build up and conclusion. To me (not an avid fan of them), that is the odd man out cut for the DB's.

[Trane]

I concur with you that the pre-MMD Doobies were better, but I believe that a bold exception to their downturn was "I Cheat The Hangman" from "Stampede", which in my view is the only song by them that displays a "prog" element. Patrick Simmons wrote that excellent number and I didn't even know about it until a few years ago when I heard it on the radio. Man, that thing has an amazing build up and conclusion. To me (not an avid fan of them), that is the odd man out cut for the DB's.

I'll see your Hangman



and counter you with my Sorcerer

[dgtlman]

Would Al Stewart's Year of the Cat be considered yacht rock?

That song also reminds me of this one... perhaps because they were on the radio all the time back then

[Firth]

I'll see your Hangman



and counter you with my Sorcerer

All put this up against anything the Eagles did:


PS: The HD 5.1 of that record is phenomenal.

[Jerjo]

I know that mainstream yacht rock fans might consider Steely Dan to be part of the genre but other than the smooth vibe of Aja and Gaucho, they couldn't be farther it in terms of lyrics and the music's complexity. Hey Nineteen may sound like yacht rock until you either figure out that the protagonist is one sad bastard or they actually sat down and tried to play it.

[Rick L.]

Maybe Steely Dan is pracht?

[SteveSly]

Yes, a lot of these other bands, the lyrics weren't that taxing. And there's the album version of 'It's A Long Way There' by Little River Band...do they have anything else like that? I know the hits really.

Big Little River Band fan here. They did a song or two that could be considered Yaht Rock I guess with "Cool Change" being the most obvious example, but they were much more than that and put out some great albums. They also were a fantastic live band. All great musicians and they could pull off all of those vocal harmonies live too.

[JJ88]

^Thanks. I don't think they made much impact in the UK. I never saw their albums around that much here. Though 'Reminiscing' was on that 3cd 'Yacht Rock' collection I posted on the previous page. (John Lennon really liked that song, ISTR!)

'Night Owl' is a good, slightly rockier track.

[hwkn]

One band that hasn't been mentioned that is definitely Yacht Rock is Pablo Cruise.

[Sean]

PC is in the show we did.

[SteveSly]

One band that hasn't been mentioned that is definitely Yacht Rock is Pablo Cruise.

Another band that is so much more than they are given credit for. Pablo does the prog:

[Firth]

I know that mainstream yacht rock fans might consider Steely Dan to be part of the genre but other than the smooth vibe of Aja and Gaucho, they couldn't be farther it in terms of lyrics and the music's complexity. Hey Nineteen may sound like yacht rock until you either figure out that the protagonist is one sad bastard or they actually sat down and tried to play it.

I don’t get it myself. It seems that any AOR (76-85) that isn’t Prog, Punk, New Wave, Glam, Folk, Country, Hard or Heavy Metal, is called Yacht

[Trane]

Another band that is so much more than they are given credit for. Pablo does the prog:

I remember high-school mates making fun of the band's albums (name & album artworks), depicting them as "disco", but yeah, they had their proggy moments.

[Firth]

I remember high-school mates making fun of the band's albums (name & album artworks), depicting them as "disco", but yeah, they had their proggy moments.

Disco is not generally considered AOR, it’s usually hit based music and mostly singles. Do you consider Pablo Cruise AOR?

[Trane]

Disco is not generally considered AOR, it’s usually hit based music and mostly singles. Do you consider Pablo Cruise AOR?

maybe I wasn't clear, I actually heard a couple of PC albums back then, and when I mentionned them (schoolmates) about the band, they swiped aside the band as "disco" (based on the criterias I mentionned above), so I let it slide, leaving them as ignorants.
I don't like talking to idiots and arseholes; it educates them.

The band had some interesting facets, and it was unsurprisingly their lengthier numbers that had a slight prog edge

Yeah, I would pigeonhole PC as AOR (the pre-FM rock of the 70's) and even as Yuuuckt Rock