America is an interesting case, as they most certainly qualify as yacht rock (or “west coast” music) despite hailing from merry old England.
The London trio was inspired by Los Angeles-based band Crosby, Stills and Nash and chose their band name because, according to Wikipedia, they “did not want anyone to think they were British musicians trying to sound American.” Which is exactly what they were.
Another week, another batch of smooth soft rock to soothe your weary soul. Yes, my yacht rock series continues.
Not every yacht rock song is by an artist entirely confined by the genre. While it’s hard to think of a Christopher Cross or Michael McDonald outside of this genre, others have spent some time in this world and lived to see another day.
Who but Randy Newman can deliver both laugh out loud funny and hauntingly sad songs with the same finesse?
Today’s SOTD, ‘Same Girl,’ from Newman’s 1983 album Trouble in Paradise, is a somber declaration of love from a pimp to one of his prostitutes. Another thing I love about Newman… he writes songs about things very few artists would ever consider.
John Hiatt is a singer-songwriter worthy of more attention than I’ve ever given him. I own a couple of his albums and know some of his most famous songs (Bonnie Raitt’s ‘Thing Called Love,’ ‘Have a Little Faith’). But I haven’t listened to him, not really.
2000’s Crossing Muddy Waters is one of the Hiatt albums I own. It’s a stripped-down acoustic record of mostly heartbreak songs and though I can’t remember the last time I listened to it (probably the year it came out), sampling its tracks just now I didn’t come across a weak one.
So many yacht rock songs are performed by artists completely alien to me. One- or two-hit wonders who never hit my radar no matter how well I know their songs.
Take ‘I’d Really Love to See You Tonight,’ a song I know quite well. With a gun to my head I could never have come up with England Dan & John Ford Coley as the performers. They sound like characters in a movie about Billy the Kid, not soft rock stars.
Meet Me In Montauk 