re: Yacht Rock: A Dockumentary • Now on Max

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Pretty sure I know the genre.

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If you watch the documentary you’ll see why the originators of the Yacht Rock fandom (and who coined the term) consider Steely Dan as the starting point. No one is equating Steely Dan to Christopher Cross or the later Doobie Brothers, but their shared DNA is fact.

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Stevie Ray Vaughn’s iconic ‘Number One’ Stratocaster was originally owned by Christopher Cross.

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Cross discussing his history as a weed dealer and writing songs on acid was pretty funny.

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Hall &Oats is quintessential pop and fits perfectly in to to the Yacht Rock genre.

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Yatch Rock is the West Coast/LA sound. It has a definite vibe, was mostly (purest would said must have been) recorded in LA and technically proficient more lurid lyrics about failed romance and boredom. Others will say it should have certain players, the Pocaro’s and other guys that formed Toto and of course Kenny Loggins and Michael McDonald. Hall and Oates doesn’t fit, great pop, light rock group but not Yatch Rock

The X factor here is Michael McDonald. Calling Steely Dan WITHOUT MM yacht rock is the same as calling Doobie Brothers without MM yacht rock- he is the architect of the sound. And neither band was anywhere remotely resembling yacht rock before/after him. It's crazy how prolific he was in the late 70s/early 80s. Singing with Christopher Cross, Toto, Steely Dan, Doobie Brothers...the list goes on.

I LOVE the sound and have for years. Strangely, my all-time favorite band is Ambrosia. They were deemed more progressive rock back then, but they are right in this wheelhouse. I'd say Hall & Oates slicker, more polished albums from the early 80s fit the category as well.

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originators of the Yacht Rock fandom (and who coined the term) consider Steely Dan as the starting point

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Strangely, my all-time favorite band is Ambrosia.

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Love Ambrosia. David Pack's vocals are incredible.

Great Doc. Learn a lot, especially how influential session players were.

Was listening to Hey Nineteen this morning, and that light, poppy background beat is exactly what other producers were trying to copy from Steely Dan, but none of the knock-offs (while good songs) had that edge that made Becker and Fagan so unique and difficult to categorize.

watched it and really enjoyed it. Bands like Hall and Oates and Player were explictly considered NOT Yacht Rock due to the non California vibe. The Eagles (I loosely consider them to be YR) were also not a part of the stated genre of the show. MM being in every band and Toto being such outstanding musicians and therefore on EVERYONE'S albums was cool to see. Those session players are freaking incredible.

I was bummed they didn't go to Gerry Rafferty, "Baker Street" and "Right Down the Line"

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Daryl Hall, Bobby Caldwell, Boz Scaggs, maybe some Bee Gees...

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Wha? That's pretty much just a random assortment of musicians.

I absolutely loved it, right up until they tried to make the pitch that Yacht Rock became so popular because it was the first generation where men could emote through song. Ya know, get in touch with their feelings.

Even after they had mostly amplified songs of that era that wasnt portraying the effeminate side of manhood

Africa
Sailing
Ride Like the Wind
What a Fool Believes
Peg
Maneater
Gimme the Night
Moonlight Feels Right
Brandy
Minute by Minute
I’d Really Love to See You Tonight
Best That You Can Do
Rich Girl