48 Fun Facts About Yacht Rock

The term 'yacht rock' was coined in 2005 by the makers of what?

The term came from Yacht Rock, an online comedy video series J. D. Ryznar and friends made for Channel 101 in 2005; its characters call the music 'smooth music'.

Roughly which years does the music retroactively labelled yacht rock come from?

Yacht rock covers music from roughly 1975 to 1984, a period when it was marketed as adult-oriented rock or the West Coast sound.

Which 1979 Christopher Cross track is held up as the genre's anthem?

'Sailing', from Cross's self-titled debut album, topped the Billboard Hot 100 in August 1980 and is the song most often cited as the quintessential yacht rock track.

Christopher Cross was the first artist to do what at a single Grammy ceremony?

He took Record, Album and Song of the Year plus Best New Artist at the 23rd Grammys in 1981.

Kenny Loggins first released 'What a Fool Believes', co-written with Michael McDonald, on which 1978 album?

Loggins's own version appeared on his 1978 album Nightwatch; the Doobie Brothers' recording, released months later, went to number one and won two Grammys.

Which two Grammy Awards did 'What a Fool Believes' win in 1980?

The Doobie Brothers' 'What a Fool Believes' won Record of the Year and Song of the Year at the 22nd Grammy Awards in February 1980, with writers Loggins and McDonald sharing the songwriting prize.

What did the Yacht Rock creators call the genre's hallmark upbeat rhythm?

The creators dubbed the genre's bouncy groove 'the Doobie Bounce', after the Doobie Brothers' 'What a Fool Believes'; other tells include electric piano and elite L.A. session players.

What term did the Yacht Rock creators invent in 2016 for songs wrongly labelled as part of the genre?

'Nyacht' is the creators' label for songs wrongly called yacht rock; they coined it on their 2016 podcast Beyond Yacht Rock, which rates songs on the 'Yachtski Scale'.

Which Christopher Cross song won the Academy Award for Best Original Song for a 1981 film?

'Arthur's Theme (Best That You Can Do)', co-written by Cross, Burt Bacharach, Carole Bayer Sager and Peter Allen for the 1981 film Arthur, won the Academy Award for Best Original Song.

Steely Dan is named after an object in which William S. Burroughs novel?

The name comes from 'Steely Dan III from Yokohama', a steam-powered sex toy in Burroughs's 1959 novel Naked Lunch; Beat fans Fagen and Becker met at Bard College.

Which 2000 Steely Dan comeback album won the Album of the Year Grammy?

Two Against Nature, Steely Dan's first studio album since 1980's Gaucho, won Album of the Year at the 43rd Grammy Awards in 2001.

Which jazz saxophonist solos on the title track of Steely Dan's Aja?

Wayne Shorter, of Weather Report and Miles Davis's quintet, plays the tenor sax solo on 'Aja'; Steve Gadd's drumming on the same track is equally celebrated.

Michael McDonald's multi-tracked backing vocals are heard on which Steely Dan single from Aja?

McDonald stacked the harmony vocals on 'Peg', the 1977 single from Aja; Jay Graydon's guitar solo was kept after several other players had tried the part.

Which Toto song was the band's first and only Billboard Hot 100 number one?

'Africa' reached number one on the Hot 100 in February 1983, Toto's only chart-topper; 'Rosanna' had stalled at number two for five weeks but won Record of the Year.

How many Grammy Awards did Toto IV win in 1983?

Toto IV took six Grammys at the 1983 ceremony, including Album of the Year, Record of the Year for 'Rosanna' and Producer of the Year for the band.

Toto let people believe their 1982 hit was about which actress, then dating Steve Porcaro?

Rosanna Arquette was dating keyboardist Steve Porcaro, and the band let fans assume 'Rosanna' was about her; the song is also famed for Jeff Porcaro's half-time shuffle.

Which Michael Jackson hit did Toto's Steve Porcaro co-write?

'Human Nature', written by Steve Porcaro with lyricist John Bettis, reached Quincy Jones on a demo tape and became a Top 10 single from Thriller in 1983.

Bassist David Hungate explained his band's name via which Latin phrase?

Bassist David Hungate said the name came from the Latin 'in toto', meaning 'in all' or 'all-encompassing', though Jeff Porcaro had first written 'Toto' on demo tapes after the Wizard of Oz dog.

The Doobie Brothers' Minute by Minute spent five weeks at number one and won which Grammy?

Minute by Minute won Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group at the 22nd Grammys in 1980, the peak of the McDonald-era Doobies before the band split in 1982.

Which of these Doobie Brothers hits predates Michael McDonald and is not yacht rock?

'Black Water' topped the Hot 100 in March 1975, weeks before McDonald joined the band that April; the other three come from his smoother, yacht-friendly era.

Michael McDonald's 'Yah Mo B There' won a Grammy as a duet with which singer?

'Yah Mo B There', the 1983 duet by James Ingram and Michael McDonald co-written with Quincy Jones and Rod Temperton, won Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal at the 1985 Grammys.

Which 1994 rap hit is built on a sample of Michael McDonald's 'I Keep Forgettin''?

'Regulate', Warren G and Nate Dogg's 1994 hit, is built on McDonald's 1982 single 'I Keep Forgettin''; Leiber and Stoller share McDonald's writing credit because it resembled their 1962 Chuck Jackson song.

Before going solo, Kenny Loggins was half of a duo with which musician?

Jim Messina, formerly of Buffalo Springfield and Poco, teamed with Loggins in 1971; Loggins and Messina had hits such as 'Your Mama Don't Dance' before splitting in 1976.

What is Kenny Loggins's only solo number one on the Billboard Hot 100?

'Footloose', the title song from the 1984 film, spent three weeks at number one on the Hot 100 and earned Loggins an Oscar nomination; 'Danger Zone' peaked at number two in 1986.

Kenny Loggins's run of soundtrack hits began with 'I'm Alright' from which film?

'I'm Alright' was the theme for the 1980 golf comedy Caddyshack and reached number seven on the Hot 100, the first of Loggins's soundtrack hits that continued with Footloose and Top Gun.

Daryl Hall and John Oates met as students at which Philadelphia university?

Daryl Hall and John Oates met in 1967 as Temple University students, sharing a service elevator while fleeing a fight at a Philadelphia record hop; they formed their duo in 1970.

Which of these was NOT one of Hall & Oates's six Billboard number ones?

'She's Gone' peaked at number seven on its 1976 reissue; the six number ones were 'Rich Girl', 'Kiss on My List', 'Private Eyes', 'I Can't Go for That', 'Maneater' and 'Out of Touch'.

Rupert Holmes's 'Escape (The Piña Colada Song)' comes from which 1979 album?

'Escape' is the closing track of Partners in Crime, Holmes's 1979 album, and reached number one in December 1979; Holmes later won two Tony Awards for The Mystery of Edwin Drood.

In 'Escape (The Piña Colada Song)', where does the narrator find the woman's ad?

The narrator finds the ad in the newspaper personals column and replies with one of his own; the twist is that the woman who turns up at O'Malley's bar is his own partner.

Who played the famous saxophone riff on Gerry Rafferty's 'Baker Street'?

Session player Raphael Ravenscroft played the sax hook on 'Baker Street' (1978); Rafferty said the line was written for guitar on his demo, though Ravenscroft claimed he devised it; a persistent myth credits quiz host Bob Holness.

Gerry Rafferty had earlier co-founded which band, of 'Stuck in the Middle with You' fame?

Rafferty formed Stealers Wheel with Joe Egan in Paisley in 1972; 'Stuck in the Middle with You' reached the US top ten in 1973, five years before his solo hit 'Baker Street'.

Boz Scaggs's 1976 breakthrough album Silk Degrees produced which two hit singles?

Silk Degrees yielded 'Lowdown', which reached number three and won the Grammy for Best R&B Song, and 'Lido Shuffle', a number 11 hit in 1977; Scaggs had earlier played in the Steve Miller Band.

Which 1978 single from Bobby Caldwell's debut album became his signature song?

'What You Won't Do for Love', from Caldwell's self-titled 1978 debut album, reached number nine on the Hot 100 and was later sampled by 2Pac on 'Do for Love'.

Which L.A. band had top-five hits with 'How Much I Feel' and 'Biggest Part of Me'?

Ambrosia, formed in Los Angeles in 1970, took 'How Much I Feel' (1978) and 'Biggest Part of Me' (1980) to number three; the band had five top-40 singles between 1975 and 1980.

'Baby Come Back' was a 1978 number one for which band?

Player's 'Baby Come Back', written by members Peter Beckett and J.C. Crowley, spent three weeks at number one in January 1978, while the band was opening tours for Boz Scaggs.

Little River Band, whose 'Reminiscing' reached number three in the US, formed in which country?

Little River Band formed in Melbourne, Australia, in March 1975, taking their name from a road sign for the Victorian town of Little River; 'Reminiscing' (1978) was the biggest of their ten Billboard top-20 singles.

England Dan & John Ford Coley's biggest hit, a 1976 number two, was what?

'I'd Really Love to See You Tonight', written by Parker McGee, reached number two on the Hot 100 in 1976 and went gold; the Dallas-born duo's Dan Seals later had a string of country hits.

George Benson's triple-platinum 1976 album, which topped the Billboard album chart, was called what?

Breezin', produced by Tommy LiPuma, topped the Billboard 200 in 1976 and went triple platinum; its one vocal track, Leon Russell's 'This Masquerade', won the Record of the Year Grammy.

Al Jarreau sang the theme song for which 1980s TV series?

Jarreau sang the theme for Moonlighting, the 1985-89 ABC series starring Cybill Shepherd and Bruce Willis; the song reached the Hot 100 in 1987. He won seven Grammys in all.

Bill Champlin sang lead on which Chicago hit of the 1980s?

Champlin shares lead vocals with Peter Cetera on 'Hard Habit to Break' (1984); he joined Chicago in 1981 and later fronted 'Look Away' and 'I Don't Wanna Live Without Your Love'.

In the Yacht Rock web series, who plays Christopher Cross as a naive, timid hayseed?

Justin Roiland, who went on to co-create Rick and Morty, played Christopher Cross in the Channel 101 web series as a wide-eyed hayseed; series creator J. D. Ryznar played Michael McDonald.

Which actor played Kevin Bacon in the eleventh episode of the Yacht Rock web series?

Jason Lee, star of My Name Is Earl, played Kevin Bacon in episode 11 of Yacht Rock, which premiered at the Knitting Factory in New York on December 27, 2007.

Which musician credited the Yacht Rock web series with rekindling interest in his duo among younger fans?

John Oates, whom the series casts as Hall & Oates's foul-mouthed bully, said the Yacht Rock videos introduced the duo's music to a younger audience; Daryl Hall is played as his meek partner.

Fred Armisen and Bill Hader spoofed the genre on Documentary Now! as which fictional band?

The Blue Jean Committee, played by Armisen and Hader in the 2015 episode 'Gentle and Soft', parodied 1970s soft rock; Armisen also wrote the foreword to Greg Prato's 2018 oral history The Yacht Rock Book.

What is the title of the 2024 HBO documentary about the genre?

Yacht Rock: A Dockumentary, directed by Garrett Price and released by HBO in 2024, traces the genre's origins and leans heavily on the Channel 101 web series that named it.

Yacht Rock Revue, one of the best-known tribute bands, formed in 2007 in which city?

Yacht Rock Revue formed in Atlanta in 2007, growing out of a one-off 1970s-themed club night, and became a nationally touring act; Young Gun Silver Fox are from London and Yachtley Crew from Los Angeles.

Which songwriter wrote Captain & Tennille's 1975 number one 'Love Will Keep Us Together'?

Neil Sedaka wrote 'Love Will Keep Us Together' with Howard Greenfield and recorded it himself in 1973; Captain & Tennille's 1975 version topped the Hot 100 and won the Record of the Year Grammy.

Which instrumental by Canadian Frank Mills reached number three on the Hot 100 in 1979?

'Music Box Dancer', a piano instrumental Mills had recorded in 1974, became a Canadian hit in late 1978 and reached number three on the Hot 100 in 1979 after its US release.