yacht rock

[ yot rok ]

noun

1. a loosely defined style of smooth music influenced by jazz and rhythm and blues, and associated with the American soft rock of the 1970s and 1980s: perceived as having a natural affinity with sailing or relaxing on a boat.

Word History and Origins

Origin of yacht rock¹

Coined in 2005 by U.S. writer and filmmaker J. D. Ryznar

Example Sentences

Webster’s laid-back sound, which prominently features pedal steel and saxophone, lives somewhere between Southern soul and West Coast yacht rock; here, she and her band stayed thoroughly dialed-in even as Webster directed crew members to several people in the audience in apparent need of medical attention.

From Los Angeles Times

Train opened the final two shows of the tour with REO Speedwagon’s “Keep on Loving You”; Yacht Rock Revue, which was on hand for the final dates, covered REO’s “Roll With the Changes” in its set.

From Los Angeles Times

"We had a great conversation about whether 'dad rock' or 'yacht rock' are insulting terms for the genre or not."

From Salon

The governor of California and possible future First Gentleman noticed that Latchkey has a genre section cheekily named "Soft/Dad/Yacht Rock."

From Salon

"We had a great conversation about whether 'dad rock' or 'yacht rock' are insulting terms for the genre or not," Marc said.

From Salon