The leisure vibes of yacht rock might be too schmaltzy for you. But the smooth groove of this West Coast sound wasn’t limited to the 1970s or early 80s. It returned in the 90s on West Coast hip-hop albums by Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, 2Pac, and others, becoming known as G-funk.

And adult-oriented jazz and R&B can also be found in modern pop and indie rock, as current artists make kitschy sounds cool. While some reject the association, I’ll leave it to others to argue about yacht rock’s usefulness as a category of music.

And who cares if summer’s over? You can feel the cool breeze of these yacht rock (or yacht rock-adjacent) songs any time you wish.

“Sailing” by Christopher Cross

If you’re going to write a yacht rock classic, calling your song “Sailing” is a good place to begin. Christopher Cross’s self-titled debut also features another boat-shoe banger, “Ride Like The Wind”. But the rounded edges of Cross’s songwriting don’t need to be admired with irony. You can hear his influence on the wobbly bedroom pop of Mac DeMarco or the shoulder-pad blues of John Mayer. If you aim for this level of smooth sailing, you’d better have a chorus pedal handy.

And if the wind is right, you can sail away,
And find tranquility.

“I Keep Forgettin’ (Every Time You’re Near)” by Michael McDonald

Regulators, mount up! You don’t get to Warren G and Nate Dogg’s G-funk classic without the original Michael McDonald sample. But what makes “I Keep Forgettin’” so utterly perfect is how McDonald delivers this quiet storm anthem with such an easy croon. This groove isn’t just deep for yacht rock. It may be the hardest soft rock jam in history. Bassist Louis Johnson also played on Michael Jackson’s “Billie Jean”, perfecting the future hypnotic grooves of the G-funk era.

I keep forgetting we’re not in love anymore,
I keep forgetting things will never be the same again.

“Rosanna” by Toto

Toto was formed by prominent session musicians. And the danger of building a band full of shape-shifting virtuosos is that you run the risk of lots of chops without the tunes. But Toto dropped hits like “Rosanna” and “Africa”. Massive choruses, familiar riffs, and sky-high vocals for those who want to belt in their car as long as they’ve rolled up the windows. “Rosanna” begins with Jeff Porcaro’s iconic shuffle. He also played on “Beat It”, so of course, he understood how to handle a big tune. And check out Weezer’s cover, too.

All I wanna do when I wake up in the morning is see your eyes,
Rosanna, Rosanna.

Photo by David Redfern/Redferns