Best Yacht Rock Song episode artwork

EPISODE · Jul 21, 2026 · 47 MIN

Best Yacht Rock Song

from Great Pop Culture Debate

“Yacht rock” as a term dates to the early 2000s, but the music it describes lives squarely in the late 1970s and early 80s. We’re talking the smooth sounds of summer, a little bit jazz, a touch of funk, a generous dollop of soulful crooning, all undercut by rock instrumentation by some of the grooviest white guys in the biz. You don’t have to be on a boat to enjoy yacht rock. It’s the perfect summer soundtrack no matter where you are. So join the Great Pop Culture Debate for one of our 2026 Summer Specials as we say ALL ABOARD and attempt to name the best Yacht Rock Song of all time.Songs discussed: “Africa” by TOTO, “Peg” by Steely Dan, “How Long” by Ace, “Ride Like the Wind” by Christopher Cross, “This Is It” by Kenny Loggins, “Steal Away” by Robbie Dupree, “Lido Shuffle” by Boz Scaggs, “All Out of Love” by Air Supply, “What a Fool Believes” by The Doobie Brothers, “Escape (The Pina Colada Song)” by Rupert Holmes, “Baker Street” by Gerry Rafferty, “Saturday in the Park” by Chicago, “Can’t Fight This Feeling” by REO Speedwagon, “I Keep Forgettin’” by Michael McDonald, “You Make My Dreams (Come True)” by Hall & Oates, “Baby Come Back” by PlayerJoin host Eric Rezsnyak and GPCD Panelists Derek Mekita, Jonny Minogue, and Kate Racculia as they discuss and debate 16 of the smoothest jazz-rock jams from the 70s and 80s.For the warm-up to this episode, in which we discuss additional yacht-rock gems that didn’t make the bracket, become a Patreon supporter of the podcast today. IG: https://www.instagram.com/greatpopculturedebate/Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/gpcd.bsky.socialWebsite: https://www.greatpopculturedebate.com/Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/greatpopculturedebateEPISODE CREDITS:Host: Eric RezsnyakPanelists: Derek Mekita, Jonny Minogue, Kate RacculiaProducer: Bob ErlenbackEditor: Bob ErlenbackIntro/Outro Music: "Dance to My Tune" by Marc Torch#yachtrock #yacht #70smusic #80smusic #jazz #softrock #jazzrockfusion #toto #chicago #kennyloggins #doobiebrothers #michaelmcdonald #reospeedwagon #steelydan #christophercross #gerryrafferty #hallandoates #bozscaggs #podcast #popculture #debate #bestof #podcasts #music #movies #film #books #comics #television #tv #lgbtq #lgbt #nostalgia #geek #nerd #culture #greatestSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

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Best Yacht Rock Song

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