Events

[YACHT ROCK] Blame the Bee Gees for upping the ante on America’s collective falsetto hard-on, but in retrospect, the oft-maligned “Yacht Rock” era produced some damn fine pop music. True, it’s hard not to wince when you play the tape all the way through to its late-stage devolution and the syrupy, adult contemporary crap it helped spawn, but in the 70s and early 80s these smooth crooners made for top notch talent. Not so much a genre unto itself, the Yacht Rock phenom is more about an aesthetic that many credible rockers passed through via production — it’s where the radio hits of Steely Dan and Dan Fogelberg intersect, and much of it has to do with jazzy undertones made more palpable in a watered-down pop setting. And then of course, there are groups like Ambrosia and Little River Band that owe most of their success to the yacht rock zeitgeist. Images of sunshine and boat rides, cocktails and beautiful women hanging all over furry dudes in mirrored sunglasses come to mind. And cocaine — it wouldn’t be yacht rock without copious amounts of cocaine. Just remember to cut the lines below deck, lest those cool breezes become mighty expensive (and the gals mysteriously lose interest, clouds cover the sun and — suddenly — you’re just a chubby dude with bad hair and a boat).

The Yacht Rock Revue has made a successful career for itself by meticulously recreating that breezy-blow feel, and sometimes they’re even joined by a first run artist — as is the case on Friday at the Bear’s Den (inside the Niagara Casino) when Robbie “Steal Away” Dupree spices up the bill.

In case you’re wondering, here’s our Yacht Rock Top Five:

1. Little River Band - Reminiscing

2. Player — Baby Come Back

3. Ambrosia — Biggest Part of Me

4. Robbie Dupree — Steal Away

5. Doobie Brothers — What a Fool Believes