With Summer weather upon us in North America, leisurely water sports such as tubing, boating, kayaking and canoeing are enjoyed by friends, family and people alike. Self care is needed more than ever considering increased environmental stressors impeding our collective biopsychosocial model affecting many with psychological and physiological complaints. So unwind and boost your dopamine production; put on your sunscreen, protective clothing, bathing costumes or bare bottoms and float, boat, tube and/or swim to 5 yacht rock feeling songs shared by The Weekend Family Music Hour.
“Feels Like the Sun,” by Donnie and Joe Emerson
Donnie and Joe Emerson are musical siblings born in Fruitland, Washington (population 751) and raised on a 1600 acre rural farm. Donnie wrote his first song at the age of nine after being influenced by music on an AM/FM radio built in on a tractor their father bought, inspiring one of the greatest infamous yacht rock albums of all time, Dreamin’ Wild (Enterprise & Co. 1979). Dreamin’ Wild was recorded in a professional home recording studio built by their father who obtained a 100,000 loan from a bank after being impressed by Donnie (17 yrs old) and Joe’s (19 yrs old) musical talents (Guardian 2014).
“River,” by Terry Reid
Terrance James Reid is an English musician, rock guitarist and songwriter who began his career at the age of 15 after leaving school. Reid was recruited by Peter Jay and the Jaywalkers after playing for a local band, The RedBeats. The Jaywalkers became known after they became the opening band for The Rolling Stones 1966 tour where the band was advised to sign up with UK Columbia Records a division of EMI where they released their first single “The Hand Don’t Fit the Glove,” in 1967. The Jaywalkers disbanded shortly after their single was released. Reid recorded River in 1973 with David Lindley, Lee Miles and Alan White plus Conrad Isidore on drums with percussion by Willie Bobo (wiki).
“American Sunset,” by Jack Adkins
Jack Adkins originally from California released his American Sunset album in 1984 on private press, Boink Records. Adkins is a multifaceted musician who plays synthesizer, keyboard, bass, guitar plus other stringed instruments starting in the 1980’s who toured playing at smaller music venues in the US incessantly (Cultureboof). American Sunset, is the perfect synth country folk soundtrack for canoeing, kayaking on the Columbia River or lounging in an inner tube floating in the pool or drifting downstream when the sun sets, “with melancholy finality.”
“Tokyo Harbor Line,” by Shigeru Suzuki
Shigeru Suzuki is a Japanese songwriter, guitarist and musician who was known by his first prominent band from the 1970’s, Happy End. Suzuki played psychedelic and avant garde rock with band members; Haruomi Hosono, Taskahasi Matsumoto and Elichi Otahki. Suzuki began his solo career in the mid 1970’s releasing his yacht rock albums Lagoon and Telescope plus collaborating with Haruomi Hosono and Tatsuro Yamashita on Pacific. His album, Band Wagon (1975) was recorded in Los Angeles, with accompaniment by members from Little Feat, Santana and Sly and the Family Stone (Wiki). Suzuki embraced the “yacht rock” sound from the late 1970s to the 1980s particularly on his 1978 album, Caution! With his song, “Summer Wine,” faintly resembling the melody of “Summer Breeze,” a well known yacht rock song classic by Seals and Croft.
“Where the Wind Blows,” by Eric Kol
Eric Kol began his music career in early 1965 inspired by Otis Redding and others playing on instruments available to him from a British library and later receiving access to EMI studios in Lagos, Nigeria. Kol being a guitarist, composed and wrote all songs on, Today (originally released by Tabansi) and worked with studio musicians to perfect his masterpiece album (BBE). “Where the Wind Blows,” provides summer time listeners with a sense of calm who are leisurely yachting, boating, canoeing, kayaking and floating “Where the Wind Blows.”
Written by Karen Lee (DJ Cozy Mittens). Tune in to Weekend Family Music Hour biweekly Sat 10 am to 12 pm on Freeform Portland.