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Yacht Rock Radio Live Nothing but Smooth Breezes Ahead...
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Chicago: The Legendary Band That Perfected the Sound of Yacht Rock admin
Pebbles
I Go Crazy, Paul Davis
To my Baltimoron, I still do and always will. With all my love, your Bostonian. ♥️
Chad
Crosby, Stills & Nash - Southern Cross (Live)
To Casey bear
Terry Slade London
me from starting that feeling - Lou Rawls
Love this brilliant station. Listening west of London here in England . LOVE IT ! 😊
Crosby, Stills & Nash - Southern Cross (Live)
To Casey bear
Terry Slade London
me from starting that feeling - Lou Rawls
Love this brilliant station. Listening west of London here in England . LOVE IT ! 😊
Yacht Rock Christmas Songs: 30 Smooth Holiday Picks
Yacht rock Christmas songs are holiday songs recorded by the artists behind the smooth 1970s and ’80s sound: Michael McDonald, Kenny Loggins, Hall & Oates, Christopher Cross, Chicago, America and their friends. Here is the truth most lists skip: almost none of them cut a Christmas song during the 1976–1984 yacht era. Most of this music comes from holiday albums they made later, from 1987 to 2007. So we split this list into three sets: the era classics, the originals the artists wrote themselves, and the smoothest covers of the standards. Every pick has its year, its album and who wrote it.
Listen to Yacht Rock Radio live, free, 24/7. From November 27, we mix these songs into the regular rotation.
Listen to the Yacht Rock Christmas Playlist
Prefer to let us pick? Press play on Yacht Rock Radio and we’ll keep the holiday mood going all day.
What Our Listeners Request Most at Christmas
Last December, the most requested holiday songs on Yacht Rock Radio were [song 1], [song 2] and [song 3]. [One sentence on a dedication or listener story, with permission.]
Era classics: the holiday songs yacht rock actually had
Very few Christmas songs were cut during the 1976–1984 yacht era. These four are the ones that get played every December, and each has a real story.
1. Celebrate Me Home – Kenny Loggins (1977)
Celebrate Me Home. The title track of Loggins’ first solo album, written with Bob James and produced by Phil Ramone and Bob James. It was never sold as a single, but its opening line about the holidays put it on Christmas radio for good.
2. Please Come Home for Christmas – Eagles (1978)
Non-album single. Charles Brown’s 1960 blues, sung by Don Henley. It reached No. 18 on the Billboard Hot 100. Purists argue about whether the Eagles are yacht or nyacht, but this record lives in every soft rock holiday rotation.
3. Same Old Lang Syne – Dan Fogelberg (1980)
The Innocent Age. Released as a single in November 1980, it reached No. 9. It tells the true story of Fogelberg running into an old girlfriend at a Peoria store on Christmas Eve 1975. Listen for Michael Brecker’s soprano sax playing “Auld Lang Syne” at the fade.
4. Jingle Bell Rock – Hall & Oates (1983)
Non-album single. A cover of Bobby Helms’ 1957 hit, issued in the early ’80s as a promo single with Daryl Hall singing lead on one version and John Oates on the other. Guitarist G.E. Smith plays a grandma in the video.
Deep cuts: Christmas songs the captains wrote themselves
This is the set nobody else lists. When the yacht rock stars made holiday albums, most of them also wrote new songs. These are the originals, with the writers credited.
5. Every Time Christmas Comes Around – Michael McDonald (2001)
In the Spirit: A Christmas Album. Written by McDonald and Marc Harris, with Kirk Whalum on saxophone. It’s the closest thing to a new McDonald soul ballad on any holiday record.
6. On This Night – Michael McDonald (2001)
In the Spirit: A Christmas Album. Co-written with Bernie Chiaravalle and Marc Harris. A quiet, gospel-leaning original from the same album.
7. The Bells of Christmas – Kenny Loggins (1998)
December. Written by Loggins and Steve Wood for his Columbia holiday album December.
8. Angels in the Snow – Kenny Loggins (1998)
December. Written by Kenny Loggins, Julia Loggins and Steve Wood.
9. On Christmas Morning – Kenny Loggins (1998)
December. A Loggins original co-written with David Foster, the producer behind so much late-’70s and ’80s West Coast polish.
10. Christmas in California – America (2002)
Holiday Harmony. Written by Dewey Bunnell and Andrew Gold, who also produced the album. Gold is the man behind the 1977 hit “Lonely Boy”, so this one has real West Coast credentials.
11. A Christmas to Remember – America (2002)
Holiday Harmony. One of three new songs on Holiday Harmony, written by Gerry Beckley and Dewey Bunnell.
12. Winter Holidays – America (2002)
Holiday Harmony. Another Beckley and Bunnell original, with the band’s trademark two-part harmony.
13. Christmas in Kyoto – Michael Franks (2003)
Watching the Snow. Franks wrote every song on Watching the Snow, which came out in Japan in 2003 and in the US in 2004. Pure smooth jazz-pop.
14. I Bought You a Plastic Star (For Your Aluminum Tree) – Michael Franks (2003)
Watching the Snow. The wittiest title on any yacht rock holiday album, and the shortest song on this one.
15. The Way We Celebrate New Year’s – Michael Franks (2003)
Watching the Snow. Six minutes of late-night groove for the end of the season.
16. Home for Christmas – Hall & Oates (2006)
Home for Christmas. The title track, written by Daryl Hall, Greg Bieck and Tom “T-Bone” Wolk.
17. No Child Should Ever Cry on Christmas – Hall & Oates (2006)
Home for Christmas. A John Oates original from the same album.
18. Does It Feel Like Christmas – Christopher Cross (2007)
A Christopher Cross Christmas. Written with Cross’s longtime partner Rob Meurer. Michael Omartian, who produced Cross’s 1979 debut, plays on the album.
19. A Dream of Peace at Christmastime – Christopher Cross (2007)
A Christopher Cross Christmas. The second Cross and Meurer original on the record. The album was reissued on CD and vinyl in 2024.
20. The Eyes of a Child – Air Supply (1987)
The Christmas Album. One of two originals on Air Supply’s 1987 Arista holiday album.
21. Child’s Prayer – Chicago (1998)
Chicago XXV: The Christmas Album. The only original on Chicago XXV, written by trumpeter Lee Loughnane and John Durrill.
Smooth covers: holiday standards, yacht rock style
Familiar carols and standards, played by the same people who made the 1970s and ’80s hits. These are the ones that fit between Steely Dan and Toto without a bump.
22. White Christmas / Winter Wonderland – Michael McDonald (2001)
In the Spirit: A Christmas Album. A medley with Jonny Lang on guitar. McDonald later made a second holiday album, Through the Many Winters (2005).
23. Walking in the Air – Kenny Loggins (1998)
December. Howard Blake’s song from The Snowman opens the December album.
24. Christmas Time Is Here – Kenny Loggins (1998)
December. Vince Guaraldi’s Peanuts theme, slowed down and sung.
25. Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow! – Chicago (1998)
Chicago XXV: The Christmas Album. The 1998 album was produced by Roy Bittan of the E Street Band, and the horns are all Chicago.
26. This Christmas – Chicago (2003)
What’s It Gonna Be, Santa?. Added when Chicago XXV was reissued in 2003 with six new tracks produced by Phil Ramone, the same producer behind “Celebrate Me Home”.
27. Deck the Halls – Peter Cetera (2004)
You Just Gotta Love Christmas. Chicago’s former voice, with Alison Krauss on backing vocals.
28. Blue Christmas – Peter Cetera (2004)
You Just Gotta Love Christmas. Sung with his daughter Claire Cetera.
29. I’ll Be Home for Christmas – Christopher Cross (2007)
A Christopher Cross Christmas. Cross produced the album himself, and it sounds like a warm, late-night take on the standard.
30. White Christmas – Air Supply (1987)
The Christmas Album. The opener of Air Supply’s holiday album, and a staple of soft rock Christmas radio.
Yacht Rock Christmas Songs at a Glance
| # | Song | Artist | Year | Album |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Celebrate Me Home | Kenny Loggins | 1977 | Celebrate Me Home |
| 2 | Please Come Home for Christmas | Eagles | 1978 | Non-album single |
| 3 | Same Old Lang Syne | Dan Fogelberg | 1980 | The Innocent Age |
| 4 | Jingle Bell Rock | Hall & Oates | 1983 | Non-album single |
| 5 | Every Time Christmas Comes Around | Michael McDonald | 2001 | In the Spirit: A Christmas Album |
| 6 | On This Night | Michael McDonald | 2001 | In the Spirit: A Christmas Album |
| 7 | The Bells of Christmas | Kenny Loggins | 1998 | December |
| 8 | Angels in the Snow | Kenny Loggins | 1998 | December |
| 9 | On Christmas Morning | Kenny Loggins | 1998 | December |
| 10 | Christmas in California | America | 2002 | Holiday Harmony |
| 11 | A Christmas to Remember | America | 2002 | Holiday Harmony |
| 12 | Winter Holidays | America | 2002 | Holiday Harmony |
| 13 | Christmas in Kyoto | Michael Franks | 2003 | Watching the Snow |
| 14 | I Bought You a Plastic Star (For Your Aluminum Tree) | Michael Franks | 2003 | Watching the Snow |
| 15 | The Way We Celebrate New Year’s | Michael Franks | 2003 | Watching the Snow |
| 16 | Home for Christmas | Hall & Oates | 2006 | Home for Christmas |
| 17 | No Child Should Ever Cry on Christmas | Hall & Oates | 2006 | Home for Christmas |
| 18 | Does It Feel Like Christmas | Christopher Cross | 2007 | A Christopher Cross Christmas |
| 19 | A Dream of Peace at Christmastime | Christopher Cross | 2007 | A Christopher Cross Christmas |
| 20 | The Eyes of a Child | Air Supply | 1987 | The Christmas Album |
| 21 | Child’s Prayer | Chicago | 1998 | Chicago XXV: The Christmas Album |
| 22 | White Christmas / Winter Wonderland | Michael McDonald | 2001 | In the Spirit: A Christmas Album |
| 23 | Walking in the Air | Kenny Loggins | 1998 | December |
| 24 | Christmas Time Is Here | Kenny Loggins | 1998 | December |
| 25 | Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow! | Chicago | 1998 | Chicago XXV: The Christmas Album |
| 26 | This Christmas | Chicago | 2003 | What’s It Gonna Be, Santa? |
| 27 | Deck the Halls | Peter Cetera | 2004 | You Just Gotta Love Christmas |
| 28 | Blue Christmas | Peter Cetera | 2004 | You Just Gotta Love Christmas |
| 29 | I’ll Be Home for Christmas | Christopher Cross | 2007 | A Christopher Cross Christmas |
| 30 | White Christmas | Air Supply | 1987 | The Christmas Album |
Yacht Rock Christmas FAQ
Are there any real yacht rock Christmas songs?
A few. “Celebrate Me Home” (1977), the Eagles’ “Please Come Home for Christmas” (1978), “Same Old Lang Syne” (1980) and Hall & Oates’ “Jingle Bell Rock” (early 1980s) come from the yacht era. Most other yacht rock Christmas music comes from holiday albums the same artists made between 1987 and 2007.
Is “Celebrate Me Home” a Christmas song?
It wasn’t written as one. Kenny Loggins released it in 1977 as the title track of his first solo album, but its opening line mentions the holidays, so radio stations play it every Christmas season.
Which yacht rock artists made Christmas albums?
Air Supply (1987), Kenny Loggins (December, 1998), Chicago (1998, expanded in 2003), Michael McDonald (2001 and 2005), America (2002), Michael Franks (2003), Peter Cetera (2004), Hall & Oates (2006) and Christopher Cross (2007).
Where can I listen to yacht rock Christmas music for free?
Press play on Yacht Rock Radio at yachtrock.radio. It streams free, 24/7, with no subscription, on the web and in the iOS and Android apps.
More Yacht Rock
- The 50 best yacht rock songs of all time
- The yacht rock playlist [once it is live]
- What is yacht rock?
- Michael McDonald songs and story
How We Picked These Songs
[Curator name] built this list from [X years] of programming Yacht Rock Radio. We checked every year, album and songwriting credit against the original album credits. We left out songs that are only soft rock, and we flagged the ones purists argue about. Think we missed one? [Tell us at contact email or on X @YachtRockRadios].
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