Lineup

Kenny Loggins’ career hasn’t just been long – it’s been omnipresent. From “This Is It” to “I’m Alright” to “Danger Zone.” Loggins has put his talented stamp on decades of great music.

Perhaps best known for “Footloose,” the No. 1 smash from the 1984 film, Loggins’ ability to capture a film’s heartbeat earned him the moniker “the King of Movie Soundtracks,” a title bolstered by a string of era-defining hits. His work on the Footloose title track secured an Academy Award nomination for Best Original Song, a feat he repeated with the soaring “For the First Time” from the 1996 film One Fine Day. From the high-octane energy of Top Gun and Caddyshack to his contributions to A Star Is Born and Top Gun: Maverick.

The public first came to know him as part of the country-rock duo Loggins & Messina, he wrote the classic hits “Danny’s Song,” “House at Pooh Corner” and “A Love Song,” and co-wrote “Your Mama Don’t Dance.” By the time the duo split in 1976, they had released six albums that sold over 16 million copies.

And, now, Loggins has been anointed as one of the kingpins of Yacht Rock music. We are thrilled to have him lead The Yacht Rock Cruise’s first sailing.

American singer, songwriter and guitar warrior, William Royce “Boz” Scaggs, became a household name as a member of the Steve Miller Band and award-laden solo career.

After a short stint as a bandmate of Steve Miller, Boz began his solo career and hit the charts with singles “Lido Shuffle” and “Lowdown,” from album Silk Degrees, and followed it up with two more platinum-certified albums.

Boz spent a large portion of the ’80s in a hiatus, but returned to recording and touring in 1988, even opening a popular music venue in San Francisco. His touring and recording has lasted for several decades, cementing his role as a guitar legend. He’s even credited with helping the formation of Toto. His friendship with former-bandmate-turned-Toto has continued for decades, resulting in collaborations and concerts performed together.

Little River Band was formed in Melbourne, Australia in 1975. It was originally a blend of musicians who had enjoyed success in other Australian acts. Their new focus was to get airplay on American radio, and they achieved that goal with good songwriting, powerful vocals and guitar harmonies. They immediately claimed their place as one of the great vocal bands of the ‘70s and ‘80s.

Between 1976 and 1983, chart success in America included the following singles: “It’s a Long Way There,” “Help Is on Its Way,” “Happy Anniversary,” “Reminiscing,” “Lady,” “Cool Change,” “Lonesome Loser,” “The Night Owls,” “Take It Easy On Me,” “Man On Your Mind,” “We Two” and “The Other Guy.”

Current band membership is anchored by bassist and lead singer Wayne Nelson, a 45-year LRB veteran. He is joined on stage by keyboardist and Dove Award winning producer Chris Marion, drummer Ryan Ricks, and guitarists Colin Whinnery and Bruce Wallace. LRB is the quintessential singing band and will be a great contributor to The Yacht Rock Cruise.

Yacht Rock Revue, hailed by Rolling Stone as the “world’s premier soft-rock party band,” invites listeners on a nostalgic voyage through the sun-soaked melodies of the ’70s and ’80s. With dy-no-mite renditions of hits by Kenny Loggins, Michael McDonald, Steely Dan, Christopher Cross, and more, Yacht Rock Revue is widely recognized as the driving force behind the yacht rock resurgence, sharing stages with icons and garnering a devoted following of “Anchorheads.”

Founded in Atlanta, GA, Yacht Rock Revue features Nicholas Niespodziani (vocals, guitars, keyboards, percussion), Peter Olson (vocals, guitars, keyboards, percussion), Greg Lee (bass, vocals), Mark Dannells (guitars, vocals), Mark Bencuya (keyboards, vocals), David B. Freeman (saxophones, keyboards, flute, piccolo, percussion, vocals), Kourtney Jackson (vocals, percussion), Jason Nackers (drums), and Ganesh Giri Jaya (drums). Their collective musicianship elevates each performance into an immersive, joy-filled escape.

Whether you’re a longtime aficionado of the yacht rock era or a newcomer to its smooth grooves, Yacht Rock Revue promises an unforgettable journey across the azure waters of musical history. So, don your captain’s hat and set sail with Yacht Rock Revue for a melodic adventure like no other.

When The Yacht Rock Cruise was conceived, its first call group was Yacht Rock Revue!

David Pack is the original co-founder of legendary prog-rock pop band Ambrosia, the voice and sole writer of their classic hits from the 70’s and 80’s. He went on to become a successful solo artist, GRAMMY-winning record producer, advisor to companies ranging from Avon to Kodak, and Music Director of global special events including both of President Clinton’s Inaugural Galas, and events for Barbra Streisand, Elton John, Billy Joel, Madonna and others.

His collected works have sold over 50 million units worldwide.

He cites his two principle musical mentors, friends for over 30 years Quincy Jones and Leonard Bernstein, for helping to shape the course and vision for his career, now into its fifth decade. It was David who formally introduced Bernstein to Jones and to Michael Jackson in the 80’s.

David shares: “I have spent more than half of my career creating special projects to honor and serve important causes and other artists, and it follows that most of the best things that have ever happened to me came from acts of charity and freely giving to others. I highly recommend it!”

That is the story behind David’s longevity, his heart, and what he hopes will be his legacy. What his industry friends and fans find extraordinary is how a man 100% deaf in one ear since 1977 keeps re-inventing himself and achieving success at every level. In fact, David will soon be launching a new online company he invented that he believes will be revolutionary in helping other artists while giving the world a new way to experience music. In this way, it can be said that David is a quiet Renaissance man in his own right.

Ray Parker, Jr. is a musical triple threat. He is a writer, a singer and a gifted guitarist. Parker’s first bona fide hit as a writer was “You Got the Love”, co-written with Chaka Khan and recorded by Rufus. The single hit No. 1 on the R&B charts and No. 11 on the pop charts in December 1974.

In 1977, Parker created the R&B group Raydio with Vincent Bonham, Jerry Knight, and Arnell Carmichael. Raydio scored their first big hit with “Jack and Jill,” from their 1978 self-titled album with Arista Records. The song reached No. 8 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, earning a Gold single and Gold album in the process. Their follow-up hit, “You Can’t Change That,” was released in 1979 from the Rock On album. The song was another Top 10 hit, peaking at No. 9 on the Billboard chart during the summer and selling a million copies.

After Raydio broke up, Parker continued with his solo career, scoring eight Top 40 hits, including the hit single “The Other Woman” (Pop No. 4) in 1982 and “Ghostbusters” in 1984. “Ghostbusters” peaked at No. 1 for three weeks on Billboard’s Hot 100 chart, and at No. 1 for two weeks on its Black Singles chart. The song was also nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Song in 1984, but lost to Stevie Wonder’s “I Just Called to Say I Love You” from The Woman in Red. Parker’s song secured him a 1984 GRAMMY Award for Best Pop Instrumental Performance. Other hits from this period included “I Still Can’t Get Over Loving You” (Pop No. 12) and “Jamie” (Pop No. 14).

Peter Beckett was born in Liverpool, England. As a youth, he would sneak into The Cavern lunchtime sessions to listen to the local bands. One day a young band called The Beatles performed and Peter was hooked. He got a cheap guitar, taught himself to play and, by the time he was 17, he was touring Britain and Europe with his first professional band, The Thoughts.

He moved to London, and after some success with the British progressive band Paladin, he was invited to come to the United States to form a group called Skyband. That band was short-lived, but during a Hollywood party he met J.C. Crowley. They began writing songs together. A short time later they were joined by Ronn Moss and John Friesen, and Player was born.

In January 1978, the band had an international number one hit with their first single: “Baby Come Back” which was co-written and sung by Beckett. The self- titled album went platinum and the band toured extensively. These classic outings included Boz Scagg’s Down Two Then Left Tour, Eric Clapton’s Slowhand Tour, Heart’s Dog & Butterfly Tour and Kenny Loggin’s Nightwatch Tour, playing always to sold out arena audiences. Four albums followed rendering four more top forty singles, including “This Time I’m In It For Love” which reached number ten on Billboard’s top 100 chart.

Peter started performing again with his band Player in 2003, always featuring an all star line-up, which has included at various times members of The Cars, REO Speed Wagon, Foreigner and Little River Band. Peter is also a featured guest performer with The Yacht Rock Revue performing all over the U.S.

Elliot Lurie is a singer and songwriter best known for the hit “Brandy (You’re A Fine Girl)”. Recorded by Looking Glass, featuring Lurie on vocals and guitar, “Brandy” was released in the summer of 1972. It quickly rose to the top of the charts, selling over a million copies and becoming one of the most played radio records of the year.

In 1984 Lurie moved to Los Angeles and began a second career supervising music for film and television. He achieved considerable success both as an independent supervisor and as executive in charge of music for Twentieth Century Fox.

Lurie has recently returned to his first loves – singing, writing and playing guitar.

Walter Egan is a musician, singer, composer, writer, artist, sculptor and general Renaissance man who is most widely known for his 1978 million-selling single record “Magnet and Steel,” featured on his album Not Shy (Columbia). Both “Magnet and Steel” and the LP Not Shy, were co-produced by Fleetwood Mac’s Lindsay Buckingham and featured F. Mac’s Stevie Nicks prominently on vocals.

All these years later, Walter’s signature song is a staple on the radio, and can also be heard in feature films and on television. Meanwhile, he has continued to make original music as both a prolific individual artist, with a total of more than a dozen solo CDs to his credit, and as a member of performing and recording bands including the classic surf band the Malibooz.

Today, Walter Egan continues to write, produce, and record new music and perform live around Nashville, as well as nationally and internationally.

Experience the music of 70‘s rock duo Seals & Crofts in a whole new way. Hear the hits “Summer Breeze,” “Diamond Girl” and “We May Never Pass This Way (Again),” artfully re-imagined with a reverent nod to the past. Seals & Crofts 2, comprised of Brady Seals (cousin to James “Jim” Seals) and Lua Crofts (daughter of Darrell “Dash” Crofts) will dazzle you on their debut album. The project will feature many popular Seals & Crofts classics, as well as new songs from Seals & Crofts 2.

Singer/songwriter/artist Brady Seals has a pedigree for success. You could say that music is “in his blood,” as he is related to numerous industry heavyweights. Over the course of his career, Brady has sold over 11 million albums and Brady Seals is probably best known for his tenure in the 1990‘s as keyboardist and co- lead singer in the GRAMMY nominated group Little Texas (Warner Brothers). Seals co- wrote three consecutive #1 songs for the band (“What Might Have Been,” “God Blessed Texas,” and “My Love”) winning him ASCAP’s Triple Play award.

In 1996 Seals pursued a solo career, collaborating with the legendary Rodney Crowell to co-produce his Warner Brothers album, The Truth. It features a duet with Wynonna Judd, “Another You, Another Me” that sold over 100,000 singles. A self-titled CD followed in 1998 with guest appearances by Vince Gill, Ricky Skaggs, Timothy B. Schmidt (The Eagles), Bela Fleck and Max Carl (.38 Special). Seals returned to his band roots, and formed Hot Apple Pie (DreamWorks) in 2002. The band quickly made history when they became the highest selling debut country group in the Neilson Soundscan era. Their entry single “Hillbillies Love it in the Hay” went Top 20. The video shot to #1 on VH-1 Country and was among CMT’s “Top 20 Sexiest Videos.”

Talented and soulful vocalist Lua Crofts comes from 70’s era rock royalty. The daughter of Dash Crofts of the hugely popular 70’s duo Seals & Crofts, performers of such hits as “Summer Breeze,” “Get Closer” and “Diamond Girl,” grew up in Los Angeles California right smack dab in the middle of the 70’s and 80’s music industry.

Deciding to follow in her father’s footsteps, her first experience as a session singer was as the tender age of 7 years old when she accompanied both her mother and father on a song that would be featured on a popular children’s album. She would go on to become an in-demand session singer throughout the 90’s and early 2000’s in the Los Angeles area, singing background vocals on many popular R&B albums for artist’s like Rahsaan Patterson (MCA), Tevin Campbell (Qwest), Shanice Wilson (LaFace Records), Ray J (East West Records), Tamia Washington (Elektra Records) and many more. She was also featured on the smooth jazz track “Better Days” off of the legendary Producer/Guitar player Louie Shelton’s 1998 Jazz album “Hot & Spicy”.