Sailing (Christopher Cross song)

Last updated
"Sailing"
Christopher Cross - Sailing (single).jpg
Single by Christopher Cross
from the album Christopher Cross
B-side "Poor Shirley"
ReleasedMay 27, 1980 (Charted June 14)
Recorded1979
Genre
Length4:14
Label Warner Bros.
Songwriter(s) Christopher Cross
Producer(s) Michael Omartian
Christopher Cross singles chronology
"Ride Like the Wind"
(1980)
"Sailing"
(1980)
"Never Be the Same"
(1980)
Music video
"Christopher Cross - Sailing (Official Music Video)" on YouTube

"Sailing" is a 1979 soft rock song written and recorded by American singer-songwriter Christopher Cross. It was released in June 1980 as the second single from his self-titled debut album (1979), which was already certified gold by this time. The song was a success in the United States, reaching number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart on August 30, 1980, where it stayed for one week. [1] [2] The song also won Grammy Awards for Record of the Year, Song of the Year, and Arrangement of the Year, and helped Cross win the Best New Artist award. [3] VH1 named "Sailing" the most "softsational soft rock" song of all time. [4]

Contents

The song was recorded in 1979, utilizing the 3M Digital Recording System, making it one of the first digitally recorded songs to chart. [5] In his Grammy acceptance speech, Cross acknowledged "Sailing" as his favorite song on the album and that originally it was not meant to be a single. [6] The song was later identified as an archetype of the style that later became known as yacht rock [7] (at the time, Cross and similar artists referred to the style as the West Coast sound). [8]

Background

Cross has said in interviews that the song's inspiration was his friendship with an older friend from his high school, Al Glasscock, who would take him sailing as a teenager, just to get away from the trials and tribulations of being a teenager. [9] [10] Glasscock functioned as a surrogate older brother during a tough time for Cross emotionally. [11] Although Cross lost touch with Glasscock, The Howard Stern Show in April 1995 reunited the two after 28 years. Cross acknowledged on the show that his sailing trips with Glasscock had been the inspiration for the song. After that reunion, Cross sent Glasscock a copy of the platinum record he earned for selling more than five million copies of "Sailing." [11]

Legacy

Personnel

Charts

Chart (1980–1981)Peak
position
Australia (Kent Music Report)46
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders) [16] 38
Canadian Adult Contemporary ( RPM ) [17] 1
Canadian Top Singles ( RPM ) [18] 1
Ireland (IRMA) [19] 21
Italy (FIMI) [20] 12
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40) [21] 18
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ) [22] 8
Spain (AFYVE) [23] 24
UK Singles (OCC) [24] 48
US Billboard Hot 100 [2] 1
US Billboard Adult Contemporary [25] 10

Year-end charts

Chart (1980)Rank
Canada Top Singles [26] 24
US Billboard Hot 100 [27] 32
Chart (1981)Rank
Italy (FIMI) [28] 66

Certifications

RegionCertification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI) [29] Silver200,000

Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

See also

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References

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  2. 1 2 Sailing - Chart History Billboard. Retrieved 8 June 2020.
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  5. Jim McCullaugh (November 1, 1980), "Digital the Major Topic For N.Y. AES Parley", Billboard "The Christopher Cross LP, at number 32, uses the 3M digital technology"
  6. Video on YouTube
  7. Kamp, Jon (October 11, 2015). "Can You Sail to It? Then It Must Be 'Yacht Rock'". The Wall Street Journal .
  8. Cross, Christopher (February 22, 2014). "Hall & Oates Are Genuine Rock Stars in My Book". The Huffington Post .
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