Soft rock often transcends its designated genre. Like the best popular music, soft rock encompasses a range of styles within its parameters, including pop, jazz, soul and more.
As outlined in the list below of the Best Album by Soft Rock’s 15 Biggest Artists, the greatest artists rarely stayed in their lanes, musically speaking. While sharing space inside the collective haven, these acts moved between progressive, disco, hard rock, country and folk, too.
Although Fleetwood Mac and the Bee Gees may appear to have taken different paths (the former started as a blues band, the latter a Beatles-inspired quintet of psychedelic pop tunesmiths), by the end of the ’70s, they were traveling the same road.
READ MORE: Top 40 Soft Rock Songs
And while soft rock is hard to pin down to one specific sound or theme, it’s easily identifiable once it’s heard. The gently swaying acoustic guitars, the warm notes of a Fender Rhodes, the breezy vocals that evoke both nostalgia and comfort in their tones — all are hallmarks of the peaceful, easy feelings the music conjures.
No matter how these artists and albums are now remembered, most of them came of age during an era when AM gold and pop radio were limitless and open to a wide range of styles and songs. The list below merely skims the surface of what soft rock comprises. As noted above, the best music refuses to be pinned down. That especially pertains to these artists.
The Best Album by Soft Rock’s 15 Biggest Artists
Peaceful, easy feelings courtesy of the top acts from the ’70s and ’80s.
Gallery Credit: Michael Gallucci
