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"Sailing" is a 1979 soft rock song written and recorded by American artist Christopher Cross. It was released in June 1980 as the second single from his eponymous debut album (1979). 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.[3][4] 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.[5] VH1 named "Sailing" the most "softsational soft rock" song of all time.[6]

"Sailing"
Single by Christopher Cross
from the album Christopher Cross
B-side	"Poor Shirley"
Released	June 15, 1980
Recorded	1979
Genre	Soft rock[1] yacht rock[2]
Length	4:14
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)
Audio sample
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The song was recorded in 1979, utilizing the 3M Digital Recording System, making it one of the first digitally recorded songs to chart.[7] 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.[8] The song was later identified as an archetype of the style that later became known as yacht rock[9] (Cross and similar artists referred to the style as the West Coast sound at the time).[10]

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.[11] [12] Glasscock functioned as a surrogate older brother during a tough time for Cross emotionally.[13] Although Cross lost touch with Glasscock, The Howard Stern Show in April 1995 reunited Cross with Glasscock, 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."[13]

Personnel

• Christopher Cross – lead vocals, electric guitar, 12 string electric guitar, acoustic guitar, background vocals, arrangements
• Andy Salmon – bass
• Michael Omartian – arrangements, acoustic piano
• Rob Meurer – arrangements, electric piano, synthesizer
• Victor Feldman — percussion
• Tommy Taylor – drums

Charts

Chart (1980–81)	Peak position
Australia (Kent Music Report)	46
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[14]	38
Canadian Adult Contemporary (RPM)	1
Canadian Top Singles (RPM)[15]	1
Ireland (IRMA)[16]	21
Italy (FIMI)[17]	12
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[18]	18
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[19]	8
Spain (AFYVE)[20]	24
UK Singles (The Official Charts Company)	48
US Billboard Hot 100[4]	1
US Billboard Adult Contemporary	10

Year-end charts

Chart (1980)	Rank
Canada Top Singles[21]	24
US Billboard Hot 100[22]	32

Chart (1981)	Rank
Italy (FIMI)[23]	66

Covers and samples

Since its debut, "Sailing" has been covered by artists including Avant, Lesley Gore, Barry Manilow (on his 2007 album The Greatest Songs of the Seventies), Greenskeepers, NSYNC[24] (on their 1997 album 'N Sync), George Benson, Phajja, Patrick Yandall, Moya Brennan and Cormac de Barra, Allen & Allen, and Rodney Franklin.[25] Cross performed the song with NSYNC at the 1999 Blockbuster Entertainment Awards.

The song was sampled in the Puff Daddy song "Best Friend", from his 1999 album Forever.

The song was also sampled in The 1975's song "Bagsy Not in Net", from their 2020 album Notes on a Conditional Form.

Film and television appearances

• In 1980, Cross' version was featured on WKRP in Cincinnati in season 3 episode 5, "Hotel Oceanview".[26]
• The song was featured in a 2016 TV commercial for Hyundai.
• The song is featured briefly in the 2006 animated film Flushed Away.[27]
• The song is played in Season 12 of Family Guy: Finders Keepers.[28]
• The song was featured in Season 4 of Cobra Kai.
• The song was featured in the 2012 film The Watch and 2022 Michael Bay film Ambulance.

See also

• List of Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles of 1980

References

External links

• The 45 version of "Sailing" on YouTube
• Lyric Video

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