4 Songs by Soft Rock Bands That Sound Like Anything but Soft Rock

Even as a subgenre of the even broader rock ‘n’ roll, soft rock tends to cast a wide net when it comes to what is and isn’t considered “soft.” Generally speaking, there are elements of pop and singer-songwriter traditions baked into electric instrumentation, which is often bolstered by orchestral arrangements. The melodies are singable, the grooves are mellow but defined, and the songs are ones that both teenagers and seniors can enjoy side-by-side.

Needless to say, with such broad descriptors, there is a lot of gray area in this subgenre. Take, for example, these four songs that are technically by soft rock artists and bands but probably wouldn’t be called soft rock by the average listener.

“China Grove” by The Doobie Brothers

To be fair, The Doobie Brothers got progressively more soft rock the deeper they got into the 1970s. So, maybe this one’s a bit of a cheap pick. Nonetheless, we’ll include this song in our list of soft rock bands doing non-soft-rock tracks because, frankly, if you ask the average listener what genre they would classify “China Grove” as, soft rock probably isn’t even in the first three potential answers. If anything, this song and others, like “Black Water”, leaned closer to country rock.

“Tusk” by Fleetwood Mac

Fleetwood Mac helped define the wishy-washy standard of soft rock with their 1977 album Rumours, ranging from deep, in-the-pocket grooves like “Dreams” to the country-tinged flavors of “Never Going Back Again”. But subsequent songs, like the title track to their Rumours follow-up, Tusk, don’t sound anything like soft rock. We might classify this particular Fleetwood Mac song as African rock, tribal rock, or something else in that vein. But nothing about this song feels soft, that’s for sure.

“Carry On My Wayward Son” by Kansas

Kansas earned its soft rock distinction thanks to songs like “Dust In The Wind”. But their other most ubiquitous track, “Carry On My Wayward Son”, has far more oomph behind it. One could hardly hear those powerful opening harmonies, epic drum entrance, and iconic guitar riff and think, “Yeah, this is definitely what soft rock is all about.” Prog rock, sure. Heavy rock? Okay, maybe if James Taylor and Paul Simon are your go-to weight classes.

“Cocaine” by Eric Clapton

Eric Clapton has no shortage of soft hits, from “Wonderful Tonight” to “Tears In Heaven”. These songs show the British rock ‘n’ roller at his most vulnerable: deeply in love and deeply grieving. However, he’s had his fair share of dalliances in the debaucherous. One such example is his rendition of J.J. Cale’s “Cocaine”, which Clapton released in 1977. This song is pure, unadulterated rock and roll: hedonistic, gritty, and full of American blues influence.

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