A fun fact before we dive in: Did you know that “The Boys of Summer,†the 1984 banger that buoyed Don Henley’s solo career to new heights, was originally written for Tom Petty? By his friend and collaborator Mike Campbell? But Petty rejected it because he didn’t think it vibed with his album Southern Accents? It’s a very good fun fact! So good that it was destined to get on Jeopardy! at some point, which finally occurred on the show’s December 18 episode. However, unlike most famous people, Campbell wasn’t freaking out about the $200 in-clue-sion due to the category he was slotted in being inhabited by Crab Catcher legends such as Christopher Cross, Michael McDonald, and that guy who once crooned “if you like piña coladas.†Yup, the category was Yacht Rock. “Don’t know how I feel about this!!!!†Campbell wrote on Instagram over the weekend. “Now that’s funny.†Henley, of course, was a founding member of soft rock deities the Eagles, while Campbell personified the heartland rock genre with the Heartbreakers. But yacht? Like, in water?
In the spirit of devil’s advocacy, when this writer texted her father about the clue snafu, he responded with the following: “Well, I guess it’s kind of yacht rock in that Cape Cod or Kennedy-sailing sense.†(Which, true. That drum machine sets a very specific mood.) But the boys of summer, with their hair slicked back and with those Wayfarers on, baby, might feel a lot differently.