There are far too many artists that qualify as soft rock to include in a list of ten; many are almost forgotten now, others are primarily remembered as representatives of other genres.

Some important/influential soft rock artists/songs include:

1. Billy Joel: She's Always A Woman

Joel has never gotten much critical respect and probably never will, but for a fairly lengthy span of time he was one of the most consistent hit makers around. His peak was from about 1976 through 1983, when he landed 20 singles in the top-40; his star began to dim after that, and he's been a spent force since the late 80's. Joel's image was an updated version of piano lounge singer, and he took his cues from Tin Pan Alley, Broadway, and the Beatles. "She's Always A Woman" was one of his most melodic, memorable songs, from his 1977 blockbuster The Stranger, which yielded four hits. On closer listen, one can detect one of the critics' biggest complaints with Joel; there's always been a streak of misogyny and patronization in his love songs. Still, his music was everywhere in 1977-1978, and The Stranger, produced by soft-rock king Phil Ramone, was his most consistent, enjoyable album.

2. Boz Scaggs: Lido Shuffle

Boz Scaggs originally tasted success as guitarist in the Steve Miller Band, appearing on their first two albums when they were playing psychedelic space rock. In 1968, he began his solo career, and released five albums before he finally found an audience with his 1976 album Silk Degrees. "Lido Shuffle" is a laid-back r&b tune, one of four hits on the album, which itself peaked at #2 on the pop album charts, and #6 on the Black charts. Silk Degrees is probably one of the most varied and satisfying soft rock albums of the 70's, providing enough changes of paces and surprises to please a rock fan. Scaggs was never able to follow it up, however; while his next two albums skirted the top-10, they weren't received as well, and by 1981 he was already a had-been. He's still active however, and in his career has managed to place a top-10 album on the pop, Black, blues, jazz, and independant charts, a testament to his restless virtuosity.

3. Elton John: Bennie and the Jets

Commercially speaking, no soft rock act can hold a candle to Elton John's massive popularity, which never really ebbed until the late 1990's. Indeed, John had managed to place a single in the top-40 every single year from 1970-1996, a remarkable achievement. From 1972-1976 he had sixteen top-20 hits in a row. The critics weren't with him most of the time, but when he was at his zenith, from 1972-1975, it was hard not to like his albums, an astounding seven of which went to #1 in that span, and were chock full of hooks on the singles and album cuts alike. "Bennie and the Jets" is a random pick; one could just as easily nominate "Your Song", "Daniel", "Rocket Man", or a dozen other songs to represent him. It reached #1 in 1974, and #15 on the Black charts, making it one of his biggest crossovers, and an enormous hit overall.