Where the ocean songs look out at the deep water, these stay on the sand: the boardwalk, the surf, the cooler and the long lazy afternoon. Roll the windows down on the way and you have the whole soundtrack.
Updated 2026
Kokomo by The Beach Boys 1988
A made-up island that somehow feels like every dream beach at once.
Under the Boardwalk by The Drifters 1964
Hiding from the heat in the shade where the lovers meet.
Surf City by Jan and Dean 1963
Two girls for every boy in a sun-drenched surf fantasy.
Surfin' Safari by The Beach Boys 1962
The early single that put surfing on the radio for good.
Soak Up the Sun by Sheryl Crow 2002
Making the best of what you have got, towel on the sand.
The Boys of Summer by Don Henley 1984
An empty beach in the off-season, heavy with old love.
Island in the Sun by Weezer 2001
A warm, easy daydream of getting away from everything.
(Sittin' On) The Dock of the Bay by Otis Redding 1968
Watching the tide roll away with nowhere else to be.
Knee Deep by Zac Brown Band ft. Jimmy Buffett 2010
Toes in the water, troubles a thousand miles behind.
Beach Baby by First Class 1974
A sunny throwback to a summer romance on the shore.
Pipeline by The Chantays 1963
A surf-guitar instrumental that sounds like a wave curling over.
Vacation by The Go-Go's 1982
Getting away, even if the heart did not quite come along.