It's rare that an artist can take one of Brian Wilson's songs and update it in a way that doesn't offend its original greatness. In the late 1980's, a magical time, the surf culture experienced a neon-fueled renaissance and brought with it some tubular beach music.
A lesser-known nostalgia/parody film called Back to the Beach, starring Frankie Avalon and Annette Funicello, captured the over-the-top corniness which was so prominent in both eras. This film reunited a bunch of the stars from the kitschy, beatnik surf movies of the 60's as well as randoms like Bob Denver (Gilligan), Stevie Ray Vaughn, O.J. Simpson and of course Pee Wee Herman. Along with a radical soundtrack, the movie features songs sung by cast members and comes across more like a musical, as did many of the 60's films it parodies. If you haven't seen this, WATCH IT. Easily one of my favorite movies of all time.
The soundtrack included covers of several well-known beach songs including Eddie Money's take on 'Catch A Ride (on a wave)' which opened the film and plays through the opening credits. This song encompasses the 80's surf scene as it was in many ways an homage to its roots in the 1960's. I believe it was released only on the soundtrack to BTTB, and is thus a rare gem of 80's pop perfection.
Just the song:
The 10-minute opening of BTTB, including 'Catch A Ride' (Careful, it'll only leave you wanting more):
And while we're on the subject, as it is one of my all time faves, here's an amazing song written by Michael Sembello (yeah, the guy who wrote 'Maniac' from Flash Dance) and performed by the majority of BTTB's cast:
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