Walk on the Ocean explained

Walk on the Ocean
Cover:	Walk_Oceans.jpg
Type:	single
Artist:	Toad the Wet Sprocket
Album:	fear
B-Side:	All in All
Released:	October 15, 1992
Genre:	Alternative rock^[1] ^[2]
Length:	2:59 (album version) 3:32 (single version)
Label:	Columbia
Producer:	Gavin MacKillop
Prev Title:	Hold Her Down
Prev Year:	1992
Next Title:	I Will Not Take These Things for Granted
Next Year:	1993

"Walk on the Ocean" is a song by American alternative rock group Toad the Wet Sprocket from their third studio album, Fear (1991). Two different versions of the song were released: the album version with a cold ending (timed at 2:59) and the single version with the chorus repeated until fade (timed at 3:32). Commercially, "Walk on the Ocean" peaked at number 18 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and reached the top 40 in Canada, New Zealand, and Norway.

Composition

The song was written after singer Glen Phillips and his wife were vacationing on Orcas Island in Washington's San Juan Islands after they "hung out at Doe Bay hot springs with a bunch of hippies." The lyrics were written as placeholders, but Phillips could not come up with anything better. "I wrote down literally the first thing that came across my mind. The lyric and the chorus, I have no idea what it means, unfortunately. Then I tried rewriting it and nothing ever really worked. I tried to make the chorus mean something, and eventually said, 'Well, it sounds like I know what I'm talking about.' So we just left it as is. It was the least-conscious, least-crafted lyric," he said.^[3]

Track listings

US CD and cassette single^{[4] [5]}

1. "Walk on the Ocean" (single version) – 3:32
2. "All in All" – 4:02
3. "Walk on the Ocean" (album version) – 2:59

European CD and cassette single^{[6] [7]}

1. "Walk on the Ocean" (single version) – 3:32
2. "All in All" – 4:02

Charts

Chart (1992–1993)	Peak position
Australia (ARIA)^[8]	152
US Billboard Hot 100^[9]	18
US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)^[10]	31
US Album Rock Tracks (Billboard)^[11]	27
US Top 40/Mainstream (Billboard)^[12]	10

Use in media

The song appears on the soundtrack of the 2013 American film Jobs.^[13] The song appears on the soundtrack of the 2014 American film Adult Beginners.^[14] The song appears on the soundtrack of the 2015 American television series Hindsight.^[15]

Notes and References

1. News: Harris . Vincent . How Toad the Wet Sprocket Navigates the Age of Nostalgia . February 5, 2022 . Post and Courier . September 12, 2018.
2. News: McDonnel . Brandy . Toad the Wet Sprocket to play OKC summer show . February 5, 2022 . The Oklahoman . May 11, 2018.
3. Web site: MacIntosh . Dan . January 8, 2014 . Glen Phillips of Toad the Wet Sprocket : Songwriter Interviews . Songfacts . February 28, 2021.
4. Walk on the Ocean. Toad the Wet Sprocket. 1992. US CD single liner notes. Columbia Records. 38K 74706.
5. Walk on the Ocean. Toad the Wet Sprocket. 1992. US cassette single sleeve. Columbia Records. 38T 74706.
6. Walk on the Ocean. Toad the Wet Sprocket. 1992. European CD single liner notes. Columbia Records. COL 658462 1.
7. Walk on the Ocean. Toad the Wet Sprocket. 1992. European cassette single sleeve. Columbia Records. 658462 4.
8. Web site: Toad the Wet Sprocket ARIA Chart History complete to 2024. ARIA. Imgur.com. July 26, 2024. N.B. The High Point number in the NAT column represents the release's peak on the national chart.
9. Billboard Hot 100. Billboard. January 30, 1993. August 19, 2023.
10. Hot Adult Contemporary. Billboard. 105. 8. 77. February 20, 1993.
11. Mainstream Rock Airplay. Billboard. November 21, 1992. subscription. August 19, 2023.
12. Pop Airplay. Billboard. January 30, 1993. subscription. August 19, 2023.
13. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2357129/soundtrack Jobs Soundtrack
14. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt3318750/soundtrack?ref_=tt_trv_snd Adult Beginners Soundtrack
15. https://www.vh1.com/news/fnj1s6/ultimate-90s-playlist-music-from-episode-2-hindsight Hindsight Soundtrack