You know that drum fill. It’s like a caffeinated heartbeat that kicks in right before a jolt of pure, unadulterated dopamine hits your ears. When people talk about Katrina and the Waves songs, they usually mean that one. You know, the one where Katrina Leskanich is "Walking on Sunshine" and feeling good.
Honestly? It’s a bit of a tragedy.
Calling them a one-hit wonder is technically incorrect—especially in the UK—but more than that, it’s just lazy. This wasn't some manufactured pop group. They were a gritty, road-tested bar band that featured a legitimate songwriting genius in Kimberley Rew. Before they were "The Waves," Rew was in The Soft Boys, a psychedelic cult favorite. He brought that weird, jangly energy to what eventually became a global pop phenomenon.
If you only know the sunshine, you're missing the shadows, the grit, and the bizarrely consistent Eurovision victory that happened a decade after everyone thought they’d retired.
The Song That Wouldn't Die (And Almost Didn't Happen)
It’s kind of hilarious that "Walking on Sunshine" is now the go-to anthem for every movie montage involving a happy protagonist. In reality, the band didn't even like it at first. When Rew first brought the song to a rehearsal in an old chapel, Katrina herself thought it was a bit much. The bass player, Vince de la Cruz, reportedly found it "irritating."
They were into The Velvet Underground. They wore black eyeliner. They wanted to be cool, moody, and edgy. Instead, they had a Motown-pumping rhythm that literally emptied dance floors when they played it live in the early days.
📖 Related: Break It Off PinkPantheress: How a 90-Second Garage Flip Changed Everything
It took a Canadian label (Attic Records) and a massive overhaul by producer Scott Litt—who would later become famous for his work with R.E.M.—to turn it into the monster it is today. Litt was the one who added those punching horns and moved Katrina’s famous "Whoo!" to the beginning of the track. He knew it would wake up American radio. He was right.
The Bangles Connection
Most people don't realize that one of the best Katrina and the Waves songs actually became a hit for someone else first. "Going Down to Liverpool" is a moody, jangle-pop masterpiece about being on the dole (unemployed).
- Original Version: Featured Kimberley Rew on lead vocals.
- The Cover: The Bangles heard it on a demo tape and fell in love.
- The Video: The Bangles version famously features Leonard Nimoy as a grumpy chauffeur.
When the Waves finally got their big US deal with Capitol in 1985, they re-recorded it with Katrina on vocals. It’s got this driving, nervous energy that sounds way more "Indie" than their bigger hits. It’s the sound of a band that spent years playing US military bases in Germany, learning how to make a crowd move without the help of a big budget.
Beyond the Sunshine: The Tracks You Should Know
If you’re building a playlist and want to go deeper, you’ve gotta look at the 1985 self-titled album. It’s basically a "Greatest Hits" of their earlier, harder-to-find Canadian releases.
"Do You Want Crying" is a perfect example of their power-pop chops. It actually hit the Top 40 in the States, but it’s largely forgotten now. It has this desperate, driving beat that feels more like The Police or The Knack than a "sunny" pop band.
👉 See also: Bob Hearts Abishola Season 4 Explained: The Move That Changed Everything
Then there’s "Que Te Quiero." It’s got this weirdly infectious, pseudo-Latin rhythm that shouldn't work for a band from Cambridge, England, but somehow it’s one of the catchiest things they ever did.
Then you have the deep cuts:
- "Red Wine and Whisky": A raw, bluesy rocker that shows off Katrina's vocal power.
- "Machine Gun Smith": A frantic, jittery track that sounds like it belongs on a New Wave compilation next to Elvis Costello.
- "Sun Street": A legit Top 30 hit in the UK that most Americans have never heard. It’s pure 80s pop, but with a slightly more sophisticated arrangement.
The 1997 Eurovision Miracle
Fast forward to 1997. The 80s were long gone. The band was mostly playing the nostalgia circuit. Then, they entered a little song called "Love Shine a Light" into the Eurovision Song Contest representing the UK.
They didn't just win. They decimated the competition.
It was the UK’s last win for decades, and it remains one of the highest-scoring entries in the history of the contest. While "Walking on Sunshine" pays the bills (the song was sold to BMG for a reported £10 million in 2015), "Love Shine a Light" is arguably their most beloved song across Europe. It’s a massive, soaring anthem that proved Katrina’s voice hadn't lost an ounce of its power in twenty years.
✨ Don't miss: Black Bear by Andrew Belle: Why This Song Still Hits So Hard
The Reality of Being "The Sunshine Band"
Being tied to one massive song is a double-edged sword. On one hand, the royalties are astronomical. "Walking on Sunshine" is used in everything from American Psycho to The Big Bang Theory. It generates hundreds of thousands of dollars in licensing fees every single year.
On the other hand, it flattened the band’s identity. Kimberley Rew is one of the most underrated songwriters of his generation. He can write a three-chord pop song that feels like it’s existed forever. He’s a "master of the obvious" in the best way possible—finding melodies that are so natural they feel like they were discovered rather than written.
Why You Should Care Now
In an era of hyper-processed pop, listening back to the original Katrina and the Waves songs is refreshing. There’s a lot of "real" in those recordings. You can hear the guitars chiming, the drums actually being hit hard, and a singer who isn't hiding behind layers of Auto-Tune.
They were a rock band that happened to stumble into a pop goldmine.
If you want to actually appreciate them, stop listening to the radio edits. Find the Original Recordings 1983-1984 compilation. It’s got the versions before the "slick" production took over. It’s jangly, it’s a little bit messy, and it’s arguably much better.
Next Steps for Your Playlist:
To get a true feel for the band's range, start by listening to "Going Down to Liverpool" (the 1985 version) followed immediately by "Machine Gun Smith." This will give you the "alternative" side of the band. After that, move to the Eurovision performance of "Love Shine a Light" to hear the sheer scale of Katrina's vocal range. Finally, track down the original 1983 version of "Walking on Sunshine" without the horns—it’s a completely different, much more "garage rock" experience that changes how you view their entire legacy.