EXCLUSIVE: In “Kokomo,” the Beach Boys famously sang “Aruba, Jamaica, ooh, I want to take ya…” But it wasn’t their only hit with a Caribbean connection.

“Sloop John B,” their classic from the Pet Sounds album, came to the band through the Bahamas, an unlikely journey explored in the upcoming documentary Bringing Her Home: The Story of Sloop John B from Rising Tide Productions. Odin’s Eye Entertainment is presenting the project at the Marché du Film in Cannes with promo footage in anticipation of a fall 2026 festival campaign.

Pet Sounds was released 60 years ago this Saturday, achieving iconic status as one of the greatest albums in music history. “Sloop John B” – track no. 7 on side 1 of Pet Sounds – began as a Bahamian folk song and was introduced to Beach Boys’ leader Brian Wilson by band member Al Jardine. Jardine, one of two surviving Beach Boys along with Mike Love, participates in the documentary.

Bringing Her Home: The Story of Sloop John B “explores how a song born in The Bahamas became part of American pop history, and why its complete story still matters today,” according to a release. “A central element of the documentary follows the creation of a new recording of ‘Sloop John B’ at Lenny Kravitz’s studio in Eleuthera, The Bahamas. The recording is produced by Craig Ross, longtime guitarist and musical collaborator of Lenny Kravitz, and brings together Bahamian musicians and special guests for a contemporary version rooted in place, memory, and musical heritage.”

The release continues, “The documentary moves between island memory, music history, archival discovery, and the creative energy of the Eleuthera recording sessions. It does not seek to rewrite the song’s history, but to complete it, honoring both the Bahamian culture that gave it life and the Beach Boys recording that carried it around the world.”

The film is in production and post-production, with filming taking place across the Bahamas and the new recording captured at Lenny Kravitz’s studio in Eleuthera, per the release. The documentary is produced by David House and Edgar Seligman, and executive produced by Michael Favelle of Odin’s Eye Entertainment, which is handling international sales.

“This film is about completing the journey of a song that began in The Bahamas, was carried into the world by generations of musicians, and became immortal through The Beach Boys,” House and Seligman said in a statement. “With Al Jardine’s participation and a new recording created in Eleuthera, this is a chance to honor the full legacy of ‘Sloop John B’ with joy, dignity, and respect.”

Rising Tide Productions is a Bahamas-based production company “dedicated to telling cinematic stories rooted in culture, legacy, music, and place.”

Odin’s Eye Entertainment, founded by Michael Favelle in 2006 along with sister company Odin’s Eye Animation, “is a global leader in the production, distribution, and international sales of feature films and television content.”