‘Little Zeus Coup’

By Frank Mariani

I learned a great deal while writing this parody of the classic Beach Boys’ hit “Little Deuce Coupe” from 1963. My biggest takeaway was to face the ugly truth that I’m no Weird Al Yankovic. I’m just weird.

How did Brian Wilson know so much about cars?

As I worked my way through the original lyrics of “Little Deuce Coupe,” I encountered terms that required me to delve deeper to understand their meanings.

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My knowledge of the internal combustion engine is rooted in the mantra “intake-compression-power-exhaust” from the 1960s. That also was the time when the famous Renwal Visible V-8 plastic model—WITH MOVING PARTS—took off and became the most popular model engine kit ever.

photo source: Hagerty.com
The story behind this famous kit and other see-through models is a fascinating read.

Dear old dad

I always got a kick out of the pipe-smoking father on the Renwal box. Was young Brian Wilson ever gifted this cool educational kit? Some of what I read about Murry Wilson, his dad, points the other way, so who knows? Thanks to Murry, though, Brian did have an automotive mentor in Roger Val Christian, a Los Angeles disc jockey and songwriter with racing experience.

Having raced cars until 1955, Christian had a keen interest in hot rods and became known as the "Poet of the Strip". Murry Wilson, father of three of the Beach Boys as well as their manager, heard Christian one night on KFWB explaining the group's hit song "409" to a listener on the air. Realising Christian knew a lot about cars, Murry met Christian and later sent his son Brian Wilson to meet him. Looking at some of Christian's poems about cars, the pair collaborated on “Shut Down”, “Little Deuce Coupe”, and later “Don't Worry Baby.”

Source: Wikipedia

Mysterious lines explained

Here’s the Little Deuce Coupe bridge:

She's got a competition clutch with the four on the floor
And she purrs like a kitten 'till the lake pipes roar
And if that ain't enough to make you flip your lid
There’s one more thing, I got the pink slip, daddy

“Lake pipes” turned into a deep rabbit hole of exploration that I won’t get into here, but if you are curious, check out the Jalopy Journal forum.

The last line goes in two directions. Here’s what I dug up:

Many listeners heard “big slip, daddy” instead of “pink slip, daddy” in the last line. “Big slip” in street rod talk would have referred to a limited slip differential rear end on the rear axle.

I’ve visited several song lyric websites, though, and they all say “pink slip, daddy.”

… it's "I've got the pink slip, daddy" meaning, "I've got the ownership paperwork, daddy-o," [so let's race and the winner gets the loser's car because that's how confident I am in the Deuce Coupe].

Source: Antique Auto Club of America