Given that we lost Brian Wilson recently, and there’s been a lot of talk about the elimination of the affordable subcompact, I thought we could reflect a bit upon America’s obsession with the automobile. The BIG auto; the POWERFUL auto. Especially here in Los Angeles - you gotta have wheels - and you’ll be judged by what you drive. Once, while stopped at an intersection in my little Saturn, I was heckled mercilessly by some tweens on skateboards.

On the other side of the argument sits the Goddess Shania Twain - that Canadian Everywoman who raised her siblings single handedly, then went on to conquer Country

Pop music with songs like That Don’t Impress Me Much - where she declares that you may have a hot car, Hoss, but, that don’t make you a man in her book. She puts it all in perspective.

LITTLE DEUCE COUPE / THE BEACH BOYS

Nowadays, I drive a Prius, but occasionally I’ll admire the sleek lines of a Dodge Challenger, and fantasize that I could be that muscle car guy. The Prius is wimpy - ya gotta go for The BIG auto; the POWERFUL auto. I can trace this fascination back to ’63, when at the age of 10, I heard Little Deuce Coupe for the first time. I didn’t know what Deuce Coupe meant, but that was ok because Brian Wilson sang “You don’t know what I got!” I now know that the title refers to a 1932 Ford Coupe, and the whole California culture of the drag race was popularized around the country with the invocation of this souped up Franken-car.

There were other mechanical beasts in the Wilson canon: There was the T Bird of Fun, Fun, Fun; the “duel in the sun” opponents - the corvette Stingray vs the Mopar described in Shut Down, Granny from Pasadena’s brand new shiny red super stock Dodge, and their anthemic ode to the Chevy 409, but The Deuce Coupe was purportedly Brian’s favorite. You can thank Brian’s lyricist Roger Christian for these automotive articulations, but Brian knew how to implant them into our hearts and minds with his rhythms, melodies, and harmonies.

THAT DON’T IMPRESS ME MUCH / SHANIA TWAIN

This is where the macho mechanical mythos gets deflated: Shania lets us know in no uncertain terms what makes a man desirable - it’s not your looks, brains, and especially not your car. It’s your courage to commit, your ability to listen, your kindness and tenderness. These are the qualities that win you a place at her table and in her bed.

Because she doesn’t need you. Next to Taylor Swift, Shania is the most successful female Country recording artist. whose albums have spent 97 weeks as the Top Country Albums chart leader. Former husband/producer Mutt Lange may have helped to craft those catchy Pop hits around an image of an accessible Wonder Woman, but even if she hadn’t become a mogul, I have a feeling that Shania’s integrity and sense of who she is would never have faltered.