Shut Down by The Beach Boys

Shut Down

1963

The Beach Boys

Brian Wilson didn't surf, didn't particularly like the beach, and knew next to nothing about cars...so just how the heck did he manage to write or co-write a sting of hits that became classics about all of the above???

We can thank both Gary Usher, who was deeply tuned in to both the early 60s SoCal Surfing and car cultures, as well as a legendary L.A. Radio personality named Roger Christian, who was also an early Car Geek.

'Shut Down' was, as legend has it, shortened from a longer poem that had been penned by Roger Christian, with he, Brian, and Mike Love turning the poem into The 'Boys classic tune about a street race that pitted a '63 Corvette Stingray, against a '62 'Superstock Dodge' 413...we'll get to the reason reason why I put that in semi-quotes in a minute, BTW.

'Shut Down' became part of the second disc of a trio of early career Surfing Song A Side/Car Song B Side singles when it was released as Surfin' USA's 'B' side. It very handily kicked '409's ass on the charts by peaking at #23 nine weeks after it's late April, '63 debut date and staying there for a single week before dropping off the charts altogether four weeks later for a thirteen week chart run.

Afore we continue, we have to get a bit if terminology straight. Remember 'Superstock Dodge' being in quotes? There's a reason for that, that reason being the fact that there was no 'Superstock Dodge'. 'Superstock' was a Plymouth moniker, while 'Ramcharger' was Dodge's moniker for their version of this legitimate street-rocket. Both Plymouths and Dodges were, of course, available with Mopar's legendary 413, but to be entirely accurate, the song-car would have had to have been a 'Superstock Fury', or maybe 'Superstock Belvedere' ...neither of which would have exactly flowed smoothely with the melody. At. All. (Superstock Belvedere?? Really? I mean, Really???) Thus it became 'Superstock Dodge...and 'Shutdown's not the only song that the mythical 'Superstock Dodge' appeared in, ether. As we may recall, a certain elderly Pasadena resident also owned one of these rides.

Shut Down's well and fondly remembered, as are Beach Boys tunes in general, but this particular tune has the distinction of causing everything from heated discourse to impromptu on-the-spot drag races (As well as the sanctioned variety) for a shade more than half a century now. The subject, of course, being who would have actually won the race...The 'Vette, or the Mopar. Magazine articles have been written about that very subject....seriously, try to find a car mag that hasn't, at some point, published an article in which a '62 Dodge with a 413 under the hood and a 63 Corvette Stingray faced off.

As for the song...listen closely and you realize that you're never sure who won it...the song ends before the race does. That race will be run on oldies stations for generations to come, as it should be.. As to who I think won it? I have no opinion on that one...I'm a Ford man!

So Enjoy! Shut Down by The Beach boys...the video features both of the classic rides mentioned, BTW!

And as a bonus, The Boy's rock out in a live performance...unknown where or when other that it was in 1964. (Really wish we could get the venue and date on these classic performances!)