The V65 Song

Why a V65 song, you ask? Well, for decades, automobiles have been immortalized in song. And not just automobiles in general, but specific makes and models. For instance, way back in 1905 we had "In My Merry Oldsmobile". In the mid-'60s, every muscle car imaginable either had its own song or was mentioned as an antagonist in some other car's song: "Little Cobra", "(She's real fine my) 409", "Little GTO", "Mustang Sally", Stingrays, XKEs, you name it. Even a Nash Rambler had its own song! But how many motorcycle songs can you name?

The ones that come to my mind are: Arlo Guthrie's "I don't want to eat a pickle, just want to ride on my motorsickle" and the Shangri-la's "Leader of the Pack". But neither of them mentions a brand. Then there's Steppenwolf's "Born to be Wild", generally considered a biker anthem, but no where does it even mention motorcycles, let alone a marque! The only brand-specific song I can think of is the Beach Boy's "Little Honda" (also recorded by The Hondells)1. And what kind of lyrics does it have to inspire pride in our scoots?

"It's not a big motorcycle, just a groovy little motorbike"

No wonder Hardly riders sneered at Honda owners in the past, a habit which has been hard to break!

So I took it upon myself to rectify the situation by writing a new song, this time featuring our beloved muscle bikes. And since a Beach Boy's song was the original culprit, it seemed only fair to paraphrase another of their tunes for the task. For those not familiar with the original lyrics, I've printed them side by side for your enlightenment. To hear a RealAudio version or download it in MP3 format, visit this Studio A web page.

Little Deuce CoupeThe V65 Song
Copyright© 1963 Brian Wilson and Roger Christian Additional Lyrics by Mark MacKinnon (1999)

Well I'm not braggin', babe, so don't put me down
But I've got the fastest set of wheels in town.
When somethin' comes up to me they don't even try
'Cause if I had a set of wings, man I know she could fly.
She's my Little Deuce Coupe, you don't know what I've got!

Just a little deuce coupe with a flat head mill
But she'll walk a Thunderbird like she's standin' still.
She's ported and relieved and she's stroked and bored,
She'll do a hundred and forty in the top end floored
She's my Little Deuce Coupe, you don't know what I've got!

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

And comin' off the line when the light turns green
Ya know she blows 'em outta the water like you've never seen
I get pushed out of shape, and she's hard to steer
When I get rubber in all four gears.
She's my Little Deuce Coupe, you don't know what I've got!
Well I'm not braggin', babe, so don't put me down
But I've got the fastest motorcycle in town.
When somethin' comes up to me they don't even try
She's sportin' Honda logo wings2, man I know she can fly.
She's my V653, you don't know what I've got!

Just an '85 Sabre4 with a V-4 mill
But she'll smoke the biggest Harley like it's standin' still
A liquid-cooled shaftie, with TRAC anti-dive,
She'll do a hundred and forty5, then hit overdrive
She's my V65, you don't know what I've got!

She's got a Dave Dodge clutch and Kerker's four-into-one
And she purrs like a kitten when she's doin' the ton.
And if that ain't enough to make you flip your lid,
There's one more thing I've got the KG Slider!

And comin' off the line when the light turns green
Ya know she does a smoky burnout like you've never seen
The crowd goes crazy, everybody cheers6
When I pop wheelies in the first three gears.
She's my V65, you don't know what I've got!
Notes:

  1. Since publishing this page, Swedish 'Maggot Robert Soback has informed me that a Swedish Rock Band, "Kenneth and the Knutters", exclusively performs songs about biker culture or, as Robert puts it, "driving to meetings, drinking beer, hunting cars, racing redlights, chasing girls, and getting chased by the police". They also do brand-specific songs, including Moto-Guzzis, BMWs, Harleys, and CBXs, but no V-4s :-( Of course, they only sing in Swedish!
  2. The big Sabres and possibly various other SabMag models don't have the wings; so sue me!
  3. While there are many flavors of Honda V4s, the V65 is arguably considered the pinnacle; certainly it's the "muscle bike" of the group (liter-class Interceptor excepted). Feel free to substitute your engine size here (V45 works well; V30 and Interceptor models are tougher - maybe vF1K?). I considered making this phrase "She's my Honda V4", but that makes the 1st line of the 2nd verse redundant.
  4. Substitute your year and model here. Ex. Just an '86 Magna; Just an '84 'ceptor ...
  5. This might be a slight stretch (very slight) but close enough to match the original
  6. Everybody, except when Carmel and an entire stadium held their collective breath as Dave Dodge stood TPM® completely vertical where it hung for what seemed an eternity before landing ... fortunately with the rubber side down!

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