The Deuce Coupes

Two albums were released by the Deuce Coupes in 1963, one on Crown Records (Shut Downs) and one on Del-Fi Records (Hotrodder's Choice), and although both were full of the hot rod-themed songs and instrumentals that were popular at the time, they were actually two different groups sporting the same name. The Del-Fi version of the Deuce Coupes grew out of the Avantis, formed by brothers Lolly Vegas and Pat Vegas, who would go on to fame in the 1970s as Redbone. The duo recorded Hot Rodder's Choice as the Deuce Coupes backed by a group of crack L.A. session players, including Glen Campbell, Hal Blaine, Tommy Tedesco, and Leon Russell. By 1965 the bottom had dropped out of the hot rod boom, and the brothers Vegas dropped the Deuce Coupes name and moved on to other ventures. The Crown Records version of the Deuce Coupes was a group of session players thrown together to capitalize on the drag strip craze. Owned by Saul and Jules Bihari, who also owned and ran the Modern and RPM record labels, Crown Records was the company's discount budget line, and Shut Downs was never intended to be more than a quick cash in, but the record has its moments in spite of its origins. Confusion over the two groups was never much of an issue, since neither was a big success. Tracks from the Vegas version of the Deuce Coupes show up fairly regularly on surf and hot rod comps, particularly "Nite Prowler," which also turned up on the Home Alone 3 soundtrack.
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