Where am I?: "The Little Old Lady (from Pasadena)" Jan and Dean (1964)

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“Go Granny, Go Granny, Go Granny, Go!” This humorous song is about a granny driving a Dodge muscle car who becomes the terror of Colorado Blvd. (the route of the famed Tournament of Roses Parade). Written by Jan Berry, Roger Christian and Don Altfeld, the song was inspired by a Dodge commercial with an old lady driving. Pasadena was a wealthy town with numerous rich widows who inherited expensive hardly driven cars. That was a selling point for used car salesmen who described such cars as good because they were owned by a “little old lady from Pasadena.” Jan and Dean (Torrance) were LA boys who met in junior high school and started singing. They became friends with Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys who lent a helping hand. Jan and Wilson co-wrote “Surf City” which was their only #1 hit. From the album of the same name, “The Little Old Lady from Pasadena” reached #3 and Jan and Dean were backed by the Wrecking Crew including Leon Russell and Billy Strange. Jan and Dean were quite popular until Jan was in a horrific auto accident (echoing their hit “Dead Man’s Curve”) severely injuring him in the late 60s. Jan did miraculously recover somewhat well but their heyday was over. Berry passed away in 2004.