Beastie Boys: To the 5 Boroughs

 
Beastie Boys: To the 5 Boroughs

2004

Capitol Records

Format I Own it on: Compact Disc

Track Listing:  1. Ch-Check It Out  2. Right Right Now Now  3. 3 the Hard Way  4. Time to Build  5. Rhyme the Rhyme Well  6. Triple Trouble  7. Hey Fuck You  8. Oh Word?  9. That's It That's All  10. All Lifestyle  11. Shazam!  12. An Open Letter to NYC  13. Crawlspace 14. The Brouhaha  15. We Got The  16. Now Get Busy

I remember this album causing a shit-storm on the internet when it was released (on the other hand, what doesn't cause a shit-storm on the internet?)  As I recall these attacks came form two fronts...This was released not too long after the September 11th attacks and if you recall all music released for awhile after that tragic event was a bit simplistic and jingoistic. Which is probably to be expected from a culture trying to heal...But the Beastie Boys were one of the first wave of bands that criticized then-President George W Bush's policies, and fans complained that the album was nothing but a cheap political platform...

I said it then and I say it now...Even the Beastie Boys have the right to air their political views...It's their record, they can talk about whatever they want on it...and it's not like they've never done it before...

I mean, the specificity of its political commentary does date it a bit now, but speaking as someone who has no problem listening to a band called "Reagan Youth" I don't especially have a problem with that aspect...



And what...you're not supposed to talk about the things that are important to you right now because you may sound dated in the future? Man...who cares?!?! Besides, as is the norm with political lyrics, you can always just change the names a bit and unfortunately, they still  always seem relevant....

The other criticism came from the disc itself...That it installed spyware on your computer... At the time of its release, the once mighty record companies were now beginning to feel the strain of internet piracy, and this album was one of the first to feature that big anti-piracy warning on it....

...and there had been lots of reports about some spyware being developed to stop piracy,  so everyone assumed this disc had it for some reason, and a lot of fans were really upset about it...And, as with most things people become enraged about on the internet, it wasn't true...There was no copyright protection software on the disc (except in Europe, where  it's a standard practice, and even then it's not spyware, which is something else entirely...).  So yea, I remember the record getting a pretty chilly reception.

In actuality, it's a pretty cool (and fun) record...Completely abandoning the genre- hopping that's been their trademark since "Check Your Head." this is 100%  old-school hip hop.  The Beasties toss around dizzying pop-culture references, and the politics only really occur on  about 3 of the album's 16 tracks...And I find this to be one of the groups funniest records...When I first got this I couldn't stop rewinding that ""Tappin'!  Clappin'! Rappin'! The sound of fingers snappin'!" sample...hoo boy, I thought that was funny...

The disc also boasts one of my favorite Beastie Boys songs,  "An Open Letter to NYC."   Built around the ominous opening guitar riff of the Dead Boys' "Sonic Reducer" (which I should get to in a year or so), the track is a charged love-letter to their city, that really only addresses 9/11 in passing ("two towers down but we're still in the game..." MCA raps), but the cloud of guitars couldn't be more clear...I think it's significant that if you look at the drawing of the New York city skyline on the album cover, the Towers are both still standing...it appears to be simultaneously an act of nostalgia and defiance...

Oh yea, I should also give a shout-out to the lyric sheet...It's pretty great...It comes with extensive editor's notes that are often as enjoyable as the lyrics....In this post-physical media world, bands often neglect the lyric sheet...I appreciate the attention to detail...

So yea, not as stunning as the string of great albums that preceded it, but it shouldn't be overlooked either...Here's a pretty cool live performance the band gave on David Letterman back in 2004 of "Ch-Check It Out."  Enjoy...

Beastie Boys: Anthology: The Sounds of Science

Beastie Boys: Anthology: The Sounds of Science

1999

Grand Royal/Capitol Records

Format I Own it on: Compact Disc

Track Listing:

Disc 1: 1.  Beastie Boys  2. Slow and Low  3. Shake Your Rump  4. Gratitude  5. Skills to Pay the Bills  6. Root Down  7. Believe Me  8. Sure Shot  9. Body Movin' (Fatbosy Slim Remix)  10. Boomin' Granny  11. Fight for Your Right  12. Country Mike's Theme  13. Pass the Mic  14. . Something's Got to Give  15. Bodhisattva Vow  16. Sabrosa  17. Song for the Man  18. Soba Violence  19. Alive  20. Jimmy James (Original Version)   21.Three MC's and One DJ" (Live Video Version)

Disc 2:  1. The Biz vs. the Nuge  2. Sabotage  3. Shadrach  4. Brass Monkey  5. Time for Livin  6. Dub the Mic  7. Benny and the Jets   8. The Negotiation Limerick File  9. I Want Some  10.  She's on It  11. Son of Neckbone  12. Get it Together  13.Twenty Questions   14. Remote Control  15. Railroad Blues  16.  Live Wire   17. So What'cha Want  18. Netty's Girl  19. Egg Raid on Mojo  20. Hey Ladies  21. Intergalactic
This cover, although hilarious, is also kind of sad now...We'll never really get to see all three Beastie Boys together as old men with canes and shit...Uh-oh...Now I'm getting all choked up....Get yourself together, man...Must think good thoughts...I know....

A nice box of  El Robusto cigars...

 ...wrapped in bacon...

...and a nice 12 year old single malt Scotch...

...which I would drink out of a beer helmet...

...and a stack of nudie magazines this high... "Cabaret!" Ooo la-la!

Alright, I'm feeling better now...

"The Soundsw of Science" is a two-disc retrospective of the Beastie Boys career up until 1999.  This release was notable because there was a website where you could choose the songs you wanted to appear on the album,  and have a customized version shipped to you..That was probably too ambitious for me, so I just bought the regular version sold in stores...The group wanted to use their 1985 single "Rock Hard" but couldn't get the clearance for the AC/DC sample...Which is too bad...It's a kick-ass track that is now out of print...Once again, thank God for youtube...

"The Sounds of Science" consists of familiar  hits and a ton of previously unreleased and rare material...Since I have already gone over the hits I'll stick to the material I haven't covered...

Things start appropriately enough with their theme song "Beastie Boys," which comes from their hardcore debut "Polly Wog Stew."



"Polly Wog Stew" was later reissued in the 90's along w/ the early hip hop single "Cooky Puss," on the "Some Old Bullshit" compilation. I know a lot of people weren't into it but I always liked it...Man, I haven't heard it in years...



Also from "Polly Wog Stew" they throw in "Egg Raid on Mojo," the lyrics of which were later reused on "Eggman" from "Paul's Boutique."


And why were there no hardcore songs on "Hello Nasty?" Well, there was supposed to be, but the band wrote too many of them, so they put out the separate "Aglio e Olio"  hardcore e.p. Two of which "I Want Some" and the ultra-catchy "Believe Me," appear here.   Again, being a DFL admirer I love this 80's throwback shit... Also included is "Soba Violence" (a hardcore track with the added bonus of glitchy electronics) which appeared on some overseas versions of "Aglio e Olio."

The previously unreleased cover of "Benny & the Jets," is one of the greatest things in the entire Beastie boys' canon...Biz Markie gives the mush-mouthed performance of a lifetime, while the band delivers a jerky backing, and  a virtual crowd goes wild...I don't throw this word around often on this site, but here it is...Genius! Pure and simple...

My other favorite track on here is "Railroad Blues" from the rare "Country Mike's Greatest Hits" album (which featured the awesomely sitcom back story of Mike D getting hit on the head and getting amnesia and thinking he was 'Country Mike' and the rest of the band having to play along). I've listened to this 500 times and it still always cracks me up, mostly due to the unbelievably intrusive railroad whistle and lyrics like, "America was young, but she was a-growin'..."

On the bottom of the heap, are the dumb jokes "Netty's Girl" and "Boomin' Granny,"(a take on LL Cool J's "I Need Love" aimed at the Sunday Night Bingo crowd...) both of which are amusing for maybe 30 seconds...

There's the usual assortment of remixes and alternate versions, some of these I think people will be interested in, since the versions of "Body Movin'" and "Three MC's and One DJ" are the alternate versions featured in their excellent music videos.   "Pass the Dub" is probably the coolest remix they have...The 70's dub style suits the song well, and manages to maintain my interest for its duration...

This compilation features the popular single "Alive" which previews the heady mix of serious social consciousness, goofy pop culture jokes and hip hop boasts that would provide the blueprint for the Beastie Boys next album "To the 5 Boroughs." But we'll get to that tomorrow...

This anthology is lots of fun and beats the pants off the later "Solid Gold Hits" retrospective...



So I'd say skip that and go straight for "The Sounds of Science,"  unless you're really only interested in their hits only, but c'mon...branch out a little bit...

So let's listen to "Benny & the Jets" by the Beastie Boys and Biz Markie...Enjoy...

Beastie Boys: Hello Nasty

Beastie Boys: Hello Nasty

1998

Capitol Records

Format I Own it on: Compact Disc

Track Listing: 1. Super Disco Breakin'  2. The Move  3. Remote Control  4. Song for the Man  5. Just a Test  6. Body Movin'  7. Intergalactic  8. Sneakin' Out the Hospital  9. Putting Shame in Your Game  10. Flowin' Prose  11. "And Me"  12. Three MC's and One DJ  13. The Grasshopper Unit (Keep Movin')  14. Song for Junior  15. "I Don't Know  16. The Negotiation Limerick File  17. Electrify  18. Picture This  19. Unite  20. Dedication  21. Dr. Lee, PhD  22. Instant Death

"Hello Nasty" is the band's fifth full-length album and possibly their final straight-up masterpiece...It's certainly their longest and most ambitious...I remember this tape being a little overwhelming at first, but patience really rewarded this one....

I originally owned this album on Cassette...

 I was probably the last guy buying tapes in the late 90's, so some of you might not be as familiar with this type of cardboard tape-box design with the flap that opened at the top... They always reminded me of a box of Marlboros...

KMFDM's 1997 album "wingdings." is the only other tape I can think of (off the top of my head)  that utilized the same design, but I'm certain there were others...

Alright, back to "Hello Nasty..." Immediately noticeable is the cleaning up of the sound. There's very little of their recent staticky lo-fi and the the lyrics are actually legible for a change...The hip hop is more of the Early 80's Electro-Funk variety, as evidenced by the monster hit "Intergalactic," which sports an old school robo-rap vibe straight from a Whodini album...

And most significantly, this is the album where they introduce the mighty Mix Master Mike, who was a hell of a find. The coolest moment on the album (musically speaking)  is the introduction on  "Three MC's and One DJ" where Mix Master Mike introduces his "tweak scratch" via a  phone call...   He  basically just cuts the record back and forth while running the signal through a wah pedal..See? That's what I like! Innovation! 

 They also pull off what is probably their biggest coup ever...Snagging legendary Jamaican madman Lee "Scratch" Perry to provide vocals on the chirpy organ dub " Dr. Lee, PhD" (Who is apparently under the impression he is working with the "Beastly Boys" Compare this to Biz Markie's guest spots where he refers to them as the "Beatsie Boys...")




(The cover of Lee Perry's album "Super Ape" is probably one of my favorite album covers of all time...What could possibly top the image of a giant ape uprooting  a tree with one hand and holding a massive joint in the other?  Give yourself a few minutes to soak in the greatness of that album cover...Cos I won't be covering Lee Perry until a few years from now...)

Also notable is the "Negotiation Limerick File" where.the Beastie Boys utilize a limerick rhyming scheme,  over a haunting vocal sample that I can't place...But this is probably my favorite of their hip hop tracks...

There's not much in the way of the 70's funk instrumentals that had become a staple of their last couple albums,  but they do introduce a new style that I can only describe as Tropicalia-tinged alt-pop (remember, Tropicalia was a popular influence in the alternative world around this time), where the Beastie's actually...gasp...sing!  Their singing skills are nowhere near their rapping (or shouting skills) but it gets the point across...I appreciate the effort...It's somewhat reminiscent of Cibo Matto (who's singer "Miho Hatori" makes an appearance on "I Don't Know"

Listening to the lyrics on "Song for the Man" makes you realize how far they've come since "Licensed to Ill." Lyrically and musically...


"What makes you feel...
Like you got the right
To look her up and down..."

Huh? These are the same guys that put out "She's On It?"

That was the beauty of the Beastie Boys...They actually evolved...They started their career sounding like the biggest jerks on planet Earth, but a mere 12 years later and they were putting out some of the most thoughtful music and lyrics out there...

I enjoyed the Beastie boys albums that came after this but they weren't so far-reaching and experimental...Like I said earlier, this feels like the last truly epic Beastie Boys album....

Now let's check out the groups' greatest video, "Body Movin'" This video utilizes the Fatboy Slim remix that's available on the "Sounds of Science" compilation, but we'll get tot that tomorrow...Tonight, we check out "Body Movin." by the Beastie Boys...Enjoy....

Beastie Boys: Ill Communication

Beastie Boys: Ill Communication (2009 remastered version)

1994

Capitol/Grand Royal Records

Format I Own it on: Compact Disc

Track Listing:

Disc 1:   1. Sure Shot  2. Tough Guy  3.B-Boys Makin' with the Freak Freak  4. Bobo on the Corner  5. Root Down  6. Sabotage  7. Get it Together   8. Sabrosa  9. The Update  10. Futterman's Rule  11. Alright Hear This  12. Eugene's Lament  13. Flute Loop  14. Do It  15. Ricky's Theme  16. Heart Attack Man  17. The Scoop  18. Shambala  19. Bodhisattva Vow  20. Transitions

Disc 2;  1.  Root Down (Free Zone Mix)  2. Resolution Time  3. Get It Together (Buck-Wild Remix)  4. Dope Little Song  5. Sure Shot (European B-Boy Mix)  6. Heart Attack Man (Unplugged)  7. "The Vibes  8. Atwater Basketball Association File No. 172-C  9. Heart Attack Man (live)  10. The Maestro (live)  11. Mullet Head  12. Sure Shot (European B-Boy Instrumental)



Ho-boy, am I ever feeling the effects of last night's Friday Night Record Party...I drank a box of Sam Adams Summer Ale...

 ...and this morning I feel like I could drink the entire Atlantic and my mouth would still be dry...On the plus side, I was finally able to find this last night...

....I've been obsessed with finding the Arizona Grapeade after I saw some kid drinking it on the bus and became completely taken with the can...I was so jealous of it...It was so damn purple...I combed every 7-11 and Circle K in the entire city, to no avail...It turns out all I had to do was go into the CVS right next to my house and buy it...I was overjoyed to find out it tastes exactly how I expected it to taste...

Oh yea, I also re-discovered this old Digger song that I 110% forgot about...

Anyway, I invited you here today to check out "Ill Communication" by the Beastie Boys...

For years I listened to this record and like many other people of my generation, I was deeply intrigued by the "Sheeyit..If this is gonna be that kind of a party, I'm gonna stick my dick in the mashed potatoes" sample...

Who was it? What could possibly be the set up for such a landmark punchline. Were we better off not knowing?

Well, eventually. the internet came along and such pressing questions no longer had to keep me awake at night....Turns out it was a comedy record by actor Mantan Moreland, who apparently was almost the Third Stooge at some point...I would have killed to see that happen...Damn you history, for not letting this happen!

Anyway, here it is...Simply click on the video below and hear the rest of the "mashed potatoes" joke...

With that out of the way, we can get down to business...

...the business of eating some bomb-ass ribs...

Okay, with that out the way, let's talk some "Ill Communication..."  I can't help but think of this album as "Check your Head Part 2: Check Again."

 Seemingly, the only Beastie Boys album to sound like the one before it...This may have something to do with the relatively short time span of time between albums (Two years is unheard of in Beastie Boys time). yet, in its own way it also comes off as more concise and confident...Like they were consolidating their strengths., while simultaneously departmentalizing their various styles...The hardcore and jazz doesn't bleed into the rap the same way as before....

The songs largely fall into the following categories:

 Hard Core:  I'm crazy about the band's take on hardcore...Very retro and frizzed out..."Heart Attack Man" and "Tough Guy"  give me flashbacks to Beastie's satellite band  DFL (Dead Fucking Last) who put out some incredible 80's sounding hardcore albums in the 90's...

 Y'know I've always had the theory that "Tough Guy" and "Heart Attack Man' were the same guy...Can anyone back up this theory?

Jazzy Funk Instrumentals: Barring a little more variety in the percussion department, these are all very similar to the ones on "Check Your Head." I've always been a fan of these throwback 70's style instrumentals, and I consider "Ricky's Theme" to be their best one...Oooo, that jazzy electric piano sounds so nice...

Hip hop: The real heart and soul of the album; crackly old school hip hop, with deep grooves and funny lines aplenty (although I think Q-Tip pulls off some of the best lines on the album during his guest appearance on "Get it Together.)...The rap songs are where the group makes some of its biggest strides...These are much cleaner, tighter and catchier than most of the "Check Your Head" hip hop. "Sure Shot" and "Root Down" sounded right at home on radio and MTV...

The only song that don't really fit into any of the above categories is the 70's riff-rocker "Sabotage," which was a smash hit, largely due to its memorable video...This song has always reminded me of "Gratitude."

The 2009 remaster I have also includes a bonus disc, that kind of plays like a miniature version of "Ill Communication." Aside from some remixes (I've never really been a big fan of the whole remix thing), and a fairly pointless audio track of the Beastie Boys playing basketball, there are some cool tracks here. Most notably the murky hip hop track "The Vibes" which features a few of the album's best lyrics:

"Taking care of my functions still smokin, up the shrubbery
I stopped eating chicken 'cause the shit was too rubbery!"

and who can forget the immortal line:

"I like the boomin' grannies in big old panties..."

 There's also the intense hardcore track "Mullethead" which is perhaps one of the most culturally significant hardcore songs ever, since it appears to contain the earliest known use of the term "mullet." 

It's also good to hear the live version of "The Maestro" again. Ad-Rock gives a freakin' intense performance. I can recall hearing this originally on the "Root Down" e.p. and was positively taken with his insane screaming...



The Beastie Boys pulled off another 90's classic and really solidified their place as one of that decade's biggest bands...If you were there, their run of 90's albums and their always creative (and hilarious) videos were era-defining...Let's check out the  video for "Sabotage" if you need a reminder (which I'm sure you don't!)

Beastie Boys: Check Your Head

Beastie Boys: Check Your Head

1992

Capitol Records

Format I Own it on: Compact Disc

Track Listing: 1. Jimmy James  2. Funky Boss  3. Pass the Mic  4. Gratitude  5. Lighten Up  6. Finger Lickin' Good  7. So What'cha Want  8. The Biz vs. The Nuge  9. Time for Livin'  10. Something's Got to Give  11. The Blue Nun  12. Stand Together  13. POW  14. The Maestro  15. Groove Holmes  16. Live at PJ's  17. Mark on the Bus  18. Professor Booty  19. In 3's  20. Namasté

It may be hard to believe now, but back in1989 Paul's Boutique was considered a commercial and critical failure...It was derided as being too impenetrable and sold only a fraction of what "Licensed to Ill" had sold. It turned out "Paul's Boutique" was actually a  "grower" album, and after awhile the public started to understand what an accomplishment it really was...I  can remember being excited to hear what the Beastie Boys were going to do next and in the spring of 1992 I promptly bought the cassette of "Check Your Head."

I can still remember looking at the cover in the car ride home and seeing the instruments and thinking "Woah! Do the Beastie Boys actually play instruments?"  I don't know if samples were just getting too expensive at this point or if the Beasties were courting the Alternative Nation but the amount of samples were drastically reduced this time around...The band instead made their own samples...With the help of Money Mark's jazzy electric piano, the whole thing stank of  70's funk and felt convincingly stoned...

"I did not inhale...but if we groove out to "Funky Boss," one more time,  I just might reconsider..."

 I went home and popped it in the tape-deck and can still recall hearing the dense, foggy funk of "Jimmie James" for teh first time...It sounded like a big wool blanket had been tossed over the mics...MCA's normally upfront voice was jacketed in lo-fi  crackle...How would I be able to understand the group's dense storytelling with all this distortion?  As the album played on I realized there wasn't going to be any storytelling...The vocals (the ones I could make out anyway) were limited to hip hop boasting and pleas for peace... Hell, sometimes there wasn't even vocals...A good chunk of the tape was devoted to instrumentals...

The monolithic John Bonham drumbeat on "So What'cha Want" stood out, that's for sure...I also loved the breakneck 80's hardcore of their Sly Stone/Lee Perry cover "Time for Livin'" and the "Looking Down a Barrel of a Gun" hard rock of "Gratitude..." But the rest kind of went over my head...

Fast forward a few months and I was obsessed with the tape...The chaotic jumble had cleared...It was obvious that the band had taken all their musical and cultural interests and had constructed a dense kingdom to house them all; hardcore, hip-hop, jazz, funk, psychedelia, obscure pop culture references... It's all here...and it turned out this was the way to follow up a classic album...Toss the script and come up with something completely different... The loose eclecticism and obscure pop culture references made it seem like they belonged in the 90's all along..."Licensed to Ill" suddenly seemed primitive and outmoded...

As I was writing this it hit me that I have been listening to this album for over 20 years now...This seems insane to me, but the calendar doesn't lie (unless it's a Mayan calendar that said the world was going to end in 2012...

 ... that calendar was full of shit, man..)

"Check your Head" seems almost on par with "Paul's Boutique" to my ears...I'm calling it their second best album....To celebrate this meaningless honor, let's rock out to "So What'cha Want" by the Beastie Boys...

Beastie Boys: Paul's Boutique

Beastie Boys: Paul's Boutique

1989

Capitol Records

Format I Own it on: Compact Disc

Track Listing : 1. To All the Girls  2. Shake Your Rump  3. Johnny Ryall  4. Egg Man 5. High Plains Drifter  6. The Sounds of Science  7. 3-Minute Rule  8. Hey Ladies  9.5-Piece Chicken Dinner  10. Looking Down the Barrel of a Gun  11. Car Thief  12.What Comes Around  13. Shadrach  14. Ask for Janice  15. B-Boy Bouillabaisse (1. 59 Chrystie Street 2. Get on the Mic  3. Stop That Train"  4. A Year and a Day  5. Hello Brooklyn  6. "Dropping Names  7. Lay It on Me  8. Mike on the Mic  9. A.W.O.L.)

It's just a fact that this is the greatest hip hop album of all time..This may sound weird to some people, but I honestly think rap hit it's creative peak in the  80's and early 90's...The MC providing the storytelling was one part of the equation, but I considered the DJ to be equally vital...

Back in the day. hip hop music was so new that no one even bothered to think about the legal ramifications of sampling.As a result, albums would use a wide array of other artist's music to construct new tracks...but this practice died very quickly in the 90's when the artists that wrote and recorded the original music wanted credit and (most importantly) royalties for having their work used,  which is a legitimate request, but unfortunately it was one that destroyed rap in my eyes...

After the high-profile Biz Markie case, suddenly bands wanted top-dollar and no one could afford more than one sample per track. which effectively turned rap into some sort of  karaoke (which to be fair isn't totally unrelated to rap's 70's roots...). So instead of the kaleidoscope of colorful samples on classic hip hop albums like "Paul's Boutique,"  Public Enemy's "It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back,"  or the groundbreaking "The Adventures of Grandmaster Flash on the Wheels of Steel" single, you now have some guy going "Uh! Shake dat ass in da club" over a single repetitive sample..

(Just the sight of these old Sugar Hill record labels makes me happy!)

.Of course that's an overly simplistic view...There's still plenty of up and coming rappers who have a lot to say and are creating innovative music...It's just that they're missing a vital tool that made the music so appealing in the first place...I am happy to see the practice of using a live band come into play...Despite this promising development, there just doesn't seem to be as much great rap as there used to be...It probably has quite a bit to do with the fact that  people don't care about substantial music anymore, unfortunately...It sometimes seems the simpler and stupider the song, the bigger hit it becomes...Although, I do have to keep things in perspective by reminding myself that 1989 was the same year that brought us Milli Vanilli...

(You know...In this age of "auto-tune" these guys probably wouldn't have had to give back their Grammy Awards...Their tape would have skipped and they could have just done an Ashlee Simpson-style dance and nobody would have even questioned it...Never underestimate the power of the Ashlee Simpson dance...
)

But back to "Paul's Boutique:" Listening to this back to back with "Licensed to Ill" makes it all the more striking...You realize the Beastie Boys are attempting to make the hip hop version of "Abbey Road," right down to the side two medley (and even going as far as extensively sampling the Beatles on "Sounds of Science.") The Dust Brothers provide indisputable proof that sampling is an art form...You can listen to this album a million times and never hear it all...In fact, its density is its greatest asset...It's the album that keeps on giving! I've had this record a couple decades now and I'm still picking up on references I previously didn't understand (it took me a long time to figure out what Putney Swope was...
)

 and I can't tell you how many times I've checked out some obscure song and realize, "Hey! The Beastie Boys sampled this on "Paul's Boutique!"

This album has received endless accolades and you don't need one more person carrying on about how great it is (and it is great!) so instead we're going to take a look at the foundation that "Paul's Boutique" was built upon...We're going to check out just a few of the original songs that provided the building blocks for this record...

To All the Girls:

This track is based around the cool and jazzy  "Loran's Dance" by drummer Idris Muammad...The most chilled-out 11 minutes you're ever going to experience in your life...

 
Shake Your Rump:

Features the unforgettable "That's the Joint!" sample from Funky 4+1, who were a classic old school rap group that was notable for having a woman MC...Listening to this one makes me want to put on parachute pants and spin around on my head...

Johnny Ryall:

 Is mostly based around the instantly recognizable "Sharon" by David Bromberg...

Egg Man:

 Samples "Sport" by Lightnin' Rod, which is the funkiest damn song I've ever heard in my life...Check it out...

High Plains Drifter:

The obvious thing to do here would be to post "Those Shoes" by the Eagles, but I can't pass up the opportunity to listen to "Suzy is a Headbanger" by the Ramones...What a great song!

  The Sounds of Science:

This song is based mostly around a handful of Beatles songs, most prominently "The End," but let's check out "I Do Not Sniff the Coke" by Pato Banton...

3-Minute Rule:

Dig the funky drum break from the beginning of "Feel Good" by Fancy...

Hey Ladies:

Features "So Ruff, So Tuff" from the Kings of the Vocoder...Zapp & Roger!

.5-Piece Chicken Dinner:

Yee-hawww! It's "Shuckin' the Corn!"

Looking Down the Barrel of a Gun:

Fast forward to about the 4 and a half minute mark on the Incredible Bongo Band's "Last Bongo in Belgium"  and you'll hear the basis of "Looking Down the Barrel of a Gun." This song marks the only track that I know of on "Paul's Boutique" where the Beastie Boys provide their own instrumentation over the sampled drum track...

Car Thief:

This song consists largely of "Rien Ne Va Plus" by Funk Factory...Very funky...

What Comes Around:

This song samples the guitar riff from "It's Hot Tonight" by Alice Cooper...You can listen to it here...

 Shadrach:

The "Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego" chant in this song is from "Loose Booty" by Sly Stone...This is just ridiculously funky...Make sure you listen to this one...

  B-Boy Bouillabaisse:

"Paul's Boutique's" unforgettable climax is a 12 and a half minute suite featuring innumerable samples an snippets...(randomly chooses one) how about "Starski Live at the Fever" by Love Bug Starski...

 Whew...That was a long listening session..I'm not gonna tie you guys up any longer, so let's wrap things up with "Hey Ladies!" by the Beastie Boys...

Beastie Boys: Licensed to Ill

Beastie Boys: Licensed to Ill

1986

Def Jam/Columbia

Format I Own it on: Vinyl & Compact Disc

Track Listing: 1. Rhymin & Stealin  2. The New Style 3. She's Crafty  4. Posse in Effect  5. Slow Ride  6. Girls 7. (You Gotta) Fight for Your Right (To Party!)  8. No Sleep till Brooklyn  9. Paul Revere  10. Hold It Now, Hit It  11. Brass Monkey  12. Slow and Low   13. Time to Get Ill

This album was really huge when I was in elementary school...Everywhere you looked there were kids in shades hanging out at the monkey bars with their big 80's boomboxes blasting "Brass Monkey." Which is an appropriate place to listen to it, I guess...

Rap was still a pretty new thing for most people...especially for folks like me who grew up in the sticks, but this was a perfect gateway into this world...Hell, it took me awhile to even figure out that this was supposed to be rap...It sounded so rock...

And the Beasties were cool as hell...What kid in 1986 didn't want to be these guys...guzzling Budweiser and scoring chicks...

 At the time we had no idea this was just some sort of elaborate parody...The Beastie Boys really hit on a lyrical POV that I can't recall anyone ever exploring before...They wrote their songs through the drunken, bleary eyes of entitled jerks...It seems to exist in its own little jerk-world where they would  break into the locker room, smash your glasses, laugh about it at the White Castle and finish the night watching Ed Norton, Ted Knight and Mr. Ed...But for some reason you didn't t hate these jerks...Against all odds they came across as genuinely funny and oddly likeable...

The only other time in music history, that I know of,  where these concerns have been addressed was on  "Go Girl Crazy!" by the Dictators, but the public seemed to have missed out on that one, so here it is...Dressed up in hip hop gold chains and  aimed at the frat boys...And boy did it work...This is hip hop's first gold record and what child of the 80's didn't memorize all the words to "Paul Revere?"  I haven't met one yet...I think their place in the rock & roll hall of fame was sealed in the first couple minutes of the record when they rap ,"My pistol is loaded, I shot Betty Crocker! Deliver Colonel Sanders down to Davey Jones' locker!"   That's the type of sentiment that's going to live on forever...



On a personal note, I remember a particular time my friend JJ visited my house.  You see, when JJ really liked a song he would record a 90 minute tape containing  nothing but that one song...Nowadays that would be an easy thing to do...you could just drag the song in question into your play list 45 times...but back then, every time you wanted to tape a song you had to hear it the entire time...You could marginally expedite the process if you had high-speed dubbing...

 So yea..we  had to listen to the song "Girls" about 45 times in a row...and then I'm sure JJ probably played the tape back.. I'm certain I probably heard "Girls" a good 90 times that day...He's a bastard like that...

I think he also did this to "Under Her Black Wings" by Danzig and "Outshined" by Soundgarden...To this day whenever I hear "Outshined" I kind of want to puke...

But getting back to "Licensed to Ill," I think the key to its success (besides the fun lyrics) really was the fact it presented the then-burgeoning genre of rap in a way that even the most musically- unadventurous kid in the suburb could understand....With all the heavy metal guitars and anthemic party-hardy choruses this wasn't too far removed from the world of rock...I mean, check out the Tony Iommi guitar riff sample and the John Bonham drums on "Rhymin & Stealin."  What rock fan couldn't wrap their heads around  that? A lot of rap records at the tine were just guys doing their thing over a sparse drum machine or some sort of disco backing, but Producer Rick Rubin really refines the rock-guitars-over-rap thing he had pioneered with Run DMC and LL Cool J.  And to the credit of everyone involved, .the album still feels fresh, funny and classic...After all, what's more fun than getting blasted on cheap beer and rapping along with "No Sleep til' Brooklyn?"

The answer is nothing...

In January 2014, I finally found an original vinyl copy of this album at Eastside Records and I couldn't be more stoked. Getting to see that iconic airplane painting in its full 12x12 glory is a beautiful feeling...And the gate-fold "crash" joke comes across more clearly in its original context.

To celebrate the year 1986 (the year this record was released) I went back into my pile of comics and scanned in some old advertisements from '86...

 Fig Newtons used to come in all kinds of awesome-sounding flavors apparently...Blueberry? Cherry? Now all I see is fig and Strawberry... Looking at this ad now it struck me that "GIF" is now a word...

I'm still checking the mail in hopes of finally receiving the official notification that I won the complete set of Go-Bots...

Yes! I loved Mask! I really like the idea that if  you keep the doors of a Delorean open,  the car will fly...They should get Michael Bay to make a Mask movie, that would be the greatest ever...

By "Mask" I mean the 1985 movie with Eric Stolz and Cher... Except Eric Stolz should really be an alien from outer space...

I kind of forgot Jolly Ranchers used to come in this form...I would always buy the  cinnamon flavor...I wish they still made the sticks...

 

Same goes for Bonkers candy...I used to really like the old TV ads where the fruit falls on the people...

 It's getting late, time to put the comics away and check out "(You Gotta) Fight for Your Right (To Party!)" by the Beastie Boys...3MTA3..