STACK #186 Apr 2020

MUSIC FEATURE

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Beastie Boys with Run-DMC in NYC, 1987

Licensed To Ill Beastie Boys

Jam Records with Russell Simmons and pretty much spearheaded the rap-rock movement. Before Licensed To Ill , Rubin produced Raising Hell by Run-DMC; this Queens hip-hop duo ushered in rap-rock two years earlier with Rock Box (produced by Simmons and Larry Smith). And Run-DMC receive songwriting credits on

Year 1986

U ntil Hot Chip blew our collective faces off with their extraordinary cover of Beastie Boys’ Sabotage – pretty faithful to the original, with Alexis Taylor effortlessly adopting the Beasties’ irate/screechy vocal delivery and surprising us asll – during their awesome Australian shows last month, we had almost forgotten about the NewYork hip-hop trio. Licensed To Ill , the debut album by Beastie Boys, dropped when I was in HSC and could often be heard blasting from our common room. (You Gotta) Fight For Your Right (To Party!) was obviously a favourite and we just loved hanging out the windows shrieking along, especially with the school-themed lyricism: “You missed two classes, and NO HOMEWORK!” This track was also a perfect selection to crank out when your mum was giving you the sh-ts: “Mom you’re just jealous it’s the BEA-STIE BOYS!” And whenever someone asked for the time post- Licensed To Ill ’s release, our favoured response was: “TIME TO GET ILL!” Beastie Boys’ aforementioned Diamond- certified set became the first rap record to top the Billboard album chart (where it remained for seven straight weeks) and is the best-selling

immediately received high rotation on MTV. Their image also informed the evolution of streetwear and sneaker culture; circa Licensed To Ill , the Beasties pretty much mimicked the leisurewear and clean sneaks look of Run- DMC. Baseball cap sales

Licensed To Ill : they originally recorded Slow And Low as a demo (with Rubin producing) and Joseph “Run” Simmons came up with Paul Revere’s opening lines (“Here’s a little story I’ve got to tell about three bad brothers you know so well...”).

skyrocketed thanks to Beastie Boys, who often experimented with placement that made peaks jut out at quirky angles. Then came wearing a massive VW hood ornament around one’s neck on a chunky gold chain, which saw some Volkswagen dealerships offering free replacements to customers due to an increase in thefts. “The Beasties opened hip-hop music up to the suburbs,” Rick Rubin, who produced Licensed To Ill , has pointed out. “As crazy as they were, they seemed safe to Middle America, in a way black artists hadn’t been up to that time.” Rubin – himself a metalhead – formed Def

LicensedTo Ill gatefold cover

Since Rubin was simultaneously producing Licensed To Ill and Slayer’s Reign In Blood , he recruited Kerry King to play lead guitar on the Beasties’ raucous hit No Sleep Till Brooklyn . King also appears in this song’s accompanying music video – a glam-metal parody – sporting a gorilla suit. Even this Beastie Boys song’s title is a spoof (on Mötörhead’s No Sleep ‘Til Hammersmith ). Licensed To Ill ’s gatefold cover artwork – a Beastie Boys-branded

rap record of the ‘80s. Licensed To Ill also pushed rap onto rock radio – and into the mainstream – thanks to its canny use of samples. According to WhoSampled, album closer Time To Get Ill features 14 samples, from artists as diverse as Creedence Clearwater Revival ( Down On The Corner ), Kool &The Gang ( Funky Stuff ), Barry White ( I’m Gonna Love You Just A Little More Baby ) and AC/DC ( Flick Of The Switch ). Irreverent and obnoxious, the unabashed enthusiasm of Beastie Boys was further amplified by their anarchic film clips, which

airplane crashing into the side of a cliff – incorporates a Mad Magazine -style fold-in that transforms the artwork into a burnt-out joint. Also, when held up to a mirror the plane’s number plate reads, “Eat Me” – so Beasties! Often dismissed as a novelty act by hip-hop purists, Beastie Boys could be considered rapping

In NYC’s East Village, 1980s

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APRIL 2020

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