A MUSICAL MASTERPIECE
Full disclosure, I just read the Beastie Boys autobiography and have been going through their albums, which eventually led me to write this.
First off, the group is more of a hybrid collective of rap, rock, punk, and art.
As pioneering and prolific as they became, these dudes are mostly known for their first record License To Ill from 1986 which included "Fight For Your Right", "Brass Monkey", & "No Sleep Till Brooklyn." However, this depicted them as more "frat boys" then notable mc's or musicians. To their defense, they were teenage punk rockers in the early stages of becoming rappers.
AND NOW I STOP THE HISTORY LESSON.
Bottom line, here's are my quintessential four Beastie Boys tracks and why!
Shake Your Rump
I wasn't doing this post without mentioning Paul's Boutique and my go to from it "Shake Your Rump." UNDERSTAND! This album changed the game of music sampling and put it into an art form. Heavy hitters in the NYC rap scene were secretly impressed with what they pulled off.
Pass The Mic
Known fact, Paul Boutique wasn't a major success and this prompted the group to build their own studio called G-Son in Atwater Village (Los Angeles). This is also when the Beastie Boys started to take more control of their music videos bringing a minimalist yet creative approach to filming them. "Pass The Mic" off Check Your Head is just so dope and real.
So What'cha Want
Also off Check Your Head, this track is just straight banging. Using samples like "I've Been Watching You" by Southside Movement, while incorporating DJ scratching and their band. Even in the video you just feel the raw energy that they always bring with each song.
Sabotage
From Ill Communication, I liked this track but for a while it wasn't my favorite. Then as I dove more into the history of the band and heard tracks like "Time For Livin", I soon realized these mensches were originally a hardcore punk band. In the era of 90s Alternative Rock, this was the perfect song to put out not to mention the amazing video for it. You clearly get their influence from legends like the Bad Brains and how often do you get to hear a Jewish guy from the Upper West Side yelling into your speaker for 3 minutes?
Honorable mentions.
"Slow and Low" "Shadrach" "Root Down" "Sure Shot"
That's it. When you can, I encourage anyone to go through the Beastie Boys discography on Spotify and learn/hear how unique this group was. RIP MCA.
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