I’ve been thinking about doing this for a few months. Usually ideas like this kick around for awhile until I finally have to say, “ENOUGH, VOICES IN MY HEAD! YOU WIN, I’LL WRITE THE DAMN ARTICLE!” And writing the article will silence the voices…for a little bit. This is how my three part article on New Coke was written. You’re welcome, by the way, for that little “peek behind the curtain”.
So, the Beastie Boys released their first album, License to Ill, in Nov 1986. I bought that album, on tape, either later that year or early 1987. I had just started getting into rap at the time. I listened mostly to Run-DMC and The Fat Boys. I liked both group’s rap style, which wasn’t surprising since both of them were on Def Jam Records, famously portrayed in the movie Krush Groove. And, not surprisingly, The Beastie Boys were also a part of the Def Jam family. They even had a track on the 1985 Krush Groove soundtrack that I had completely forgotten about when License to Ill was released. That first album blew me away. I loved it and listened to it non-stop until I completely wore the tape out and had to buy another one. I have been a fan of the Boys ever since.
The Beastie Boys released 8 official studio albums beginning with that first one in 1986. There were also several other compilations, EPs and video albums that were released at various times throughout their career. However, I’m going to focus on the main 8 studio albums.
Here we go, The Beastie Boys albums in order of my personal preference.
1. License to Ill (1986) – Their first studio album and, to me, their best. You will never convince me otherwise. I learned pretty much every song back to front. It is still the album I listen to first when I want my Beastie Boys fix. You can tell they are very much influenced by Run-DMC on this album to the point that their song Slow and Low is a cover of an unreleased Run-DMC song. Some of my favorite tracks include Fight for your Right (To Party), Paul Revere, No Sleep till Brooklyn, She’s Crafty, Posse in Effect, The New Style, and Hold It Now (Hit It). Essentially, the whole album is a classic.
2. Check Your Head (1992) – This, their third album, is amazing. Whereas Paul’s Boutique (see below) was a more experimental rap album, this one is a grittier version of License to Ill. This is the album where the Beasties abandoned synthesizers and began playing all their own instruments on every track. They also started using on this album the “echo voice” effect for which they’ve become known. The soundscape of this album is just awesome and I love it to death. Classic tracks include So What’cha Want, Pass the Mic, The Maestro, Jimmy James and Professor Booty. Just so you know, I think So What’cha Want is probably my favorite Beasties song of all time. This album was remastered and re-released in 2009. This re-release added a bonus disc which featured extra tracks like The Skills to Pay the Bills which was the B-side of the So What’cha Want single.
3. Paul’s Boutique (1989) – It may be a bit controversial that Paul’s Boutique is not higher on the list. This was the B-Boys’ second studio album and the one magazines like Rolling Stone love to pretentiously put as a “greatest album”. Don’t get me wrong, it’s really good and offers a nice variety of traditional and “experimental” rap. The singles Hey Ladies and Shake Your Rump are really good as are the tracks The Sounds of Science, High Plains Drifter, B-Boy Bouillabaisse and Looking Down the Barrel of a Gun. The Beasties were really stretching themselves to try something new on this album, but the important thing is that they didn’t overreach. An almost perfectly formed experimental rap album. Perfect parts traditional + experimental rap.
4. Hello Nasty (1998) – This is a great album. The Beasties turn back to the synthesized sound for this record. Most of the songs sound highly processed like they were run through a computer. It’s a fun one to listen to and I keep forgetting how much I really do enjoy it. Songs I like from this album include Super Disco Breakin’, Put Shame in your Game, Unite, Remote Control, Intergalactic and Three MCs and One DJ.
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Cavalcade of Awesome 