Everything about Licensed To Ill totally explained
Licensed to Ill is the debut album by the
Beastie Boys,
released in 1986.
It was the first
rap LP to top
Billboard's Pop Albums chart. It also peaked at #2 on the Top Hip Hop/R&B Albums chart. It was Columbia Records' fastest selling debut record to date and sold over five million copies.
Background
Kerry King of
Slayer made an appearance on the album playing lead guitar on "No Sleep Till Brooklyn", and appeared in the video, which is a
parody of
heavy metal music. The name of the song itself is a spoof on
Motörhead's
No Sleep 'til Hammersmith album. King's appearance on the track came about because Rick Rubin was producing both bands simultaneously (
Slayer's
Reign in Blood was originally released on
Def Jam).
The full album cover, front to back, features a
Boeing 727 — with "Beastie Boys" emblazoned on the tail — crashing head-on into the side of a mountain. The tail of the plane has the Def Jam logo and the legend '3MTA3' which spells 'EATME' when viewed in a mirror.
The original title for this album was
Don't Be a Faggot but
Columbia Records flatly refused to release the album with this title and pressured
Russell Simmons (their manager and label
Def Jam head) into having the Beastie Boys to come up with another name.
Adam Horovitz has since apologized for the band's earlier title.
Music videos were made for the songs "(You Gotta) Fight for Your Right (to Party)", "No Sleep Til Brooklyn", "Hold It Now, Hit It" and "She's Crafty".
Reception
In 1998, the album was selected as one of
The Source 100 best Hip-Hop Albums of All Time.
Vibe (12/99, p.158) - Included in Vibe's 100 Essential Albums of the 20th Century.
Q magazine (9/94, p.123) - 4 Stars - "Licensed to Ill remains the world's only punk rock rap album, arguably superior to
Never Mind the Bollocks...knowing that apathy and slovenliness were just around the corner."
Melody Maker (7/22/95, p.35) - Bloody Essential - "There's lots of self-reverential bragging, more tenuous rhymes than are usually permitted by law and, most importantly of all, an unshakably glorious celebration of being alive....A surprisingly enduring classic."
Track listing
"Rhymin & Stealin" (Beastie Boys/Rubin) – 4:08
"The New Style" (Beastie Boys/Rubin) – 4:36
- Contains samples from "2-3 Break" by The B-Boys, "Drop the Bomb" by Trouble Funk & "Peter Piper" by Run-D.M.C.
"She's Crafty" (Beastie Boys/Rubin) – 3:35
- Contains samples from "The Ocean" by Led Zeppelin
"Posse in Effect" (Beastie Boys/Rubin) – 2:27
- Contains samples from "Change le Beat" by B-Side & Fab Five Freddy, "Pee Wee's Dance" by Joeski Love
"Slow Ride" (Beastie Boys/Rubin) – 2:56
"Girls" (Beastie Boys/Rubin) – 2:14
"(You Gotta) Fight for Your Right (to Party!)" (Beastie Boys/Rubin) – 3:28
"No Sleep Till Brooklyn" (Beastie Boys/Rubin) – 4:07
"Paul Revere" (King/Ad Rock/McDaniels/Rubin/Simmons) – 3:41
- Contains samples from "I Like Funky Music" by Uncle Louie
"Hold It Now, Hit It" (Beastie Boys/Rubin) – 3:26
- Contains samples from "The Return of Leroy" by The Jimmy Castor Bunch, "Funky Stuff" by Kool & The Gang, "Take Me to the Mardi Gras" by Bob James & "Christmas Rappin'" by Kurtis Blow
"Brass Monkey" (Beastie Boys/Rubin) – 2:37
- Contains samples from "Bring it Here" by Wild Sugar
"Slow and Low" (McDaniels/Rubin/Simmons) – 3:38
- In the booklet included with the Beastie Boys' anthology set The Sounds of Science Adam Yauch (MCA) noted that "Slow and Low" was first recorded by Run-D.M.C. in the sessions for their second album, King of Rock, but was ultimately left off the original release (though the demo version later appeared on the album's 2005 Deluxe Edition re-release). Being one of the Beasties' favorite songs from the sessions, they got Run-D.M.C.'s permission to record a cover version. Yauch states that only two lines were changed for the Beastie Boys' version: "D sees real well 'cause he's four eyes" was replaced with "White Castle fries only come in one size", and a line stating Run-D.M.C.'s name was changed to "We're the Beastie Boys, not Cheech and Chong". The notes for The Sounds of Science expand the writing credits to "Beastie Boys/J. Simmons/D. McDaniels/R. Rubin/D. Hayden", a credit corroborated by ASCAP's database.
"Time to Get Ill" (Beastie Boys/Rubin) – 3:37
Personnel
Beastie Boys - Group, producer
Joe Blaney - Mixing
Steven Ett - Audio engineer
Kerry King - Guitar
Rick Rubin - Producer
Howie Weinberg - Mastering
Steve Byram - Art direction
Sunny Bak - Photography
World B. Omes (David Gambale) - Cover art
Chart positions
Album
| Year |
Chart |
Position |
| 1986 |
The Billboard 200 |
#1 |
| 1986 |
Top Hip-Hop/R&B Albums |
#2 |
Singles
Billboard (North America) - singles
Further Information
Get more info on 'Licensed To Ill'.
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