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CHECK YOUR THREAD - A Beastie Boys discussion

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  • CHECK YOUR THREAD - A Beastie Boys discussion

    When "Fight For Your Right" and "No Sleep Til Brooklyn" were red hot on MTV and every jock in my junior high had a Licensed to Ill shirt I thought the Beastie Boys were a goof, soon to be a mid-80's novelty band relic. While I listened to RUN DMC's Raising Hell on a daily basis, I never bothered getting that Beasties cassette and it wasn't until the summer of '88 that a friend of mine gave me his copy along with a bunch of other stuff he'd deemed uncool as we entered high school. Now I was hearing "Hold it Now, Hit It" and "Paul Revere" for the first time and understanding that there was real hip hop on this LP. The jocks had all moved on to NWA and Too Short, shattering the rear windshields of their Datsun trucks with their Alpine woofers and I was just finally discovering the joy of "The New Style" two years too late.

    I figured the Beastie Boys were history at that point but one day on Yo! MTV Raps there they were. On top of the Capitol Records building talking about this new album they were about to release and debuting the video for "Hey Ladies". That video blew my mind and the way they were dressed and the energy they had in that segment got me excited to get this new music. I'd just bought a VW Beetle and drove it to the Westminster Mall to check the Sam Goody (I didn't know there were independent record stores then) and was told the LP wasn't out for a few weeks but I was directed to the rack of "cassinlges" where they had copies of the Love American Style EP, containing "Shake Your Rump" and "Hey Ladies" along with the Dust Brother derived instrumentals "33% God" and "Dis Yourself in '89 (Just Do It)". As I walked back to my car I saw my cousin Julie and some of her friends hanging out by the Orange Julius and she asked me what I got. When I showed her the tape she told me the Beastie Boys were lame and I was a dork, but I didn't care. I played that thing over, and over, and over, and over until the actual album was released and then that tape didn't leave my deck for months. I remember being in science class after that and hearing an older jock talking to his buddy about Paul's Boutique, saying it was "disco" and the other guy saying he'd already gotten rid of his copy, he thought it was so bad. Hearing that emboldened me to like the album even more - if the jocks hate it, it must be really cool.

    Not being completely clued into the music world at that point I had zero frame of reference for what was doing well on the charts other than MTV play, and the Beastis Boys basically dropped off the face of the Earth then. I saw the "Hey Ladies" clip maybe one more time after that initial showing then caught "Shake Your Rump" at some random hour but they seemed to be done. If MTV wasn't playing your videos, you were more or less finished it felt like to me. One day in art class I threw on "5 Piece Chicken Dinner" followed by "Looking Down the Barrel of a Gun" and one of the other guys said it sounded really heavy and cool but the second AdRock let out his "IIIIIIIIIIIIII'M rollin' down the hill..." this kid curled up his nose and said "Ugh, is this the Beastie Boys? I fucking hate these guys. Why are they still making music?" Again, I was getting the sense that I was intensely into this thing that was seemingly reviled by everyone around me and felt glad that I was picking up on something that normal kids hated.

    Of course, within a few years that all changed and the Beastie Boys were re-embraced by that segment of the world that had written them off briefly but for a little while there I got to have this feeling like I'd connected with something most everyone else thought was trash.
    Now everyone can have a complete KRULL lifestyle.

  • #2
    I remember my brother and I used to work with this douchebag who said to us one time that he hated the Beastie Boys. My brother simply looked at him and said: "You have no soul." I never forgot that and it's really a good gauge if you're going to get along with someone or not. That same co-worker once said that he preferred Sammy Hagar to David Lee Roth. So... yeah.
    Why would anybody watch a scum show like Videodrome? Why did you watch it, Max?

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    • #3
      Thanks for starting this, Matt! And for chiming in, other Matt!

      I was in school and somebody brought in a portable tape deck with Raising Hell and Licensed To Ill and played them both non-stop. I was an instant fan of both. Later on, I ended up getting Ice T's Power cassette, and that was me hooked on hip-hop.

      I have to admit, outside of Hey Ladies, 3-Minute Rule, Shadrach, and Shake Your Rump, I wasn't a fan of Paul's Boutique when it came out. I got it for free because a guy across the road was pissed that he'd spent money on it. I've since come around, and of course, Paul's Boutique is a masterpiece. I stuck with the Beasties more than most other groups I was into. When Check Your Head came out, a bunch of friends were into it, but I was tired of hearing about it; still played Paul's non-stop though. Was glad to have seen them on the Ill Communication tour, but man, would have loved to have seen the Beasties when they had flopped with Paul's and started playing club shows again, dragging their own instruments around.

      To this day, I listen to the Beastie Boys constantly. What an amazing group of dudes who came soooo far past their party frat personas.

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      • #4
        I still love their music, but after reading about how MCA tried to fuck over The Prodigy, I lost a lot of respect for him.

        Both acts were playing a festival together in 1998, which The Prodigy were supposed to headline. Upon hearing that the Beastie Boys were on the show, Liam Howlett went to the organizers and insisted the Beasties get the headliner slot, out of his respect for them.

        In return, MCA tried to have The Prodigy taken off the show entirely, as he was offended by Smack My Bitch Up and didn't want to be on the same show as The Prodigy because of it.
        Darcy Parker
        Senior Member
        Last edited by Darcy Parker; 09-26-2022, 04:34 PM.

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        • #5
          Originally posted by Darcy Parker View Post
          I still love their music, but after reading about how MCA tried to fuck over The Prodigy, I lost a lot of respect for him.

          Both acts were playing a festival together in 1998, which The Prodigy were supposed to headline. Upon hearing that the Beastie Boys were on the show, Liam Howlett went to the organizers and insisted the Beasties get the headliner slot, out of his respect for them.

          In return, MCA tried to have The Prodigy taken off the show entirely, as he was offended by Smack My Bitch Up and didn't want to be on the same show as The Prodigy because of it.
          Way I heard was that it was Reading, that there was no talk about Beasties getting the headline slot, they did ask Prodigy to not play that track. Prodigy allegedly told them to fuck themselves and introduced it as "Some people didn't want us to play this song...."

          In all honesty, what I've heard of MCA, it sounds more like he was trying to give Prodigy the gift of experience and not have them pigeonhole themselves with a track that had a controversial name that people would glom onto.

          Still a great track.

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          • #6
            Originally posted by Mark Tolch View Post

            Way I heard was that it was Reading, that there was no talk about Beasties getting the headline slot, they did ask Prodigy to not play that track. Prodigy allegedly told them to fuck themselves and introduced it as "Some people didn't want us to play this song...."

            In all honesty, what I've heard of MCA, it sounds more like he was trying to give Prodigy the gift of experience and not have them pigeonhole themselves with a track that had a controversial name that people would glom onto.

            Still a great track.
            The Prodigy's unauthorized biography was written by a music journalist who was present for the conversations because he was covering the festival from the organizers' viewpoint. MCA's story after the fact was damage control when the story came out.

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            • #7
              Originally posted by Darcy Parker View Post

              The Prodigy's unauthorized biography was written by a music journalist who was present for the conversations because he was covering the festival from the organizers' viewpoint. MCA's story after the fact was damage control when the story came out.
              "unauthorized biography", "music journalist", and "organizer's viewpoint" are the problematic items in this statement.

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              • #8
                A week after the event; based on statements by both bands.

                https://www.mtv.com/news/x80tiv/beas...ck-my-bitch-up

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                • #9
                  With all due respect to the B Boys, why should they cut a song from their set? If I were Liam Howlett, I'd be like, yeah, no.
                  Why would anybody watch a scum show like Videodrome? Why did you watch it, Max?

                  Comment


                  • #10
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                    By 1992 I didn't think we'd ever get anything new from the Beastie Boys again but a buddy who worked at a record store handed me this poster one day and I went through the roof. April 21 couldn't come soon enough and like with the Love American Style EP I played the "Pass The Mic" single so many times there was a groove in the CD.

                    Second pic is of the lyric sheet I sent away for which also included the lyrics to "Year and A Day" since those didn't make it into the Paul's Boutique liner notes.
                    Now everyone can have a complete KRULL lifestyle.

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                    • #11
                      Anyone see them live?

                      I saw them at Molson Park in Barrie, Ontario in 1998.
                      Why would anybody watch a scum show like Videodrome? Why did you watch it, Max?

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Originally posted by Matt H. View Post
                        Anyone see them live?
                        Only once in 1992. What I remember was a group of four or five drunk dudes making their way to the front of the crowd before the show, chanting "SO WHAT, SO WHAT, SO WHATCHA WANT!", bobbing up and down in unison and feeling both embarrassed by their behavior and also envious that they were having fun. Not that I wasn't but I never felt comfortable at shows then, always on edge, especially with my girlfriend because I was always on alert for some other guy possibly getting inappropriate with her. I was also only 19 so I wasn't drinking then. Could've loosened me up a bit.

                        The other thing I recall was seeing a guy near the front of the stage who looked EXACTLY like me. It was terribly unnerving, and my girlfriend was even weirded out by it, the resemblance was so uncanny.

                        This was the set list:
                        1. To All the Girls
                        2. Slow and Low
                        3. Shake Your Rump
                        4. Pass the Mic
                        5. Looking Down the Barrel of a Gun
                        6. Rhymin & Stealin
                        7. Time for Livin'
                        8. Egg Raid on Mojo
                        9. In 3's
                        10. Pow
                        11. Live at P.J.'s
                        12. Stand Together
                        13. Posse in Effect
                        14. The New Style
                        15. Jimmy James
                        16. The Sounds of Science
                        17. Finger Lickin' Good
                        18. High Plains Drifter
                        19. So What'cha Want
                        20. Paul Revere
                        21. The Maestro
                        22. Groove Holmes
                        23. Netty's Girl
                        24. Lighten Up
                        25. Gratitude
                        26. Stand Up
                        27. Time to Get Ill
                        28. Shadrach
                        That's a good fucking batch of songs. No opening act that I recall. I know they did shows with L7 and House of Pain on that tour, but I feel like it was just them and the internet seems to concur.


                        Now everyone can have a complete KRULL lifestyle.

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Originally posted by Toyboy View Post
                          The other thing I recall was seeing a guy near the front of the stage who looked EXACTLY like me. It was terribly unnerving, and my girlfriend was even weirded out by it, the resemblance was so uncanny.
                          I saw my doppleganger at a restaurant many years ago. He was even wearing similar clothes. It was disturbing.

                          Why would anybody watch a scum show like Videodrome? Why did you watch it, Max?

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            I can't remember how they worked the thrash songs and the instrumentals into the set, but it had to have to been a smooth transition getting them their instruments.

                            I was looking up the set-list for the Barrie show and they did it twice during that show too (switching it up to play their instruments).
                            Why would anybody watch a scum show like Videodrome? Why did you watch it, Max?

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Originally posted by Matt H. View Post
                              I can't remember how they worked the thrash songs and the instrumentals into the set, but it had to have to been a smooth transition getting them their instruments.

                              I was looking up the set-list for the Barrie show and they did it twice during that show too (switching it up to play their instruments).
                              I feel like in the show I saw they had another drummer come out at the point they did "Time for Livin'" so that Mike D could sing that and "Egg Raid on Mojo" but then he got behind the kit for the instrumentals. I'm guessing MCA and AdRock just vamped while that was happening - I also think Money Mark did some soloing during those transitions too, just to fill the space. In '98 Mix Master Mike probably did some scratching in those spots.
                              Now everyone can have a complete KRULL lifestyle.

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