New Book Celebrates Beastie Boys’ Licensed to Ill 40th Anniversary with Visual History and Fresh Interviews
Author Ben Merlis also interviewed Mike D for the most recent Consequence Cover Story. New Book Celebrates Beastie Boys’ Licensed to Ill 40th Anniversary with Visual History and Fresh Interviews Ben Kaye
In just a few days, The Great Albums series will release Beastie Boys: Licensed to Ill - 40 Years, a comprehensive look back at the seminal hip-hop album that turned 40 years old in November. Authored by Ben Merlis, who has previously penned an insightful Consequence of Fiction cover story on Beastie Boys' Mike D, this 176-page hardcover tome is a slickly designed slipcase brimming with over 200 images, a track-by-track analysis of Licensed to Ill, and new interviews with producers, collaborators, and cultural commentators.
The book's forward is penned by the iconic Prince Paul, and it asserts that when Licensed to Ill debuted on the Billboard charts in 1986, it didn't just make history—it rewrote it. The Beastie Boys' fusion of punk energy, streetwise humor, and Rick Rubin's hard-hitting beats catapulted the album to the top of the Billboard 200 and became one of the quickest-selling debuts in history.
This retrospective invites readers to relive the creative frenzy behind iconic tracks like 'No Sleep Till Brooklyn,' 'Girls,' and 'Brass Monkey.'
Licensed to Ill - 40 Years is set to hit shelves on October 13th, and pre-orders are now available. Delve deeper into the Beastie Boys' legendary discography with Merlis' interview with Mike D, where they discuss their contributions to Thank You, and explore where Paul's Boutique landed on our list of the 100 Best Sophomore Albums of All Time.
Written by urgent.news from Consequence's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
