Licensed To Ill

Pretty fire

You Gotta Fight For Your Right To a 5 ... and they did just that

These guys totally ripped off JVB

My least favorite album of theirs. Lots of yelling, very loud. Doesn't hit as well as others I've heard.

okay, but not really my genre

Like the other beastie boys album we have very recently: great energy and sampling. This one maybe a bit more rock influenced. Also special mention to the use of the drums from When the Levee Breaks in the first song.

This is so good. Maybe like one or two that stop it being 5 star

About the only rap/hip hop album that I can listen to, but even this strains my patience.

The greatest rap album of all time, the funnest album of the 1980s and one of the best debut albums ever, as I write down my thoughts on Licensed To Ill only The Velvet Underground's debut album tops it no doubt there are a few others (Nirvana? The Stone Roses? The Who? Oasis? Big Star?) but nothing comes to mind that at once stands out as better except for the Velvet's 1967 debut, as stated. Maybe The Sex Pistols, The Jesus and Mary Chain or The Clash- maybe not? I think I'm going to shut up (for now) and play Licensed to Ill again.

A ground shacking album, another one that was always going to rank for me

One of the most powerful middle parts to an album from track 4 till 11 our all bangers with such variety in there as well all classic beastie boy sounds.

Ya lo había escuchado y tiene temazos pero es un poco random, prefiero Paul's Boutique

Som ett virr-varr av longboards och break-dance

Absolute classic. Its fun, its funny, it does things that other rappers couldn't attempt without sounding corny or straight up shit, and it does them well. Favourites - She's Crafty, Fight For Your Right, Brass Monkey

Rhymin’ and Stealin’ (10/10) The New Style (9/10) She’s Crafty (8/10) Posse in Effect (7/10) Slow Ride (9/10) Girls (7/10) Fight For Your Right (10/10) No Sleep Till Brooklyn (10/10) Paul Revere (8/10) Hold It Now, Hit It (8/10) Brass Monkey (9/10) Slow and Low (8/10) Time to Get Ill (8/10) 8.5/10

Excellent Beastie Boys album and a great intro to their discography. The combination with rock elements make this a 5/5.

Better than the other Beastie Boys album that I had to listen to, but still why so jarring vocals? Please, kendrick lamars style is literally more enjoyable than this, tired of hearing these white kids scream as if that was a form of music

Great album!

Sjovt album at lytte til. Kan virkelig godt lide Beastie Boys. De har sampled mange sange som nok ikke var gået i dag, men de var åbenbart ikke så populære inden dette album. Måske fordi det var deres første. Samme historie med at de blander hiphop og rap. Første sang er bl.a. trommerne som er sampled fra when the levee breaks.

I haven’t listened to this front to back in a long long time. Classic for a reason

Girls has to be one of the worst songs I've ever heard. However, there's a lot to love here, but it's not necessarily the vocal deliveries. The old school beats, the stripped down 808s, and the rhythms are some of the saving graces of this album. It has a few classics, and it can't be denied how infectious those songs are. 3/5

Although they have a high energy, kind of punk rock spirit, I just can't get into the Beastie Boys nasally, often annoying rapping. I wish I liked this one more, but outside of hits it starts to be grating at album length. Standouts: No Sleep Till Brooklyn, Fight For Your Right, Brass Monkey

It's loud. It's corny. It's so so fun. Great debut.

Loved this album!

1. Rhymin & Stealin - 8/10 2. The New Style - 7/10 3. She's Crafty - 8.5/10 4. Posse in Effect - 8/10 5. Slow Ride - 7.8/10 6. Girls - 8.2/10 7. (You Gotta) Fight for Your Right (To Party!) - 7.5/10 8. No Sleep till Brooklyn - 8/10 9. Paul Revere - 5.5/10 10. Hold It Now, Hit It - 6/10 11. Brass Monkey - 8.5/10 12. Slow and Low - 8/10 13. Time to Get Ill - 8/10 8/10

Raw, goofy, but great.

So so so entertaining

Goated

I'm glad this album exists but I don't want to listen to it.

NOOOOWWWW HERE’S A LITTLE STORY I GOT TO TELL 10s across the board

Almost a 5 for me, the rock/rap combo is so much fun there are some killer guitar riffs and the guys interlope with each other really well. "No sleep till brooklyn" is an all time favorite of mine, I think maybe a couple tracks just didn't stand out much, but I didn't feel the need to skip anything I had a great time listening

치기 어린 악동 소년들의 유쾌한 반란이 느껴지는 사운드. 특별함을 느끼기는 어려우나 무려 40년 전의 사운드라는 점은 주목할 만하다.

Bueno

Good beats. Lyrics didn’t hold me

Experimental bastante

Too slow, too silly, not my record. It does have a couple of nuggets, but it's not for me.

Beastie Boys, banda imprescindible y este debut fue un pelotazo con Fight for your rights. Demostró que el Rap (Hip-hop o como quiera que entonces lo llamáramos) era posible para los blancos y además ser masivo. Venían de Nueva York, y eso en los 80 era una enorme ventaja comercial. También que habñian estado con Madonna, la de principios de los 80, que era otra cosa. De no ser por su ejemplar carrera posterior, podría haberse quedado en una banda one-hit wonder, pero vaya hit. No es desde luego su mejor disco (Ill Comunication, incluso Paul´s Boutique o Hello nasty) pero fue tremendamente influyente y abrió de par en par las puertas del hip-hop al público. Tiene sentido porque luego hicieron Paul´s Boutique y demostraron que no eran flor de un día, sino algo mucho más serio que un grupo de hardcore-rap improvisado. Sacaron 7 singles, algo que asombra hoy en día pero en aquella época se vendían mucho mejor. El resto tiene cosas buenas: No sleep till Brooklyn sigue la misma estela pero con menos acierto, repite Kerry de Slayer e incluso participa el propio Rick Rubin. Hold it Hit it, el primer sencillo, es bastante buena y se sostiene aún hoy en día (sample que también usó después Ini kamoze con éxito), y algún divertimento que se queda en eso: Girls. Ya habían tenido éxito con ese tipo de parodias, por ejemplo con Cooky Puss. Produce un tal Rick Rubin... Como anécdota no se incluyó I'm Down de los Beatles porque Michael Jackson no les dejó, ya que se la había jugado a por entonces su ya no amigo Paul McCartney con los derechos de autor.

I detest this album. Admittedly not a big fan of hip-hop to begin with, now add on top a bunch of whiney sub-par cultural appropriators and take the one interesting thing about hip-hop - poetic lyricism - and remove it and replace it with brain-dead hair metal party anthem chants. You officially have created the worst musical abomination possible.

Didn't enjoy. It sounds too much like a pair of teenagers for me - even though I remember it from my youth.

good listen, know most of the songs from the radio. 7/10

There are a lot of Beastie Boys on this list. Not a bad thing, they're fun. The generator has given me all three in reverse chronologically order, so this is my last one on this project. Probably middle of the road out of the three. The three song run of "Girls", "Fight for your Right", and "No Sleep Till Brooklyn" was really solid. These guys are so goofy, but the energy really carries them.

BRASS MONKEY, THAT FUNKY MONKEY

Decent album not my thing but some top tunes but a few fillers

buenisimo

This sold me on the Beastie Boys. I wasn't sure about the other album of theirs I got but this one was just so consistent and solid. I now understand why they're part of this list, good stuff.

Para mí...una total y absoluta perdida de mi tiempo.

delinquent beats

Against all the boys wishes, Makes me wanna fight

My favorite Beastie Boys album.

The flow and voices are rough but the beats and lyrics are incredible

808 beats and misogynistic rhymes for days. Yeah the lyrics are goofy and cringey more times than not, but it's still a damn fun album. And I believe the Beasties have more than atoned for their sins in subsequent releases. It's dated and the next few albums are much more interesting and timeless, but License to Ill is still a gas to listen to again after all these years. 4/5 Album 50/1001

The energy they bring alone is enough to get you off the couch. Ignoring the sexism and chauvinism, this album is great. The beats are compelling and the raps are the beastie boys signature yell. You know when you’re listening to the beastie boys and you know they mean it.

Incredibly fun album. I used to hate it because my freshman year college roommate played it (and rapped aling) constantly. Now I can fully appreciate it, from its Zeppelin samples to the 1-2 punch of "Fight for Your Right" to "No Sleep til Brooklyn." I was missing out on a great time.

I've never been too into the Beastie Boys, classic sound, but their garage production audio makes for hard listening. However classic, the sound has aged pretty well.

Not as banging as Ill Communication but you can see the DNA

eu nunca fui mto com a cara do beastie boys mas admito que esse é ok

BRASS MONKEY. THAT FUNKY MONKEY ou queria odiar muito mais do que odiei viu. rap rock mas sem se levar a sério. bem produzido e caótico. os branquelo sabia de algo, de fato

"What's the time? It's time to get ill!" One of my all time favorite albums. Front to back every song is great. Makes me want to grab some White Castle and hit up a kegger. The way they blend metal and rap with the seamless trade-offs in vocals has never been duplicated. It's hard to pick just one for the 1001 playlist, but it's gotta be "No Sleep til Brooklyn" which is universally great. ~5 Stars

Nostalgia does a lot for me. We listened to this all the time with our dad as kids, but hearing it in full now, I hear a bunch of kids fooling around. Which is sick, but it sounds unpolished, they hadn't figured it out just yet, but you can feel that they have it.

5 stars, no notes

The lyrics are a little juvenile but, it’s not bad.

Classic 80s hip hop with a lot of rock influence. I didn't realise this was produced by Rick Rubin. Childish lyrics but kinda funny.

So much noise. Rap/rock? Some of the beats were pretty good though. I will get much sleep until Brooklyn.

Too hyper for me and didn’t enjoy some of the lyrics about women

So aggressive and angry. Surprised this was Rick Rubin. Cant say I enjoyed this.

Already know this album but I love it. First half of the album is kind of weird but builds into an amazing second half. Brass Monkey is my personal fav. Maybe Girls.

i mean fun but crazy dated. dont think I could actually listen to it

Cool album but don’t see myself re-listening much. Beastie Boys got a unique sound though.

You gotta fight for your right…

If musical legacy were based solely on how many beer-soaked college dudes screamed your lyrics, the Beastie Boys would be gods. While this album may have helped bring hip-hop into the mainstream, it honestly doesn't hold up well at all, and comes off as mostly juvenile nonsense, yelled to a beat. To call this their worst album is almost a compliment, because it did pave the way for the Beastie Boys to grow up and eventually create some genuinely good music.

Played it on the speaker riding to work. Everyone over 40 was grinning and bobbing their head as I went by.

I seem to remember this being a lot better than it actually was. Having said that, there are some classic tunes here. I love the odd mash-up of hard rock and hip hop - and the mash-up of When The Levee Breaks' drums and Sweet Leaf's guitar on Rhymin & Stealin! Liked Songs Added: Rhymin & Stealin Fight For Your Right No Sleep Till Brooklyn

Fun album!. But as always, I don't connection that much with music that heavily relies on lyrics rather than music. This is still, musically interesting, just not really my cup of tea. I love the tone on their voices though, really cool. Now I wanna go listen again the "Stutter rap". That was funny af. Oh and I'd like to find "Sabotage" too. I loved that song when I was in high school.

I just really can’t stand their voices or the sound of their music.

Another album I didn't realize was that old. Songs that stood out (other than the classics) The New Style and Time To Get Ill. 4/5

Some hip hop and rock. This album goes in multiple directions but I like it.

I made the mistake of reading other user reviews of this album. Presumably by younger generations than I. Released in 1986, this album continued to get extensive air play on alternative radio stations through the 1990s and 2000s (the era in which I grew up). This album was dated by this time period, especially the immature lyrics. It's the sloppiness and almost amateur quality of this album that makes it enjoyable for me. It's got a rough quality that makes it fun in today's world of glossy albums. Perhaps paved the way for future rap rock albums and eventually nu metal. 4/5 for being a classic, however I prefer Paul's Boutique if we're picking a beasties album.

I was a young teenager when this came out, and I remember the fuss it caused. There are a lot of cliches on it, and some of the lyrical content sounds outdated now. The album is mostly a lot of nonsense, but there is a joy in it. It’s party rap. It’s about having a good time which is reflected throughout, most overtly on Fight For Your Right I have no idea if it’s technically good or not, but I like it in a way I have never really liked the Beastie Boys again. Whether that’s nostalgia or because it’s really good, I neither know nor care!

I love Hip-Hop and this album's influence is undeniable. It remains an interesting and occasionally hard-hitting blend of Rap Rock, but it hasn't aged perfectly and has serious gaps. The obvious example is "Girls", which is lyrically very poor, the production is frankly appalling and it essentially cuts the album in half as some sort of low-quality interlude. "The new style" and "Posse in effect" remain good, but the rest is just a bit too much "Party Rap", and while it was innovative back then, it hasn't help up that well for me.

Complete

8/10 Holy shit this is a fun record. I didn't remember it being this well put together. 4-21-2025

*a noise album, not much singing, mostly yelling.

Pretty great, big fan of some of the songs but some of them are almost skippable?

Awesome high energy old school hip hop. They sure do love white castle.

Cringe

A classic, if a bit juvenile. I had honestly forgotten how great the samples were, though.

Honestly, it's a very rough album until Girls. I like Girls. I did enjoy Time to Get Ill and Brass Monkey, but overall, the album doesn't match with me too well.

It's the reverse of a lot of artists because swaths of this album are pretty offensive if not downright misogynist, but it's kind of OK because they all matured into awesome dudes (RIP MCA) which kind of makes it tolerable. Also, it goes hard.

Kaxigt. Repetitivt. Stressande.

Listened to it in a crowded subway full of highschool students. Felt both superior and silly.

Still not a huge Beastie Boys fan but this is definitely a better album than Paul's Boutique. Better samples and more iconic songs.

Couple of bangers (fight for your right one of my all time favs, rhymin and stealin pretty good, girls and slow ride are alright) — but mainly a one note album. The shouty voices get grating

The musical version of morning djs on the radio. Not for me.

Did not dig. Am so ashamed.

What a great way to “start a career”. Amazing!

Third time this group has popped on this list. The best one I've heard yet, just because it had a bunch of hits on it. But the songs that were new to me were just classic beastie boy sounding songs - meaning they were slowly annoying than anything else. But this is their album that I'm most willing to give another try. Really hope they're done appearing on this list

Positives: Interesting elements. A mixture of rock and hiphop. Groovy, fun to listen to. Makes you want to dance here and there. Good to play the whole album while listening to it in the background. Negatives: Too much switching between the singers (sentence after sentence). A loot of good songs but not one worthy of adding it to favorites (some come close like: she's crafty, no sleep till brooklyn and brass monkey). Hard to remember any lyrics and to sing along. Conclusion: Fun album. Good to listen to all of it at once. Not made to listen to only individual songs.

Lots of shouting with drums and rock vibe.

Album No. 1 - let’s do this thing Listened to this a ton in College

A fun classic

Great discovery since its before my time. The beats, the defiance and tone can still be felt in today's rock n roll / hip hop scene. Solid 8/10

Iconic

Who would have thought that when this came out in the mid 80s they would have long careers. There are so many annoying songs on this, namely girls, fight for your right among others. But Paul Revere is awesome and the sampling was smart to draw kids in. This is a 3.5. Can’t give it a 4, so I’ll give a three - but this is a 3.5.

Massively influential, iconic sounds, but just not a fan.

It's the Beastie Boys, what do you think... Hits the spot when you want it and tough to listen when you don't

Love it of course but surprised by how sparse / pared down the production was - felt much rougher than expected

It's pretty cool how they were going for a blend of hard rock/metal and hip-hop on about half of this album, but for the most part, it feels a bit underwhelming? They'd go on to better things over the next few albums, but "Fight for Your Right" aside, this one just doesn't have it.

OMG!

awesome, loved it the whole way through

I would give 5 stars because I love the beastie boys but the line about liking underaged girls gave me the ick LOL Upon further research, it was satire as they were making fun of someone else - and they were also underaged when they wrote it

One of my all-time favorites

It was... bad. This album had only 2 actually good songs for me, others were not good and I enjoyed only some seconds of cool samples or some riffs. Ill Communication was surely better. Still, I won't give this album a 1 because I did enjoy some parts of it but it was a disappointement.

The Good: We’ve been given green light to be sick! The Bad: Turns out that this license has been revoked… The Ugly: Trying to shake off our “ill” feelings… Back in high school, my buddy and I started a hip hop thing, cause we be all cool like that… I forget what we called ourselves, though I am sure that it my name had Double something in it, and his was Triple … Anyway, silly teenage stuff, trying to do body pops, and break dancing, and “browning”, at least, that is what my buddy called the foot shuffly dancing thing… Anyway, he was the one who would buy hip-hop records, and I would be the one listening to it and trying to figure out if there was a future in it for this double something. Now, you know I am no fan of rap, but there are exceptions to this rule, like Public Enemy and Eminem, yet the Beasty Boys, for me, have always been something that wanted to be more then it actually was. This album proves how primitive hip-hop was back in the day, however, it was also filled with a more positive outlook on life, unlike that gangsta shit that followed soon… Going to rank this straight down the middle as I had fun listening to this album for memories sake, but probably won’t be listening to this anytime soon again… 3*

Good sampling

It's okay. Not much else to say about this

Joda

Obnoxious and rowdy. The Beastie's debut is full of frat boy anthems bridges the gap between rock and hip-hop. While the rapping is decent, the lyricism is vapid and the humor is juvenile, which was a huge part of their appeal at the time. It took me a long time to come around to the Beastie Boys, and once I did, this is still the only album of theirs I can't stand. Does it deserve to be here for its cultural and historical significance? Absolutely Does I think it deserves to be here because it's "good"? No. No I do not. Paul's Boutique if anything.

It's OK, but doesn't do much for me

Felt a bit more ready to listen to this after getting Ill Communication about 60 records ago and being pleasantly surprised with it. I feel like the aforementioned may edge it over this one, but I still enjoyed this more than I tend to enjoy rap albums.

What’s not to like, a very good listen. Maybe not as polished as some later albums but a great variety of sounds and a lot of fun!

I don’t get the Beastie Boys. Are they a joke band? I certainly found it amusing.

It’s pretty hard to dislike an album that comes straight in mashing up classic Zep and Sabbath samples. And it carries on in its older skool hip hop and rock mash up, with the Beastie Boys being playful and abrasive throughout. It’s a fun listen but it’s certainly not the first Beastie Boys album I would go to for a fix. I guess it’s on the list as their intro to the world and rap first hitting the mainstream. Let’s be honest though, they get way more inventive and impressive as their career progresses.

Yeah

I’m not concerned with what they almost (but didn’t even) name the album 40 years ago (as per the provided album review). That would be asinine on my part. This is, by far, the best rap/hip hop album that I’ve been recommended from this list so far. The songs are catchy, lyrics often funny and clever, and there are no wasted tracks. Truly a fun classic.

Is this the third Beastie Boys album already? Is it justified? I have very split feelings on this album. On one hand, the production & sampling work is UNREAL here. Every beat is so well put together while still sounding so loud and reckless. Tons of little bits of samples and sound effects, fantastic drums and low-ends. The opening “Rhymin & Stealin” sets the tone with the Led Zep sample and caveman rhyme schemes (or screams). The guys have excellent chemistry too! I don’t know if this was around the time of the “jock jam” but this has to be up there in terms of quintessential jock jam albums no? It’s like if LMFAO were 3 white boys in the 80’s, it’s just all about partying and fun and being up to no good. Which brings me to the part that split my feelings on this record. The lyrics. Over and over and over again I’m jamming out and having a great time then *BOOM* an awful word then another song goes by then *BOOM* a problematic sentence. I get it, it was a different time and we are all better now, but it was really bringing an otherwise fun time down a lot. Like, near the two minute mark of “New Style” about being Jimmy Page and liking underage girls…I don’t know if that’s a self-aware lyric or not but cmon. Just cmon. I have a theory that “Fight For Your Right” isn’t just popular because it’s an incredible party anthem to easily scream, but because it’s the song that has potentially some of the least problematic stuff in the lyrics. I’m gonna say my favorite is “Girls” for how silly it is, but I do cringe in admitting it, because the lyrics aren’t good. It’s really nice to know that these guys got a bit more heady and a lot more experimental as time went on, I remember really liking “Bodhisattva Vow” from Ill Communication. If youre looking for anything that isn’t mindless, loud, reckless, sometimes problematic party music - you aren’t gonna find it here. But if you are looking for that? I’m not sure you’ll find a better album for it. The softest 4/5 stars I can give

I like this but it’s not their best - Paul’s Boutique and Ill Communication are far superior.

4/2/25. The energy and samples used here are fun, really good debut from a legendary group. I thought it was a tad repetitive in the rhymes, but still overall an enjoyable listen.

Wtf are they talking about. Still good listening when you want something "sick". Broad City sampling a bonus!

I like this a lot.

Ohhh, Beastie Boys.. What is it about you that just doesn't jive with me? I get it. I totally respect it. I dunno, it's like being trapped in a frat house with a boombox that only plays one tape. It’s loud, chaotic, a little misogynistic, and trying so hard to be both funny and badass. There’s energy here but it’s juvenile as hell. It's a time capsule of stuff that aged like milk, me thinks. To me, Beastie Boys are best enjoyed in small doses; a little here, a little there. Spins: 2 Playlist Additions: - Fight For Your Right - No Sleep Till Brooklyn - Brass Monkey

Rhymin & Stealin - 5/5 The New Style - 5/5 She's Crafty - 4/5 Posse In Effect - 4/5 Slow Ride - 2/5 Girls - 4/5 Fight For Your Right - 4/5 No Sleep Til Brooklyn - 5/5 Paul Revere - 4/5 Hold It Now, Hit It - 3/5 Brass Monkey - 4/5 Slow And Low - 3/5 Time To Get Ill - 4/5 Average score: 3.9/5 (rounding up) it's probably nostalgia talking but idgaf

Fast paced, high energy, wide variety. It's a record unlike any other.

Classic junior high school album with junior high school attitude and intellect. Kicked off a great career and there are so many highs in front of these boys.

Awful. Girls might be the worst song I've ever heard, laughably bad. Yeah, No Sleep Till Brooklyn and Fight for your Right are on here, but they're overplayed and I could not STAND them. Brass Monkey is super corny, too. Nothing else memorable. Glad to never have to listen to this album ever again.

Not amazing, not bad. Good angry listening probably

This is an album one endures rather than listens to. And it feels like the same 20 seconds on loop, with occasional repeated references to Whitecastle. Not for me.

Clasicazo. "The new style", "Slow ride", "Girls" y la legendaria "Fight for your right". Realamente no es perfecto para ser 5 estrellas, pero siempre hay que ayudar a subir la media si algo te gusta tanto.

What a great first album. So many bops!

My favorite of the Beastie Boys albums and one of the best hip hop recordings of all time. Production is near perfect and the blend of hip hop and rock masterful. Nothing I’ve listened to has come close to Licensed To Ill in terms of blending the two musical art forms. “No Sleep…” is still one of my favorite tunes. Most are great, but the top tracks are: “She’s Crafty”, "Fight for Your Right", "No Sleep till Brooklyn", "Slow and Low" 9/10

It's an amazing album. I thought this was their greatest hits album until I got to high school or so. There's not a miss on the album, there's no fluff, just bangers and bars. This is like frat rap, mixed with joke rap with a sprinkle of some Gangsta stuff, all in an old school package. Every beat is great, but it almost feels like cheating being able to use all the samples when no one is able to do it anymore. This album is proof that copyright laws are lame.

Am I huge Beastie Boys fan? No. Do I love this album? Yes. Not really a bad song on it. Pretty sure if you’re of a certain age you had a copy of this at one time or another. Brass Monkey & Paul Revere are my favorites, but that xylophone work on Girls is rather impressive.

What needs to be said about this one? Still holds up. Beats/samples are still amazing/groundbreaking. Classic singles and non-singles. I'll be playing this again and again for years.

I am just not in to the Beastie Boys at all. This was grating to listen to and I did not finish it.

I'm a fan of Beastie Boys but an entire album at once is a lot. The production is excellent and their lyrics are pretty fun and clever. Overall enjoyable but, better in small doses.

It's ultimate party music, so full of energy and enthusiasm. As a listening experience, objectively speaking, it's a bit too much in yer face.

Good album but their later albums are better

It has dated but still a great album with their unique style of hiphop punk

Not their best, and some lyrics haven't dated well, but this is still a great album from an iconic group.

Great fun. Very much the playground sensibility of the Beastie's oeuvre though.

No Sleep Till Brooklyn! 🤘

I could be all Kathleen Hanna about this record, and like, look, that queen is so right in her critiques. But before I was a woman, I was once a teenage boi, and Licensed to Ill speaks to the pre-transition dipshit in me in a way that I can’t chastise. The lyrical energy, the party boi vibes, the use of hard rock samples and Kerry King guitar solos– it’s all kind of magical. While it starts strong despite its very ‘80s 808s and ‘80s rhyme scheme, this thing really picks up in the middle. Sure, “Girls” is kitsch, but it’s obviously a joke, and still fun in an innocent way. From there, the pure chaotic energy of “Fight for Your Right” followed by the timeless head-banger of “No Sleep ’Til Brooklyn” absolutely rips, which is then followed by the solid “Paul Revere,” and “Brass Monkey” only a few tracks later. These songs, along with the intro that changed the game, “Rhymin & Stealin,” plus the ever-referenced “The New Style,” all make this a great album. The rest of it, though, does show its age. Sometimes that’s tolerable, like the simplicity of “Slow Ride,” or the flow of “Slow and Low,” but sometimes it unveils a grating noise from the the 808 that no one ever wanted to hear like on “Posse in Effect,” or the fact that MCs used to only be hypemen for a DJ, like you can see on “Hold It Now, Hit It.” The weakest moments on Licensed to Ill are when the Beastie Boys are put on the back burner in favor of highlighting the producer à la a DJ. And like, look, Rubin is a *GREAT* producer and his production does save those more bland moments, but they are still inherently bland moments. Combined with the more misogynistic lyrics found on tracks outside of “Girls,” there are some fatal flaws that I do need to consider when praising this record. I will say, I’m less enamored with this record today than I thought I would be as a result. What once felt like a great entry point into hip-hop from rock and metal as a youth now feels like a great entry point with some very dated tangents of the worst hip-hop had to offer in 1986. Thankfully, the flaws of Licensed to Ill were all things the genre moved past by 1987, but the fact that they’re still here are a shame, even if this was the best group of people to do them the most justice possible. Overall, though, I’m not going to knock Licensed to Ill too heavily. It’s still a great record, an essential record, and its best moments still make me bang my head and vibe. To me, the good here far outweighs and outshines the bad. Maybe that’s because I do have some nostalgia for this record, but maybe I’m just able to look past those things to see the positive in the positives. It’s not my go-to Beasties record any more, but that’s because I’m not a 12 year old boy any more. But still, now as a 32 year old woman, I’m not going to act like I’m above the immature and energetic fun of Licensed to Ill.

Enjoyed it a lot, found a new fav song actually.

Wasn’t really feeling it, but then I got up to “Girls” and everything after seemed to fall into place. Really loved this album and I wasn’t much of a fan of the Beastie Boys before this.

Love me some beastie boys

its a 5/10 for me, liked some of it and not others. got old after a while, maybe a little too long

This album is a very good time. I think "Paul's Boutique" is still my favorite because the sampling is really next level on that one. That said, this one exudes attitude and funk in a way that I love.

69/1001 - This was annoying to listen to. I liked Paul Revere with the reversed drums but that's about it.

Loud and boring AND annoying hip hop noises. Hated it in 1986, hate it now.

Generally a fan, but this is the weakest of their albums and the only one I don't recall owning. They are at their best when they are funky and sampling interesting records. This album has a number of tunes that are straight ahead rock rap, which is the least interesting material they made.

It's impossible for me to even try to have an 'objective' view on this one - this album crucially shaped my taste in music as a kid. It stands as one of my favorite albums of all time. The sampling and the dynamic between the three emcees sounds timelessly fresh. The beasties made rhyming 101 sound exciting on these songs. I'll admit that some of the lyrical content is a bit immature, but they owned up to that by apologizing for problematic lyrics. I always love revisiting Licensed, it sounds exciting and just super cool every single time. The quality of their output kept elevating after this album, this is a near perfect debut LP though.

Nope

An absolutely exhausting album. I don't recommend doing more than one or two songs at a time (zero tracks might be the optional number).

Fan of their more popular songs but wouldn’t listen to a whole album

The beasties I’ve never really got. I can see the concept rap/metal but it just doesn’t resonate very shouty not at all civil

FUN Album!!!

Fantastic!

Far from their best but essential to understanding the growth they underwent throughout their career.

3.5

Some great stuff on here, but some pretty whack filler tracks too.

I feel like a lot of this flies right over my head (ha), because I don't really have the context for what I imagine are many references to 80s hip hop culture which are present here. Having never listened to the Beastie Boys before, I was surprised by how close this was to rock. It's very well produced and the interplay between the different members-- trading rhymes and such-- is very well done. Definitely enjoyable but I'm not sure I'll feel compelled to revisit it later on.

🎧Is it possible to think the Beastie Boys are both cool and pretty annoying?

Few bangers some mid

If you don’t like this, you hate music.

Good but not their best.

3+ Stars (9/15)

Hell yeah. So solid all the way through. Paul Revere with the backwards high-hat. What an absolutely gold record stem to stern.

It has it all, extremely creative and hard-hitting funky jazzy beats, a nice variety of headbangers and funny satire of frat culture, and an edgy raw energy that is rarely seen from a contemporary hip hop outfit.

Juvenile culture vultures make dirty rap, create hits and turn out to be insanely talented. 9/10 Classic

* Definitely not one for me

Like The Lonely Island - I see it, but I don’t get it.

Quite like

I love the Beastie Boys, and some of my favorites are on this album. I still prefer Paul’s Boutique and Ill Communication though

In the context of hip hop of its time, this is catchy as hell and super goofy, a good time. 5* Highlights: no sleep till brooklyn, fight for your right, brass monkey

I had my brief Beastie Boys era when "Check Your Head" came out in high school, but besides that I've had little stomach for their music. It just comes off as a bunch of shouting of this guy to that guy and back again and honestly it gives me a head ache.

I remember the release. It's a time capsule, not my preference though.

No i to jest kawałek dobrej płyty. Jakby punk był rapem to byłby tą płytą. Ostra, silna, bezkompromisowa. Byłoby 5/5, ale zwalnia pod koniec i trochę traci na przytupie, staje się monotonna. Ale pierwsze 9 kawałków to złoto. Mocne 8.5/10 z żalem że nie mogę zawyżyć.

Not for me

barnslegra en seinni verk. á köflum of heimskulegt fyrir minn smekk. en gott byrjendaverk. 3,5.

Rock samples and wicked beats. Some absolute bangers on here. Love it.

Not my favorite. Very high school edgy in a lot of aspects. Loved whoever was doing the guitar in a couple songs

I love it

First album, a bit "primitive/rough" but the punch is there. Solid 8/10

If I was in the mood it's a vibe.

Never been a fan of the Beastie Boys, or so I thought. This was a fun one, would relisten

Another biiig 'hey I know this' moment. I do want to fight for my right to party but unfortunately I would prefer another soundtrack for my party. I liked it less than their other album I already heard, still catchy for sure though

Very nostalgic. It’s not their best performances nor their best productions but it did change the world.

Just an absolute classic

Juvenile.

An important album for the band, establishing them as less hardcore punks and more rappers... and their style of trading lines and being not altogether serious is here. but the music is so-so, and the lyrics are juevenile. I liked this album when I was a kid, but Paul's Boutique and Check Your Head just crush this thing. I'm not going to listen to it again.

This album seems to age worse and worse over time, but even though it's frat broey, misogynistic, violent, and shrill, it displays a lot of talent in the production and some of the lyrical wit. If this we're all the Beasties ever did, they'd be a bit of a joke, but they followed it up with some far more evolved rhymes, themes, and production, and managed to separate themselves from some of the idiocy on this album. This maybe gets an extra star for the nostalgia, though as I said, it's not the greatest look.

a blast

Et essentielt dum fyr-album. Bliver meget nostalgisk og kan godt lide produktionerne, selvom det egentlig er lige monotont nok, særligt i forhold til hvad de lavede senere. Fight for Your Right er selvfølgelig et sjovt nummer, men altså Rhymin & Stealin, No Sleep Till Brooklyn og Hold It Now, Hit It er alle bangers. Stor 3'er

Det er ret dumt men det lyder bare pissefed. Virkelig sjov plade. Kan ikke helt holde energien i 45 minutter men close enough.

This album sounds like a parody of every rap record ever. Great songs with guitar as the lead instrument!

Stealin' and rhymin'

86% Best: Rhymin & Stealin; The New Style; Posse in Effect; No Sleep till Brooklyn; Paul Revere; Time to Get Ill Must-Hear? Sure

"Fight for Your Right" is great of course. The rest are OK. Some iconic songs, but not anything I'd put on my playlists. 3/5

Cool

Ok album, samples are pretty good, the beats and the vocals not so much. Even with the great samples, the album is kinda of boring, all their vocals are pretty much the same throughout the album.

Beastie Boys represent another side of urban youth, like the second generation of immigrants to any country who look like they're from somewhere else, but when they speak with your own accent you realize their from here now. Beastie Boys let people know white people CAN make rap music. Wearing their punk roots on their sleeves, and almost amateur diy vibe, it might be hard for people used to their later efforts to realize they were making this shit up on the fly. And they were both dorky and cool as fuck at the same time. Five stars.

3.5. Let me rate half stars dangit

Desværre ikke lige så godt som sidst. Det her album et lidt for fjollet, og stakato.

Barnligt, plat og dumt. Men jeg elsker det

Goody white boy party rock. Some tracks aged well some didn’t No Sleep Til Brooklyn is still one of the best cock rock songs ever, even unintentionally

Rätt bra

As batidas são excelentes, mas está no meio de algo muito irritante, deve ser os cantores.

No

White frat rap. Interesting that the second half was much better than the first. But man, they knew how to put a classic rock riff behind some juvenile lyrics!

chatin

All time favorite. One of the best albums. Period

Another perfect album. Not one bad song.

So anstrengend dass ich nur zwei Lieder max geschafft habe zu hören

Loved the beats. Jammed to a lot of these songs

Great to listen to in the background.

And I thought they couldn’t get worse.

Mostly simple rhyme schemes, but very fun since they don't take any of it seriously. She's Crafty and Fight For Your Right were my favorites, while I thought some of the songs like No Sleep Till Brooklyn and Brass Monkey were too repetitive. The obnoxious voices started to annoy me later in the album, but I liked them at the beginning because they added to the unserious/sarcastic vibe.

'Deliver Colonel Sanders down to Davey Jones' locker'; 'I got a girl in the Castle and one in the pagoda / You know I got rhymes like Abe Vigoda' (or is it Phyllis Diller?); 'Now your mom threw away your best porno mag (busted).' The Beasties spend a fair amount of time rapping about 'girlies with the def behinds,' and really girlies of all shapes and sizes, but that doesn't take away from the fact that this album remains sonically fresh and persists as a cultural touchstone that few other records approach. Behind the boasting, rhyming, and stealing is the inception of the hip hop avant-garde, persevered by Kool Keith, MF Doom, etc. Sampling is a form of cultural allusion, and when the lyrics are equally, hilariously allusive, you get something that is truly sui generis. And fun as hell.

10/10.

I feel like this is more historically significant than musically significant and it's only historically significant because it was popular. The other popular hip hop at the time was way more dynamic and sonically interesting.

I don't care how creative the sampling is, the album still sounds like three annoying teenagers yelling at you for 45 minutes

I thought half the album was trash and not aged great and then the other half was really good. So meet in the middle with 3 stars

I don’t know why but this album surprised me! I enjoyed the rough, grungey, poor vocals, mashed with the background riffs - I enjoyed this!

Great album. Not really my genre but these guys were ahead of their time. Some classics in there on their first album.

Solid

Too much of a (goodish) thing is too much. One song at a time once in a while is all I can handle.

5/5

I think I gotta go 5 on it even though the Beasties middle period is my favorite. Incredibly strong debut and brilliant blend of punk and rap at the time when hip hop wasn't even fully developed. So many iconic tracks

Not the Beastie Boys album I would pick nor really have ever gone back to. It has more of the weedy rock haze that I'd associate with Check Yr Head or Ill Communication than I remembered, particular the opening track. The longer songs feel endless, a purgatory spent in the New Style and not getting sleep til Brooklyn. "She's Crafty" came out a few months after Run DMC's "Walk This Way" and it felt like the whole world was sing song like this and like that. The deep cuts can stay there, the hits will be omnipresent as long as white people are still on earth. "Girls" still kinda cracks me up.

A milestone of my adolescence, this album overlaps my skateboarding years and my first-ever job at a Domino's Pizza store, making for some colorful interaction with the latter's corporate sensibilities. Anyway, while it was fun to hear a few of these songs again, I sold my vinyl copy of this album long ago and hadn't listened to this album in decades until now. I found that Raising Hell by Run-DMC, which mines similar sonic territory, feels more relevant to me today than Licensed to Ill. I also found the Beastie Boys inescapably annoying through the '90s FWIW.

classic and stands up

I respect what the Beasties have done here but I dunno, it feels like they really only had one kind of song at this point. A lot better as singles than as a full album.

This is my childhood. I love every single one of these tracks.

This album is a party from front to back and top to bottom, it's still relevant today, I mean, not as relevant as it was in the 1980s — I still remember my elementary schoolfriends reciting Paul Revere — but what a trip this is. My only question about this banger of a debut album is the Beastie Boys were around for five years before its release: Do you really need five years to formulate a first-album?

I want you to understand that, at one point in my teen years during the 90s, I was a huge fan of the Beastie Boys. But a critical reappraisal of their work can't ignore the fact that *they're not very good rappers*. They have worked with great producers and musicians, and there are definitely tracks on this record that suggest some of the greatness that better rappers would go on to achieve in hip hop. But all these songs would be better if you replaced the Beasties with better MCs, or even just rocked them as instrumentals.

Okay, this is obviously on the list because the first rap lp to hit #1 on the billboard charts was by white dudes. But how does it hold up, especially knowing that Check your head ( #10 on the charts) is a more sophisticated and probably better album ? It's hard to evaluate it now. I was 16 when this came out and "fight for your right to party" was -everywhere-. At the time this seemed snotty and brash and like it was maybe not cool for rich white guys to co-opt rap. The music is more minimalist than I'd remembered. The album is definitely juvenile. But it works.

Not unlike the Snoop Dogg album...a hugely popular and influential release in the history of hip-hop tainted by some ridiculously childish and misogynistic lyrics. But the album does deserve it's landmark status, and gave us the Beasties, arguably one of the best thing to happen to music. And even they in later years made amends for the lyrics on this one. RIP, MCA.

Good album overall that has some absolute all-time classic bangers. However, some of the less popular songs were a bit annoying, which brings my personal rating down a peg. P.S. One of the dudes sounds like Mr. Poopybutthole from Rick & Morty and it borderline ruins that dude's parts.

Literally packed full of iconic tracks. I admit it got a little tiresome listing straight through the album. Also I think I'm getting too old for stereotypical rap lyrics.

Great album, lots of classics!

Classic juvenile rap rock, creative, quotable, funky fun.

Stacked with hits, groundbreaking, creative and influential. This was huge at the time of its release. Not much else to say. Not quite a full 5er but I’ll round up. 4.5/5

To have the ability to incorporate samples from Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, CCR and Mr. Ed while featuring Slayer’s guitarist…pretty much says it all. A great debut and definitely one of the greatest rap albums of the 80s. Setting the stage for their next album that would be their masterpiece. 4.5/5.

Love how they use familiar elements in creative ways…some more explicit that others. The beat from When the Levee breaks is prolly one of the best of all time. So if you want to start some heads bobbing, why not start with that? I’m quite stingy with my 5’s but just enjoyed this too much. 4.5 and rounding up.

Not sure this is truly a 5 star album…but as a soundtrack to a weekend? Chefs kiss. I’m not on the bandwagon that Paul’s Boutique is their best album. Gimme this debut any day of the week (especially the weekend days of the week). 4.25/5

They have such a unique sound and just like their other works this album gets you ready to run through a wall. Few do hype music as good as them. It’s even better on a second listen when you know the lyrics and can sing along.

Musicly good, just couldn't bear the shouting. I can see why they made an impact but not for me.

I listened to this one over and over again back in the day.

I usually listen to each album four or five times before committing to anything, but I couldn't listen to Licenced to Ill a second time. Not today anyway. The object of the satire here is clear and, like much satire, there is the risk of the satirical object enjoying the work at face value - look at the DJs who played Girls and Boys in Ibiza. I know the Beastie Boys took a lot of money from the frat bros they were ridiculing. Why shouldn't they? I know they moved away from that model pretty quickly too. Why wouldn't they? Regardless, that scene is so far removed from my life - geographically, culturally, chronologically, my current spot in the male life cycle - that I don't care about its success or failure either way. In my early twenties, I had neighbours who partied like this every Saturday night and it made no difference if they were sincere or lampooning all the other parties. It was noisy, aggressive, puerile, inconsiderate, and self-indulgent. I was on the other side of the wall then and I feel on the other side of the wall from this record too - I only care to the extend that I have to put up with it. Even if the 1986 Beastie Boys were acting as my personal hypemen, I would find it obnoxious more than edifying. Those neighbours always regretted it the next day - I could hear that much as well. I understand that the Beastie Boys regretted it to some extent too - the party got out of hand. I was going to give them some credit for that, but, apparently, they don't care for Kerry King's solo on No Sleep Til Brooklyn - the highlight of the album - so I'm taking that credit back. It's mine. Get your own half a star, Beastie Boys! 1 I read the Wikipedia page about this album and, incredibly, there is no reference in the whole entry for Licensed to Ill to the (plain) fact that it is a comedy record. I can’t comprehend that there is any other way to hear this album other than as 13 variations on the same joke. I don’t know much about rap or hip-hop but it is very difficult to see that this shares a genre with, to take recent examples I have encountered, De La Soul, Jeru the Damaja or even the puerile provocations of Eminem. Sure, those other rappers tell jokes but here rap is not so much the medium for jokes - rap is the joke. Surely? Anyway, there’s no music here worth criticising. Even the rhythmic patterns of the raps themselves are so lumberingly simple as to be unmistakably satirical, notwithstanding everyone on the planet’s apparent mistaking them for earnest genre gold. So let’s focus on the jokes. ‘A lot of beer, a lot of girls, and a lot of cursin’/ 22 automatic on my person’ That’s funny. There are lots of other funny bits (some essentially this same bit) and there are enough of them to justify about 3 good joke songs. All the same - there are 13 tracks here. 2/5

iconic classic between hiphop punk und rock ein eigenständiges meisterwerk

Fun but got a bit grating after a while.

Een sleutelwerk, die vanuit verrassende hoek meehielp de 'Golden Age of Hip Hop' in te luiden. Deze prille jaren van het genre hebben hun quirks en aandoenlijkheden, maar luister er niet perse graag naar. Het is wel heel interessant om het mee te nemen als startpunt van een evolutie in het genre, en je hoort ook op dit album al zoveel kleine fragmenten van de toekomst. Ook als je binnen hun eigen discografie blijft. Het is allemaal veel mechanischer en rauwer dan bijvoorbeeld hun - hier reeds gereviewde - werk van 3 jaar later, 'Paul's Boutique'. Maar het zinspeelt ook al wel heel erg op dat er zo'n complexe productie aan zat te komen, met het gebruik van samples buiten het reguliere 'black music' spectrum, de gelaagdheid ervan ('Time To Get Ill'), de kwaliteit van storytelling ('Paul Revere'), en de satire ('Girls'). Bedenkende dat dit een paar jochies waren, opgegroeid in een wit punk-wereldje, die samen met de muziek-guru Rick Rubin - zelf ook in z'n kinderschoenen - zo'n revolutionair werk afleverde in 1986 is best ongekend. Maar los van de invloed die het album had - zowel destijds als drager van verscheidene party anthems voor de jeugd, als later als blauwdruk van alternative Hip Hop - is de luisterervaring niet zo plezierig als later werk van ze. Ze wisten later iets beter te doseren wanneer ze de muziek het werk moesten laten doen, en vocaal iets minder dominant te zijn. Een 'Paul's Boutique' doet dat waanzinnig, door een fantasierijke en oneindig vermakelijke soundscape. Hier is het nogal in your face van begin tot eind. Maar dat neemt niet weg dat m'n hart telkens op de juiste momenten wel weer sneller begint te kloppen, met de hoogtepunten prima verspreid over de tracklist. Een icoon, en nog steeds een party banger, en hun eigen springplank naar grotere hoogtes. 8/10 Highlights: The New Style Fight For Your Right Paul Revere Brass Monkey

Het begin van Licensed to Ill is nogal in your face. Sowieso is dat een kenmerk van de witte punk-jochies, het is aan het eind van je werkdag wel even schrikken. En ook al blijft het hele album wel de energie hoog, ze lijken het iets beter te doseren dan in de eerste paar tracks. Dat slaat voor mij een beetje om bij Slow Ride, waar het refrein met de War-sample voor het eerst wat vriendelijks aan de plaat toevoegt. Daarna is het niveau van deze plaat hoog, en geniet ik wel echt van de mix van hiphop in z'n kinderschoenen en punk gitaar riffs. De essentie bij zo'n Beastie Boys zit 'm in de dosering. Je wilt energie, maar niet gillend gek worden. Dus ook een timing-kwestie en de reden dat ik de LP niet vaak op de speler gooi. Wel vet om te hebben tho. 7,5 Highlights Slow ride Fight for Your Ride No Sleep Till Brooklyn

while this is one of the most iconic albums in 80s hip hop, I don't know if it's aged all that well. with their debut, the Beastie Boys introduced themselves as a trio of rowdy, party-loving miscreants. it's an energy that works for them, and it certainly helped propel them and the Def Jam label to mainstream success. but as hip hop, it feels pretty dated. I'm tempted to grade my feelings on a curve just because the genre had a long way to go in general, and because the big hit singles are undeniably a lot of fun. but then you get songs like "Girls," which demonstrate an attitude towards women which they would apologize for several albums later. the growth that the Beasties demonstrated over the course of their career, both as musicians and as thinkers, is pretty tremendous. their discography truly gets interesting for me with Paul's Boutique. light 6/10.

The original and best accept no substitiutes - only gets 4 as it’s not Paul’s Boutique

Weird

Too repetitive.

A trip down nostalgia lane. It's hard not to smile when listening to these guys rhyme and goof about. "to do the dishes....to clean up my room...to do the laundry"

Iconic. Defining a genre, and well done.

Quite a few hits that we used to hear in the hallowed halls of North Dorm...but just not a big fan of the genre.

man these guys had a lot of red 40 before making this album. just running all over the place

I liked it, ive heard the iconic songs on there like girls, brass monkey and no sleep till brooklyn. Other than those i enjoyed “hold it now hit it” and “the new style” i can see how people enjoyed this in the 80s its insanely different and has some cool messages and rhymes in it.

One monster hit! Anthem for aging frat boys and high school dropouts alike, now living contently in their parent’s basement. Very white, very male, very East coast. More amusing than good. The rest is fodder and fill. 2 stars for losing their best porno mags.

The best

I still know all the lyrics to this album, its etched in my brain pan.

Fun https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W516wEFmmPE

I suppose I cant keep skipping out on these. Horrible stuff. If your playlists consist of 311, Blink-182, The Foo Fighters, Coldplay, Breaking Benjamin, etc etc., then I'm sure you love this too. .05 - 5

well my name's COFFEETRON and I'll MAKE SOME NOISE I gave five stars the BEASTIE BOYS

I’ve listened to Licensed to Ill more times than I care to admit, and no matter how many times I give it a chance, it just never resonates with me. Despite all the hype surrounding its groundbreaking status in hip-hop history, for me, this album is a chaotic jumble of shock value and juvenile antics that ultimately feels messy and unfulfilling. I’ll give credit where it’s due: the album does have a few redeeming qualities. There’s an undeniable raw energy to the production that captures the rebellious spirit of its era. A couple of tracks, like “Fight for Your Right,” have a catchy hook and an aggressive drive that might have appealed to the early hip-hop crowd. The beats are bold and, in some ways, innovative for its time. There’s also a sense of fun and unfiltered attitude in the delivery that, if you’re into that kind of over-the-top bravado, could be seen as a positive. For me, the overwhelming issue is that the album feels messy and disjointed from start to finish. The production is frantic and lacks finesse—layers of noise and samples are piled on top of each other in a way that feels haphazard rather than innovative. This chaotic mix often results in a muddled sound where nothing really stands out or gives a sense of purpose. Lyrically, the album comes across as immature and overly reliant on crude humour. The shock value that some critics applaud feels forced and repetitive, and the vulgarity doesn’t translate into any real substance or cleverness for me. Instead of offering insightful commentary or artistry, the words seem designed solely to offend or provoke without any meaningful payoff. Moreover, I find the overall attitude and delivery to be grating. The aggressive posturing and abrasive vocal style—intended to be rebellious—simply come off as contrived and tiresome. There’s a sense that every song is trying too hard to be edgy, resulting in awkward moments where the intended cool factor evaporates into irritation. Licensed to Ill is a prime example of an album that’s all hype and little substance. Sure, it has a few moments of raw energy and catchy hooks, but overall it’s a messy, awkward, and juvenile collection that I just can’t get behind. Despite its cultural impact, it simply doesn’t work for me. At 1/5 stars this album did nothing for me beyond a fleeting burst of controversy that quickly faded into forgettable noise.

I grew up with several of these tracks on the radio in my youf. I always particularly loved Brass Monkey and No Sleep Til Brooklyn as a kid just cuz they were really fun and sounded goofy. Growing up is realizing it's still pretty much the same and that's what makes everyone of all ages fall for it, including me. Everything here is kinda stupid, but they know it and lean into it. They clearly were just 'avin' a laff with it but at the same time, it sounds way better than it should be. Not really anything too lame to speak of (other than passing comments and vibes that didn't age well ofc - it was 80s hip hop after all). Just overall a good time, good vibe, and Rick Rubin when he still mattered.

I remember picking this up in a 4.99 CD bin when it was the most angst per buck you could buy. I didn't like it then as much as I do now, strange. Pros: This album gave us Rick Rubin Cons: This album gave us Rick Rubin

5/10 Ehhhhhhhhhhhhhhh ok yes it’s revolutionary yes it’s ahead of its time yea it’s influential yes it's well respected, BUT…, I don’t think we would be saying these things had it not been for everything that came after it. This album was not super respected in the hardcore Hip Hop spaces at the time, not that it was hated or anything, but considering what Vanilla Ice did to Hip Hop at the time, it wasn’t a surprise that the record wasn’t as immediately influential, especially as it was the sort of Bible for “frat-rap”, not typically enjoyed by black audiences. This album is white, white as hell, and that wasn’t completely comprehensible in the genre at the time, that is until the years passed by as it gained more success and they finally released Paul’s Boutique, which could possibly be perceived as one of the best or the best Hip Hop album of the 80s. It was this and what came after that cemented the Beastie Boys not as white outsiders, but Hip Hop pioneers who respect the genre and chose to do their own thing as white rappers. Licensed to Ill has phenomenal ideas and forward thinking production, but it’s still very very white (again, not inherently a bad thing, but can be horrible if you make a weak rap record), and I think these rose tinted glasses kinda mask the obvious shortcomings regarding the not very great rapping, not very great humor, and not very great beats at points. Oh and just annoying half the time lol. It’s great in concept, kinda ehhhhh? in execution. It’s a fantastic blueprint, but when we look at it on a more “objective level”, what impact on the greater canon of Hip Hop is there really outside of being important to Pop culture? The biggest songs off this are novelty songs, overwhelmingly used in media to soundtrack something comedic, I can’t see any convincing argument behind the hits being some of the best songs in the genre, no one is out here thinking “No Sleep Till Brooklyn”, “Fight For Your Right” or “Brass Monkey” are the best Rap songs you’re ever gonna hear. The influence on Hip Hop definitely comes from the deep cuts on the record, but they’re still far from perfect, they just seem like ideas better executed on their next albums. It’s not trying to be great rap, and they’re just having fun and not being serious. But, they were all that and more on everything they made after that, and that shit was fire. Is this that Eminem album? EDIT: I originally gave this album a 3 star because I felt like maybe I was a bit too harsh about it, but I now just spent the past couple of hours re-listening to the following three BB albums back to back and, yeah, nah the quality difference pretty fucking huge, and that goes back to my main gripe with this. I still think we wouldn’t be hyping this album up this much if Paul’s Boutique didn’t permanently change Hip Hop for good, we just see a formula that they created work really well because they made it work elsewhere.

Several classics, beats are good, but the songs that use a bunch of samples are kinda weak.

This album still sounds somewhat fresh after 30 years. None of the tracks really hit all the things I would be looking for, but there's so much power and conviction that you just have to give in.

It was pretty much 35 years ago when I first heard this album. I thought it was cool then, and I think it is cool now.

So powerful and energetic, but a bit repetitive for my taste. Is really something unique what this guys could do, but it didn't go many places

Not really my style. A little repetitive and shouty, which leads to exhaustion quickly. Still - not terrible.

this wasn't as bad as i expected it to be. i really didnt have the patience to deal with the shout rap on the day i got this album but this album is a lot of fun and managed to overcome my negative feelings for the most part. i also really enjoyed some of the samples on this album. i understand why people enjoy it but at the end of the day its not for me

What a silly album. Lots of fun!

The great thing about this album (and BB in general) is how low stakes everything is. No emotional heft AT ALL, just a few lads fucking around and doing it exceptionally well. And the album is short enough that the shtick doesn’t wear out it’s welcome. RIP MCA

Love this album

Funky - love how they use the different tones of their voice as almost like another instrument.

Hmm maybe because it was just yesterday I had another mid 80s release - Tears for Fears - but totally different genre same year. I know a few Beastie Boy songs prior to listening, and still know the same ones (Brass Monkey, No Sleep, Fight, etc.) everything else just kind of blended together. Going to give a 4 because it is GOOD, just not LOVE.

It was fine, dont get the hype tbh

Lesser of the two BB albums we’ve had and pretty rough around the edges. Slow ride, girls and fight for your right the highlight (girls was bizarrely enjoyable)

Putting aside the fact that the most annoying people you know have adopted “Fight for Your Right” as a mantra (looking at you, Travis Kelce), Licensed to Ill still stands up as a pretty great record. Sure, its production and some of the subject matter might be dated, but overall, it’s hard not to have a good time listening to this record. The Beasties would go on to put out better records, with more expansive sounds and intricate production, but their debut is no slouch, even if a lot of the tracks rely on the same tricks (classic rock guitar/samples, bombastic drum machines) to get their point across.

I'll say now that I'm not into hip hop. A lot of shouting about guns and "da hood" and "n**gaz this and hoes that. I've obviously heard 'Fight for your Right' before (a banger) but that's about it. So is this album Hip hop? The first 4 tracks are awesome. Then it drops in quality a tad for the next 2 until Fight for your Right and No Sleep pick up the quality until the end. In places it sounds like it's the cast of South Park. So its a novelty record? just with great lyrics and great tunes? After 2 listens I still dont know if this is Hip Hop or Rock What I do know is its a great big piss take and I love it.

I know this album's def cuz we all applauded. Impossible to understate the influence this had on the evolution of my music tastes. It was my gateway into hip-hop, and sampling Van Halen and Led Zeppelin dovetailed nicely with my initial interests in heavy metal. Sure, some of it is dated and maybe hasn't aged so well, but it's such a fun album all the way through that I don't care. And its influence on the music that followed is undeniable. So, yes, it deserves a spot on this list. Matter of fact, you could put any combination of their first 4 albums on here, and you'd get no arguments from me.

Such a fun listen, even the "non hits"are pretty great.

no notes will not take questions could i write poetry to this? y

Fifteen year old me would have given this album five stars, added a sixth, put his pencil down, and left the room. He already had a poster of the cover art on his bedroom wall, much to his mother's dismay. Now, almost forty years later, I'm not so sure. Yes, this was the debut of a former Hardcore band (featuring Lucious Jackson's Kate Schellenbach on drums) that adopted the nascent Hip-Hop genre and and delivered it to every neighborhood. The Heavy Metal guitars, Classic Rock samples, and raunchy lyrics made the music appeal to teenagers everywhere. But, is it their best album? No. While they later recanted the misogynistic lyrics and claimed that "Fight for Your Right" was intended as parody, this record displays an immaturity that they would quickly outgrow. When taken as a starting point, this album is important. But, if I were trying to introduce someone who had never heard the Beasties before, I would chose almost any of their other releases. Extra half-star for rhyming "pagoda" and "Abe Vigoda".