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Licensed to Ill is the debut hip hop album by the Beastie Boys, released in 1986 (see 1986 in music). It was the first rap album to become popular among mainstream audiences, as well as the first major full-length by a caucasian hip hop group.
Licensed to Ill was the first hip hop LP to top Billboard's Pop Albums chart. It also peaked at #2 on the Top Hip Hop/R&B Albums chart.
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 spoof 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.
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 'Eat Me' when viewed in a mirror.
Track listing
- "Rhymin' & Stealin'" (Beastie Boys/Rubin) – 4:08
- "The New Style" (Beastie Boys/Rubin) – 4:36
- "She's Crafty" (Beastie Boys/Rubin) – 3:35
- "Posse in Effect" (Beastie Boys/Rubin) – 2:27
- "Slow Ride" (Beastie Boys/Rubin) – 2:56
- "Girls" (Beastie Boys/Rubin) – 3:14
- "(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
- "Hold It Now, Hit It" (Beastie Boys/Rubin) – 3:26
- "Brass Monkey" (Beastie Boys/Rubin) – 2:37
- "Slow and Low" (McDaniels/Rubin/Simmons) – 3:38
- "Time to Get Ill" (Beastie Boys/Rubin) – 3:37
Personnel
- Beastie Boys - Group, Producer
- Joe Blaney - Mixing
- Steven Ett - Engineer
- Kerry King - Guitar
- Rick Rubin - Producer
- Howie Weinberg - Mastering
- Steve Byram - Art Direction
- Sunny Bak - Photography
- World B. Omes - Cover Art
Music sample
Charting positions
Billboard Music Charts (North America) - album
| 1986 | The Billboard 200 | No. 1 |
Billboard (North America) - singles
| 1986 | Hold It, Now Hit It | Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks | No. 55 |
| 1986 | It's The New Style | Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks | No. 22 |
| 1986 | Hold It, Now Hit It | Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales | No. 41 |
| 1986 | It's The New Style/Paul Revere | Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales | No. 20 |
| 1987 | Fight For Your Right (To Party!) | The Billboard Hot 100 | No. 7 |
| 1987 | Brass Monkey | The Billboard Hot 100 | No. 48 |
| 1987 | Brass Monkey | Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks | No. 83 |
| 1987 | Paul Revere | Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks | No. 34 |
| 1987 | It's The New Style/Paul Revere | Hot Dance Music/Club Play | No. 41 |
"Licensed to Ill"