62. Sabotage by Beastie Boys

"Sabotage" by Beastie Boys

Written by Beastie Boys (Michael "Mike D" Diamond, Adam "MCA" Yauch, Adam "Ad-Rock" Horovitz)
Produced by Beastie Boys and Mario Caldato, Jr.
Released on Ill Communication (May 31, 1994)
Released as a single on January 28, 1994
music video amazon spotify iTunes
Warning: Explicit Lyrics

There aren't many things that scream "1990's!" as loudly as the music video for "Sabotage" by the Beastie Boys. If someone asked me to describe what the 1990's were like, I might start by sharing this video. It is the definition of quintessential 1990's pop culture: it's camp and retro and features a rap-rock soundtrack. I spent most of my years in the 90's thinking retro and camp were unironically cool. During the 90's I spent money on and proudly wore Hawaiian shirts, low-rise boot-cut jeans, corduroy pants, and wide graphic ties. (If I'd ever actually bought a bowling shirt, I'd have thought myself the official king of the 90's.) Everything was baggy and ill-fitting. It's all we knew at the time. Retro and camp crept into the music landscape as well (particularly with the resurgence of swing), but rap and rock finally came together in a significant way then too. With their successes in the 1990s, Rage Against the Machine and Beastie Boys paved the way, for better or worse, for every 2000's era nu-metal band to have a DJ scratching records on all their songs.

The Beastie Boys are one of the first bands I remember liking, and "Fight for Your Right" is one of the first songs I remember falling in love with. As a very young child listening to top 40 radio, it was perfect. It spoke to youth. It sampled hard guitar licks, had a sing-a-long hook, and made you smile.

Every few years, a discussion about which Beasties Boys album is their best will come up. For me the answer will always be Ill Communication. I know that Licensed to Ill helped put rap music on the map. I also understand why many people (especially music critics) love to site Paul's Boutique as their best album. While it is fantastic and was a truly ground-breaking album at the time, because it didn't get nearly as much radio play as their other works, I never really got the chance to listen to and get familiar with that album. I also appreciate the Check Your Head album, but it was really just a stepping stone towards their musical peak: Ill Communication. My high opinion of Ill Communication almost certainly stems from two things: the first is that this album was released while I was starting to define for myself what kinds of music I enjoyed; and the second is that this band I had first loved listening to as a seven year old was now making more rock oriented music while I was diving head first into all things rock music.

As was seen in the rebooted Star Trek films, there aren't many songs that are better at getting you amped for going to battle (while also screwing up your enemy's communication systems) than this song. I also love the idea of it being labeled as classical music in the future, while also being referred to as "the beat and shouting" (which might be the best and simplest way to describe it). While the Beastie Boys at their core are a hip hop crew, they did start out playing punk rock in Brooklyn. That marriage of the visceral energy of punk and hip hop is what makes this song so great. I will always think of "Sabotage" as their best song and Ill Communication as their best album.

Right now, "Sabotage" by Beastie Boys is (probably) my 62nd favorite song of all time.