Released on July 25th 1989, Paul’s Boutique was the second studio album for the Beastie Boys. 3 years on from Licensed to Ill which was an album that became the first rap LP to reach the top the Billboard 200 and, was only the second rap album to get certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Paul’s Boutique had a lot to live up to!
Released through Capitol Records after the break from Def Jam, the second Beastie Boys album marked a change in direction, not from there style of hip hop but from the frat boy Fight for Your Right image they were so well known for at that time and it is well documented, they were tired of it.
“Yet with the dense, crafty Paul’s Boutique (produced by the Dust Brothers, including Tone-Loc helmsman Matt Dike), the Beasties reinvent the turntable and prove they’re here to stay. Gone is Rubin’s wailing guitar (and with it, probably, the chance of a crossover hit single), but in its place is a nearly seamless set of provocative samples and rhymes — a rap opera, if you will, complete with an Abbey Road-like multisnippet medley called “B-boy Bouillabaisse.” If the misogyny, hedonism and violence of the first album bothered you, the sequel shows little remorse — merely replacing beer with cheeba — but it’s a much more intricate, less bludgeoning effort.” – Rolling Stone July 25 1989
The location of the cover shoot now immortalised as the location of Beastie Boys Square in new York Square. Address: Ludlow St &, Rivington St, New York, NY 10002, United States
Produced by the Beastie Boys and the Dust Brothers, Paul’s Boutique relies extensively on the sampling of other records and sound. There is a documented 105 tracks that were sampled during the production of the album. Obviously 1989 was very different from 2024, the use of just 1 sample now and it would be a lawyers and litigation nightmare! It’s safe to say these laws have changed but I for one am very thankful that they didn’t exist then.
“Contrary to popular belief, most of the sampling for Paul’s Boutique was eventually cleared, but at dramatically lower costs compared to today’s rates. According to Sound on Sound, most of the samples were authorized “easily and affordably, something that would be ‘unthinkable’ in today’s litigious music industry.” Mario “Mario C” Caldato Jr., the engineer on the album, said, “We realized we had spent a lot of money in the studio. We had spent about a $1/4 million in rights and licensing for samples.” This type of sampling was only possible before Grand Upright Music, Ltd. v. Warner Bros. Records Inc., the landmark lawsuit against Biz Markie by Gilbert O’Sullivan, which changed hip hop artists’ approach to sampling.” (Sorry it’s from Wikipedia)
Paul’s Boutique Track List
- To All the Girls
- Shake Your Rump
- Johnny Ryall
- Egg Man
- High Plains Drifter
- The Sounds of Science
- 3‐Minute Rule
- Hey Ladies
- 5‐Piece Chicken Dinner
- Looking Down the Barrel of a Gun
- Car Thief
- What Comes Around
- Shadrach
- Ask for Janice
- B-Boy Bouillabaisse
Paul’s Boutique often places the greatest albums of all time, most recently the at No.49 in Apple Musics Top 100 albums of all time. Viewed by many critics as a landmark album of hip hop and a seminal work in sample-based production.
Any excuse to upload a Beastie Boys Post.
