The surviving members of Beastie Boys are set to drop a nearly 600-page memoir this week. In anticipation, here’s a look at what’s inside the printed edition and its star-studded audiobook.
Behind “Beastie Boys Book” are Adam Horovitz (Ad-rock) and Michael Diamond (Mike D), who together with the late Adam Yauch founded Beastie Boys as a hardcore band in New York City in 1981, ultimately becoming a hugely influential hip hop trio.
In its pages, readers can expect accounts, both revealing and funny, from Horovitz and Diamond on their transitions from punk to rap and everything since: an early collaboration with Russell Simmons and Rick Rubin, the runaway success of debut album “License to Ill”, their move to Los Angeles and the making of the genre-defying “Paul’s Boutique”, and the band members’ evolution as social activists.
BUY: Beastie Boys Book
The band narrative forms the book’s core, but there are also rare photos, original illustrations, a cookbook by chef Roy Choi, a graphic novel, a map of Beastie Boys’ New York, mixtape playlists and writings by guest contributors including Spike Jonze, Wes Anderson, Amy Poehler and Colson Whitehead.
That name-dropping does not end with the list of guest contributors. Those opting for the book’s audio edition (all 762 minutes of it) will hear a cast that includes Steve Buscemi, Bobby Canavale, Elvis Costello, Chuck D, Jarvis Cocker, Snoop Dogg, Will Ferrell, Kim Gordon, LL Cool J, Spike Jonze, Talib Kweli, Amy Poehler, John C. Reilly, Jon Stewart, Ben Stiller, and the list goes on.
Vulture has also shared an exclusive excerpt from the book, while the New York Post has compiled some of its revelations.
“Beastie Boys Book” is out on Oct. 30. JB
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