''Ill Communication'' is the fourth

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records c ...

by American hip-hop group

Beastie Boys Beastie Boys were an American rap rock group from New York City, formed in 1978. The group was composed of Michael "Mike D" Diamond (vocals, drums), Adam "MCA" Yauch (vocals, bass), and Adam "Ad-Rock" Horovitz (vocals, guitar, programming) ...

, released by

Grand Royal Records Grand Royal was the Los Angeles, California-based vanity record label set up in 1992 by rap group Beastie Boys in conjunction with Capitol Records after the group left Def Jam Recordings. ''Grand Royal'' was also the name of a magazine written a ...

on May 31, 1994. Co-produced by Beastie Boys and

Mario Caldato, Jr. Mario Caldato Jr. (born February 24, 1961), also known as Mario C., is a Brazilian-born record producer and studio engineer best known for his work with Beastie Boys, Jack Johnson (musician), Jack Johnson in the US, Marcelo D2 and Seu Jorge in ...

, it is among the band's most varied releases, drawing from hip hop, punk rock,

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...

, and

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the mi ...

, and continues their trend away from sampling and towards live instruments, which began with their previous release, ''

Check Your Head ''Check Your Head'' is the third studio album by American rap rock group Beastie Boys, released by Grand Royal and Capitol Records on April 21, 1992. Three years elapsed between the releases of the band's second studio album ''Paul's Boutique'' ...

'' (1992). The album features musical contributions from

Money Mark Mark Ramos Nishita (born February 10, 1960), known professionally as Money Mark, is an American producer and musician, best known for his collaborations with the Beastie Boys from 1992 until 2011. Early life Born in Detroit to a Japanese-Hawai ...

Eric Bobo The given name Eric, Erich, Erikk, Erik, Erick, or Eirik is derived from the Old Norse name ''Eiríkr'' (or ''Eríkr'' in Old East Norse due to monophthongization). The first element, ''ei-'' may be derived from the older Proto-Norse ''* ain ...

and Amery "AWOL" Smith, and vocal contributions from Q-Tip and

Biz Markie Marcel Theo Hall (April 8, 1964 – July 16, 2021), known professionally as Biz Markie, was an American rapper, singer, songwriter, DJ, and record producer. Markie was best known for his 1989 single "Just a Friend", which became a Top 40 hit in ...

. Beastie Boys were influenced by

Miles Davis Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Davis adopted a variety of music ...

jazz rock Jazz fusion (also known as fusion and progressive jazz) is a music genre that developed in the late 1960s when musicians combined jazz harmony and improvisation with rock music, funk, and rhythm and blues. Electric guitars, amplifiers, and keyb ...

albums ''

On the Corner ''On the Corner'' is a studio album by American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, and composer Miles Davis. It was recorded in June and July 1972 and released on October 11 of the same year by Columbia Records. The album continued Davis's exploration o ...

'' (1972) and '' Agharta'' (1975) while recording ''Ill Communication''. The album became the band's second number-one album on the U.S. ''Billboard'' 200 chart and their second

triple platinum Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...

album. It was supported by the single "

Sabotage Sabotage is a deliberate action aimed at weakening a polity, effort, or organization through subversion, obstruction, disruption, or destruction. One who engages in sabotage is a ''saboteur''. Saboteurs typically try to conceal their identitie ...

", which was accompanied by a

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing devic ...

directed by

Spike Jonze Adam H. Spiegel (born October 22, 1969), known professionally as Spike Jonze, is an American filmmaker, actor, musician, and photographer. His work includes commercials, film, music videos, skateboard videos and television. Jonze began his ca ...

that parodied 1970s cop shows.

Singles

" Get It Together", which samples The Moog Machine's cover of "

Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In "Medley: Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In (The Flesh Failures)" (commonly called "Aquarius/Let the Sunshine In", "The Age of Aquarius" or "Let the Sunshine In") is a medley of two songs written for the 1967 musical ''Hair'' by James Rado and Gerome R ...

", was released as a single on March 17, 1994. "

" was the second single taken from ''Ill Communication''. It was released to radio on May 9, 1994. The backing track of the song was laid down by the band members, driven by

MCA MCA may refer to: Astronomy * Mars-crossing asteroid, an asteroid whose orbit crosses that of Mars Aviation * Minimum crossing altitude, a minimum obstacle crossing altitude for fixes on published airways * Medium Combat Aircraft, a 5th gen ...

's fuzzed and twangy bass, at Tin Pan Alley Studios in New York, and then sat unused for a year, with the working title of "Chris Rock", before vocals were added. According to

Ad-Rock Adam Keefe Horovitz (born October 31, 1966), popularly known as Ad-Rock, is an American rapper, guitarist and actor. He was a member of the hip-hop group Beastie Boys. While Beastie Boys were active, Horovitz performed with a side project, BS ...

in the 2020 documentary '' Beastie Boys Story'', the lyrics are a fictitious rant about how their producer "was the worst person ever and how he was always sabotaging us and holding us back." "

Sure Shot "Sure Shot" is a song by American hip hop group Beastie Boys, released as the third single from their fourth album ''Ill Communication'' on June 2, 1994, two days after the album's release. The track features a sample from jazz flautist Jeremy S ...

", which features a sample taken from jazz flautist

Jeremy Steig Jeremy Steig (September 23, 1942 – April 13, 2016)Peter Keepnews, "Jeremy ...

's "Howlin' For Judy" as the main instrumental part of the song, was released as a single on May 31, 1994. The album's fourth single, "Root Down", was released in 1995.

Artwork

Mike D Michael Louis Diamond (born November 20, 1965), better known as Mike D, is an American rapper, musician, and music producer. He is best known as a founding member of the hip hop group Beastie Boys. Early life Diamond was born in New York City ...

and MCA collaborated with Gibran Evans, son of the artist and designer Jim Evans (who designed a hand-drawn typeface specifically for ''Ill Communication'' that was used throughout the promotion of the album), to create the album's packaging. The photograph they chose for the front cover was taken by Bruce Davidson in 1964 at a

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...

drive-in diner called Tiny Naylor's as part of an assignment for ''

Esquire Esquire (, ; abbreviated Esq.) is usually a courtesy title. In the United Kingdom, ''esquire'' historically was a title of respect accorded to men of higher social rank, particularly members of the landed gentry above the rank of gentlema ...

'', but the magazine ultimately did not publish the photos. Although Davidson had not heard the Beastie Boys' music and did not understand it once he did—he later recalled thinking it sounded like a "secret language" when they sent him a demo tape—he agreed to let the band use his photo. The booklet that came with the album features the artwork "Gaia" by

Alex Grey Alex Grey (born November 29, 1953) is an American visual artist, author, teacher, and Vajrayana practitioner known for creating spiritual and psychedelic paintings. He works in multiple forms including performance art, process art, installation ...

on the middle pages.

Critical reception

''Ill Communication'' placed at number 15 on ''

The Village Voice ''The Village Voice'' is an American news and culture paper, known for being the country's first alternative newsweekly. Founded in 1955 by Dan Wolf, Ed Fancher, John Wilcock, and Norman Mailer, the ''Voice'' began as a platform for the cr ...

''s 1994 Pazz & Jop critics' poll, number 19 on ''

Spin Spin or spinning most often refers to: * Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thread by twisting fibers together, traditionally by hand spinning * Spin, the rotation of an object around a central axis * Spin (propaganda), an intentionally ...

''s list of the "20 Best Albums of '94", number three on '' NME''s list of the "Top 50 Albums of 1994", and number 13 on ''

The Wire ''The Wire'' is an American crime drama television series created and primarily written by author and former police reporter David Simon. The series was broadcast by the cable network HBO in the United States. ''The Wire'' premiered on June 2 ...

''s annual critics' poll. ''

Guitar World ''Guitar World'' is a monthly music magazine for guitarists – and fans of guitar-based music and trends – that has been published since July 1980. ''Guitar World'', the best-selling guitar magazine in the United States, contains original art ...

'' included the album in its "Superunknown: 50 Iconic Albums That Defined 1994" list. ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...

'' included the album in its list of "Essential Recordings of the 90s", and '' Q'' included the album in its list of the "90 Best Albums of the 1990s". ''

Mojo Mojo may refer to: *Mojo (African-American culture), a magical charm bag used in voodoo Arts, entertainment and media Film and television * MOJO HD, an American television network * ''Mojo'' (play), by Jez Butterworth, made into a 1997 film * '' ...

'' ranked the album number 54 on its list of "100 Modern Classics". The album was also included in the book ''

1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die ''1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die'' is a musical reference book first published in 2005 by Universe Publishing. Part of the ''1001 Before You Die'' series, it compiles writings and information on albums chosen by a panel of music critics ...

''.

Track listing

All tracks produced by

and

Personnel

–

producers Producer or producers may refer to: Occupations *Producer (agriculture), a farm operator *A stakeholder of economic production *Film producer, supervises the making of films **Executive producer, contributes to a film's budget and usually does not ...

** Adam "

" Horovitz – vocals, guitar ** Adam "

" Yauch – vocals, electric bass, string bass ** Michael "

" Diamond – vocals, drums *

– keyboards, organ *

– percussion; drums on "Ricky's Theme" * Amery Smith – drums on "Tough Guy" & "Heart Attack Man" * Eugene Gore – violin on "Eugene's Lament" * Q-Tip – vocals on "Get It Together" *

– vocals on "Do It" *

– producer

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

Works cited *

External links

* {{Authority control 1994 albums Beastie Boys albums Capitol Records albums Grand Royal albums Albums produced by Mario Caldato Jr.