Beastie Boys Book

By: Michael Diamond, Adam Horovitz

Narrated by: Michael Diamond, Adam Horovitz, various

Length: 12 hrs and 41 mins

Publisher's summary

Number One New York Times Best Seller 

A panoramic experience that tells the story of Beastie Boys, a book as unique as the band itself - by band members ADROCK and Mike D, with contributions from Amy Poehler, Colson Whitehead, Wes Anderson, Luc Sante, and more. 

The inspiration for the Spike Jonze "live documentary" Beastie Boys Story, coming soon to IMAX theaters and Apple TV+

Named One of The Best Books of the Year by Rolling Stone • The Guardian • Paste 

Formed as a New York City hardcore band in 1981, Beastie Boys struck an unlikely path to global hip hop superstardom. Here is their story, told for the first time in the words of the band. Adam "ADROCK" Horovitz and Michael "Mike D" Diamond offer revealing and very funny accounts of their transition from teenage punks to budding rappers; their early collaboration with Russell Simmons and Rick Rubin; the debut album that became the first hip hop record ever to hit number one, Licensed to Ill - and the album's messy fallout as the band broke with Def Jam; their move to Los Angeles and rebirth with the genre-defying masterpiece Paul's Boutique; their evolution as musicians and social activists over the course of the classic albums Check Your Head, Ill Communication, and Hello Nasty and the Tibetan Freedom Concert benefits conceived by the late Adam "MCA" Yauch; and more. For more than 30 years, this band has had an inescapable and indelible influence on popular culture. 

With a style as distinctive and eclectic as a Beastie Boys album, Beastie Boys Book upends the typical music memoir, featuring a collection of voices reminiscent of your favorite mixtape. 

Photo Credit © 1987 Lynn Goldsmith

Audiobook Cast Includes:

Steve Buscemi / Ada Calhoun / Bobby Cannavale / Exene Cervenka Roy Choi / Jarvis Cocker / Elvis Costello / Chuck D / Nadia Dajani Michael Diamond / Snoop Dogg / Will Ferrell / Crosby Fitzgerald Randy Gardner / Kim Gordon / Josh Hamilton / Adam Horovitz LL Cool J / Spike Jonze / Pat Kiernan / Talib Kweli / Dave Macklovitch Rachel Maddow / Tim Meadows / Bette Midler/ Mix Master Mike Nas / Yoshimi O / Rosie Perez / Amy Poehler / Kelly Reichardt John C. Reilly / Ian Rogers / Maya Rudolph / Rev Run Luc Sante / Kate Schellenbach / MC Serch / Chloe Sevigny Jon Stewart / Ben Stiller / Wanda Sykes / Jeff Tweedy / Philippe Zdar

Praise for Beastie Boys Book

"A fascinating, generous book with portraits and detail that float by in bursts of color.... As with [the band’s] records, the book's structure is a lyrical three-man weave.... Diamond's voice is lapidary, droll. Horovitz comes on like a borscht belt comedian, but beneath that he is urgent, incredulous, kind of vulnerable.... Friendship is the book's subject as much as music, fame and New York." (The New York Times Book Review)

"Wild, moving...resembles a Beastie Boys LP in its wild variety of styles." (Rolling Stone)

©2018 Michael Diamond (P)2018 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

“A fascinating, generous book with portraits and detail that float by in bursts of color.... As with [the band’s] records, the book’s structure is a lyrical three-man weave.... Diamond’s voice is lapidary, droll. Horovitz comes on like a borscht belt comedian, but beneath that he is urgent, incredulous, kind of vulnerable.... Friendship is the book’s subject as much as music, fame and New York.” (The New York Times Book Review)

“Wild, moving...resembles a Beastie Boys LP in its wild variety of styles.” (Rolling Stone) 

“As nutty, irreverent, and fun as you think it would be.” (Vogue) 

Read the book and forget the audio version

The book is interesting but the constant use of different “celebrity” narrators is unbelievably distracting and confusing. In fact, it was so terrible that I frequently considered stopping the audio book and buying the hard copy instead. I know the Beastie Boys were trying to be different with some of their choices - but in my opinion it was a huge disappointment. Listening to Mike D and Adam in their own voices brought a feeling of passion and authenticity. You just don’t get the same feel when Rosie Perez or Jon Stewart are reading. Plus the hard copy is full of photos - something you don’t get with the audio book (although it would be nice if that was available).

incredible!

I'm so glad I decided to listen to this! The narration was fantastic. This is a must listen for any fan!

please return hot sauce part 1

having different voices throughout is awesome! i also enjoyed their history blended with the history of hip hop

Really, REALLY great. I didn't want it to end!

I really didn't want this book to end! You can tell so much love and happiness went into this production! It really makes you feel connected to your Beastie family! But this isn't just a book for Beastie fans. All the guest narrators was such a brilliant idea! I'm gonna go start at chapter 1 again..... Thanks for this... Truly

Full Clout

Incredibly awesome book. I thought I knew a lot about the B Boys but I clearly didn’t know it all and this book chauffeurs you through the whole experience. 3 bad brothers you know so well. Get this and listen now.

fantastic

a nostalgic and insightful get away to the band I grew up loving. Well worth the 12 hour listen. Delightfully read by Mike d, adam horovitz and a large cast of celebrity readers.

Casual Beasties fan perspective

I'm only in the second chapter, but since the book is so new, I need to add a little review for those of you who may be casual fans of the beasties, but are still from the underground persuasion. I'm in my mid forties, and grew up in the midwest (Des Moines) where access to art and music that was outside of the mainstream was less than ideal, but not impossible. Still, I had to work for it. We drove to Minneapolis for shows, but were also fed a steady diet of industrial music from that area.
I am, like I said, only two chapters in. But I'm hooked. The writing is impeccable. I feel like I'm there, in NYC, experiencing this along with them. There is mention of bands and genres from punk to reggae, of Robert Mapplethorpe and the gay nightclub scene. I can taste the 80s listening to the descriptions of the subculture that I watched from afar.
I picked this up as a whim; I was done with my last book and needed something new. I saw them on Kimmel hyping the book, opened audible and grabbed it. Now I'm planning on buying the actual book to get the pics that go along with the stories, but still want the audiobook because the narration is amazing, with an all-star cast and some fancy editing that, I'm sure, the Beasties had their hands all over.
If you're a casual fan, and grew up with the B-Boys, don't hesitate to pick this one up. You won't regret it. I'll keep updating this review as I go, but so far, it's my favorite read of 2018!

Gratitude

It was a real pleasure to hear the stories behind the band. The playful spirit and genuine love for music comes out in full force. I had high expectations and this book didn’t disappoint. Narration was top notch. Creative writing was carried with depth and humor. I would recommend this book to anyone.

Realized it's weird to miss Yauch like I knew him

... but then again a lot of my friends do.

This book dragged me through a mid-life crisis inducing journey of my young adult life, but from the other side of the soundtrack.

This collection of anecdotes had me nodding to myself like an idiot for months.

What I thought would be a light read about good times ended up being that plus a story of enduring friendships that span a lifetime. It left me missing the days of good friends piled in a minivan bumping all the music referenced within.

It's full of answers to questions I didn't know I had and is good for quite a few nostalgic trips down parallel timelines.

I highly recommend it.

Beastie Boys now and forever!

I love this band and really enjoyed the behind the scenes stories of my favorite records. The performance from the wide variety of narrators only adds to the stories... on and on till the break of dawn. -RIP Yauch