It’s difficult to picture now, but the Beastie Boys weren’t exactly a popular thing after releasing their second album, Pauls Boutique, in the very early 1990s. According to World Cafe journalist John Morrison, Mike D even stated it himself – “No one at the record company wanted anything to do with us after Paul’s Boutique had flopped.”
But it was the absence of attention and oversight from the label that allowed the Beastie Boys to explore — and that independence culminated in their critically praised third album, Check Your Head. This year marks the 30th anniversary of the release of that record.
