Paul's Boutique, which many think is the Beastie Boys' finest album, might be one of the most fastidiously studied and indexed records of its era. It came at the cusp of the "All Samples Cleared" epoch, and when making the record the Beastie Boys, collaborating with the Dust Brothers, robbed from an absurdly diverse group of the creatively rich (Sly and the Family Stone, Funkadelic, The Eagles, Curtis Mayfield, James Brown, Pink Floyd, Pato Banton, The Beatles, Alice Cooper, Rose Royce and Led Zeppelin) and gave to themselves. After sampling went litigious, acts were more careful about what they borrowed (and the Beastie Boys picked up their instruments again), but for that ecstatic album just about anything went.
To celebrate the 20th anniversary of the album's release (and special edition re-release), MCA, Mike D and Ad Rock have made their own commentary on the album available for free download — sort of like a Criterion edition for your iPod. Finally, we'll find out what happens when you ask for Janice.
