No Sleep Till Brooklyn

About this song

The track is a cut from the Beastie Boys' Licensed to Ill and was the album's sixth single, released in 1987. It was co-produced by the Beastie Boys, engineered by Steve Ett and mastered by Howie Weinberg, with Slayer's Kerry King playing lead guitar. The music video was co-directed by Ric Menello and Adam Dubin, who had also directed the video for the previous single, "Fight for Your Right (To Party)." The song samples AC/DC's "TNT" and was performed in 76 known concerts, with its first known performance at The Ritz in New York in December 1986.

What it's about

The song's narrative follows the group's experiences on tour, poking fun at glam and metal rockers from current and past eras. It takes its inspiration from Motörhead's No Sleep 'til Hammersmith, which is why it has so much heavy metal in it, though it is more a playful jab at heavy metal than a spoof.

Fun facts

• Sampled in 11 other songs, like “Bleachin' by Bleachin'”.
• Covered 2 times, including “No Sleep Till.... by Biastfear”.
• Written by Rick Rubin, MCA, Mike D and Ad-Rock.
• Produced by Beastie Boys and Rick Rubin.
• Recorded at Chung King Studios.