Customer Reviews

The Skills to Pay the Bills: The Story of the Beastie Boys

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
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I really looked forward to reading this book, figuring that someone with as much access as Alan Light would give me more of an insiders look into a great band. But he remains on the outside like the rest of us, instead relying on first hand accounts of the band members themselves as well as many others in or around hip-hop. At first it's kind of cool to get some of the early stories about the punk scene in NYC, which really branched out from the hardcore D.C. bands like Bad Brains. You just never really get to be in the studio, or at the writing sessions, or on the tour bus. It's more fitting for liner notes. Let's tackle this subject head on and get some good stories in a collection. These guys are legends, and have toured and recorded with and around some of the core players in hip-hop history. I found this book to be a shallow take on a complex and genre bending crew. Disappointing.

Ok...so...I have loved the Beastie Boys FOREVER!!! As an adult that still loves the Beastie Boys, and I am also a huge Alan Light fan, I couldn't wait to read this book. I felt as though I was watching a documentary about them! If you're a Beastie fan, I highly recommend reading "Skills To Pay The Bills". You will not regret a minute of it. You will love it as much as I did!

A first-person account of this unlikely trio of rappers who rock. At first it is jarring to have an entire book of quotations from the actual players in this saga, but it is great to hear them all telling it. One guy is taking credit for the name Beastie Boys, then the ousted woman is telling how she was pushed out of the band so they could go big-time. Riveting stuff! A fun read. Pull out your Beasties CDs and crank them as you read this blast of a book.