If Paul's Boutique was the Beasties heavily mind-blown Dust Brothers dusted psychedelic hip hop Sgt Peppers, then Check Your Head is their down and dirty back to basics raw funk run at something like Never Mind The Bollocks. Their first outing without the guidance of an outside producer, though the trio did bring in ringers like Money Mark and Mario Caldato Junior, this set's a ride into a whole other mindset, still fueled by sunny So Cal vibes and the Beasties own take on rhyme science. It's hard to imagine an album that would produce so many anthems for true heads and the Lollapalooza crowd alike, but this is it. Includes "Jimmy James", "Pass The Mic", "Gratitude", "Finger Lickin' Good", "So Whatcha Want", "Time For Livin'", "Something's Got To Give", "Groove Holmes" and "Professor Booty". CD

If Paul's Boutique was the Beasties' psychedelic hip hop Sgt Peppers, then Check Your Head is their White Album – a raw, stylistically sprawling, yet always connected batch of live instrumentation – backing rhymes that range from stream of consciousness to expertly written. Check Your Head is also their first outing without the guidance of outside producers, though the trio did bring in a host of regular collaborators like Money Mark and Mario Caldato Jr, who work as well with the Boys as ever. It's stunning how far The Beastie Boys grew creatively over their first few albums, and this point is pretty close to perfection! Titles include "Jimmy James", "Pass The Mic", "Gratitude", "Finger Lickin' Good", "So Whatcha Want", "Time For Livin'", "Something's Got To Give", "Groove Holmes" and "Professor Booty". LP, Vinyl record album