The Beastie Boys Annotate Classic ‘Sabotage’ Video for ‘Ill Communication’ 30th Anniversary
The Beastie Boys’ 1994 classic Ill Communication turns 30 this year and as part of the ongoing celebration, the band has partnered with Vevo for a special annotated version of the “Sabotage” video.
The clip — which is part of Vevo’s “Footnotes” series — is packed with facts about the classic Spike Jonze-directed clip, in which MCA, Ad-Rock, and Mike D pay homage to Seventies cop shows. According to one of the annotations, Ad-Rock (Adam Horovitz) had long had the idea for a video where the band dressed up as undercover cops during a stakeout. The concept was revived, and finally implemented, for the “Sabotage” video when Jonze arrived at a photoshoot wearing a wig and fake mustache.
More from Rolling Stone
'Lost in Translation': Sofia Coppola on the Movie's 20th Anniversary
See Ad-Rock and Mike D Celebrate Naming of Beastie Boys Square: 'F-cking Awesome'
Beastie Boys to Go Intergalactic Once More With 'Hello Nasty' Reissue
Among the other factoids scattered throughout the clip: The “Sabotage” video was shot with a small enough crew that everyone could fit in one van — this not only allowed Jonze and the Beastie Boys to film the video around Los Angeles without permits, it also eased the band’s unease about filming big budget music videos on large sets.
Meanwhile, Jonze once said the “Sabotage” clip was like the movies he made in high school, “weird glasses, fake mustaches, using flour as fake coke. It’s funny to realize I was making the same stuff all over again, but just much better.”
There are even a few tidbits about the creation of the song itself, including a revelation from the recent Beastie Boys Book that an earlier version of “Sabotage” featured a Queen Latifah sample as the hook. The song was also inspired by the joking notion that the Beastie Boys’ longtime producer Mario Caldato Jr. was trying to sabotage the band because he was frustrated by their indecisiveness when it came to finishing tracks.
Ill Communication was originally released May 31, 1994. As part of the album’s 30th anniversary, the band pressed a new special vinyl reissue similar to a rare version originally released as a limited run in 2009. The three-LP set includes 12 bonus tracks, including rarities, remixes, and live recordings.
Best of Rolling Stone