Gratitude

Album: Check Your Head (1992)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • According to Ad-Rock (Adam Horovitz) in the Beastie Boys Book, this song is about "being thankful for the simple things: love and friendships and life. And dumb little objects that make us human."
  • Beastie Boys were moving away from sampling when they recorded this song for their third album, Check Your Head. Instead of digging through crates looking for old records to loop, they did a lot of jam sessions with Ad-Rock on guitar, MCA (Adam Yauch) on bass, and Mike D (Michael Diamond) on drums. They also brought in a keyboard player, Mark Nishita, who could play Clavinet, organ, and Wurlitzer, which shows up prominently at the end of the song.
  • The song is built on a bass line MCA came up with when he was learning the instrument. He played it through a Univox Super Fuzz distortion pedal and got a distinct sound. Using an 808 drum machine, he built up the song, which sat around for a few years until the group worked on it together for Check Your Head. They had trouble coming up with lyrics, so they put the track on cassette with some other unfinished songs and went on a road trip. Sure enough, inspiration struck when they left the studio and they came up with the right words.
  • The group's roots as a hardcore band are evident on this track. Before they discovered sampling, they were a four-piece band from 1981-1984, using a live drummer (Kate Schellenbach) instead of a DJ.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Angelo Moore of Fishbone

Angelo Moore of FishboneSongwriter Interviews

Fishbone has always enjoyed much more acclaim than popularity - Angelo might know why.

Martin Page

Martin PageSongwriter Interviews

With Bernie Taupin, Martin co-wrote the #1 hits "We Built This City" and "These Dreams." After writing the Pretty Woman song for Go West, he had his own hit with "In the House of Stone and Light."

Dave Mason

Dave MasonSongwriter Interviews

Dave reveals the inspiration for "Feelin' Alright" and explains how the first song he ever wrote became the biggest hit for his band Traffic.

Song Cities

Song CitiesMusic Quiz

Nirvana, Billy Joel and Bruce Springsteen are among those who wrote songs with cities that show up in this quiz.

Rock Stars of Horror

Rock Stars of HorrorMusic Quiz

Rock Stars - especially those in the metal realm - are often enlisted for horror movies. See if you know can match the rocker to the role.

Tony Banks of Genesis

Tony Banks of GenesisSongwriter Interviews

Genesis' key-man re-examines his solo career and the early days of music video.