To say that his music had a massive impact on my childhood is a huge understatement, as both Paul's Boutique and Check Your Head remain in regular rotation on a weekly basis. Also, they hit their stride at the perfect time in my life to get turned on to new music and musical approaches. It was always amazing for me to see and hear how as a group, they were always pushing the boundaries on what was "acceptable" within the world of music. It was the live instrumentation and eventually outright jazz-based pieces that they interlaced with the more "standard" hip-hop approaches that first "showed" me how much range one could achieve within hip-hop. I mean, just listen to the massive sonic differences between Paul's Boutique, Check Your Head, and Hello Nasty. Few, if any other hip-hop groups ever showed this much musical range with such high quality.
Along with this, it was the way that the trio so seamlessly "passed the mic" whether it was on a word or a line, that set them so far apart from other groups in my mind. The speed with which they often rhymed, as well as the fact that they achieved the perfect balance between humor and meaning in their lyrics made it all the better. Everyone has their favorite line from a Beastie Boys song, and in my opinion, they were the group responsible for eliminating the difference between "rap" and "white rap" within the culture of music.
And on top of all of this, they always seemed like they were having more fun in the studio and on stage than almost any other group. This fact alone always served as a reminder as to what the "real" meaning behind creating music is...having a blast with your friends!
It goes without saying that within the world of hip-hop, and music in general, he will be greatly missed...so pay the best respects you can and blast your favorite Beastie Boys record this afternoon in tribute to the man!
Also, here is an awesome video of the band performing "Sabotage" at Woodstock '99.
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