Looking Down the Barrel of a Gonk

EDIT: This experiment is about one second off, because the stereo I was using inserted a pause that long before the CD began playing. Just thought you should know.

EXPERIMENT #123
"LOOKING DOWN THE BARREL OF A GONK"

FILM

Star Wars (1995 "Faces" VHS).

ALBUM

Paul's Boutique by the Beastie Boys, a record I tried spinning last November with Return of the Jedi (link). I think it's safe to say that this album is the artistic pinnacle of the Beastie's career, isn't it? They'd go on to produce some great material in the future, but in terms of crafting an amazing album from start to finish, Boutique pretty much takes the cake.

SYNCHS

- The line "threw my man in the tank" in "High Plains Drifter" is heard right after R2-D2 has been sucked up into the sandcrawler.

- MCA (I think) makes a clicking noise in "Hey Ladies" that coincides with Luke popping off R2-D2's restraining bolt.

- The line "the gift of gab is the gift that I have" in "Hey Ladies" is heard as Luke strikes up the conversation with his Uncle at the dinner table.

- The Tusken Raider attacks Luke as the phrase "expressing my aggression" is heard in "Looking Down the Barrel of a Gun."

- A weird scratching noise is heard during one of the parts of "B-Boy Bouillabaisse"; that noise coincides with Ponda Baba angrily making noises at Luke in the cantina (it almost sounds like his actual voice in the film).

NOTES

If you peeped the Jedi experiment I linked in the album description, you may have noticed the first synch in that one is the keyboard noodling in "To All The Girls" beginning the same time the Star Wars logo appears. All these movies have identical openings, right? So why didn't that synch happen in today's experiment? Well, it probably did. The volume was down way too low on my headphones when I started this one, so I think I missed it.

That's one of the drawbacks to Paul's Boutique - it starts with a fade in, and you can never be sure if it's at the right volume until you're about halfway through the first track. I hate albums that do that. Hey albums, stop doing that! It's annoying!

But I digress. Here's a cool site to check out if you've ever wondered where a particular sample on Paul's Boutique came from:

Paul's Boutique Samples and References.

All kinds of fascinating info. There's, like, a ton of Beatles samples I never noticed before. Guess that was their sly FU to Michael Jackson. You know, 'cause he used to own all the Beatles songs back in the eighties and wouldn't let the Beasties cover "I'm Down" on Licensed to Ill. I don't know why. Probably just felt like being a dick. All I know is that while you may have needed permission to cover a song back then, you sure as hell didn't need permission to sample one (you also didn't have to pay anyone for it). So it looks like the Boys used their sophomore effort to get their just desserts.

Of course, that's all changed now. Today, if I wanted to sample Tiny Tim on my hard-hitting hip-hop street anthem, I'd have to contact Tim's estate and request permission. If they said yes, I'd have to agree to pay them a small royalty every time someone bought my groundbreaking debut album - not to mention every time the blazin' joint in question was played on the radio or used in a movie or television show. It's almost not worth it.

No, the world must hear "Tiptoe Thru the Tizulips '06." I'll lock myself in my beat shack tonight after work and I won't rest until the bass is kickin' and the rhymes is stank.