Beastie Boys Set ‘Licensed to Ill’ Vinylphyle Edition

The Beastie Boys will mark the 40th anniversary of Licensed to Ill with a limited Vinylphyle edition, due March 18, 2027. The new pressing has been mastered from a high-resolution digital transfer of the original 1986 album master.

Pressed on 180-gram black vinyl, the set will house the LP in a gatefold tip-on jacket with a satin-matte finish, printed on clay-coated board. It will include a four-panel insert with scans of the original tape boxes, an etching of the band’s logo on the vinyl, and new liner notes by Public Enemy co-founder Chuck D. Joe Nino-Hernes cut the lacquers at Sterling Sound. He received the physical master tapes, then made a digital transfer for the cutting process.

“For this project I felt that making a high-resolution digital transfer, using the same machine and electronics that I use for cutting, would yield the best results and come closest to actually cutting from the first-generation master tape itself,” Nino-Hernes said. He also described the transfer as a way to reduce handling of the aging tapes: “It also allowed me to minimize handling of the tapes that have become fragile with time. In this case, I felt that fidelity was better preserved by working from my digital transfer of the original master, than by making and working from a second-generation analog copy.”

Nino-Hernes continued: “The Licensed to Ill tape is a masterclass in analog editing, with many edits throughout the album. Over time, the splicing tape adhesive holding those edits together can begin to migrate onto adjacent layers of tape. This is not an uncommon issue, and I was able to clean up most of the splices to achieve smooth playback. However, some could still have been problematic going through the preview loop needed for lacquer cutting.

“Leader had also been inserted between the songs and would have needed to be removed in order to match the mostly gapless spacing of the original CD and LP. Removing splices and leader typically isn’t a problem when a tape is in good condition, but this tape has become delicate and already exhibited some mild oxide and back-coating loss in places. Removing the leader would have presented a considerable risk. By assembling digitally, all these potential problems were eliminated. And because Licensed to Ill is mostly gapless, assembling digitally also allowed for greater precision in mastering, with track-to-track adjustments that could be made perfectly.”

Produced by Rick Rubin and the Beastie Boys, Licensed to Ill introduced a global audience to Ad-Rock, MCA, and Mike D’s rock- and punk-influenced approach to hip-hop. Its hard-hitting beats, rock guitars, and irreverent humor helped distinguish the album, which became the first rap album to top the Billboard 200. The RIAA certified it Diamond in 2015, recognizing sales of more than 10 million units.

The album features seven singles, including “Brass Monkey,” “No Sleep Till Brooklyn,” “Paul Revere,” and “Fight for Your Right.” Critics have since ranked Licensed to Ill among the greatest hip-hop albums and debut albums of all time.

Order the Vinylphyle edition of Beastie Boys’ Licensed to Ill here.