This is going to sound like a heroic stack of horseshit, but I actually remember some of the original (i.e. pre-fame) Beastie Boys graffiti, notably in three specific locales. First, there was a tag between East 34th and 33rd on Park Avenue, right on a west-facing barrier that prevented cars from abutting the tunnel that connects 33rd and 40th streets. It was nothing special, just "Beastie Boys" with a little curlicued flourish beneath.
Secondly, there was one on the wall near the entrance to the Queens Midtown Tunnel on East 34th street. Do I have any way of proving these? Sadly, no. I always meant to take pics of them, but by the time I got around to trying, they were gone.
Lastly, there was a giant, ornate one in a lot that was situated between West 22nd and West 21st streets between Fifth and Sixth Avenues, right near Danceteria, which kinda makes sense. That's the one pictured above.
I spotted this incredibly rare photo on this website, which -- somewhat predictably -- gives no real background information. If I had to guess, I'd suggest it was taken, once again, by Ricky Powell (much like this one). What's notable about this shot is that it features the fleeting "Cookie Puss" era incarnation of the band, with Kate Schellenbach (later of Luscious Jackson) still in its ranks.
Upon my first visit to Danceteria after my senior prom in 1985, I remember standing in this very lot (not sure if it was before or afterwards) with some classmates, looking woefully out of synch with our surroundings in our dorky tuxedos. I vividly remember my friend Rob's sister (who'd attended as our friend Greg's date) leaning against this mural and smoking a cigarette while the rest of use plotted our next move. Some time shortly afterwards, SPIN magazine (where I'd intern about four years later) ran an entertaining profile about the then-still-fledgling Beasties, and appended a photo of this tag (SPIN's offices were but a stone's throw away on 18th Street at the time). You can see it (and read it) here. I remember cutting out the pic of that tag and taping it to my dorm room door my freshman year of college.
I posted this picture on my Tumblr site last week, and J.Yuenger (music producer and former White Zombie guitarist, among other things) duly passed it forward on his excellent blog. His comment really says it all: "That's really just a whole time and place, isn't it?"
Recent Comments