So What Cha Want – Beastie Boys (Check Your Head, 1992)

Pretty much a great organ line, a tremendous groove, some live drums and the non-stop caffeinated rapid-fire rhyming of MCA, Ad-Rock and Mike D this song is one of my favorite Beastie Boy tracks of all-time. Featuring the sample of Big Daddy Kane’s “Just Rhymin’ With Biz” (with Biz Markie), this song is 3:37 of straight swagger and braggadocio.

It has some of the muddiest vocals you’ll hear but the chorus is straight undeniable. Listen to this a time or two and you’ll have “So what cha, what cha want?!” rambling around in your noggin indefinitely. This song was the second single from the group’s underrated third LP “Check Your Head” and is probably the most well-known song on the record.

I always loved the distorted sound of the mix with the great trading rhymes that defined the Beasties. Another highlight is when Mike D says “I think I’m losing my mind this time, this time I’m losing my mind” before the scratching and organ take us to the next phase. The live drumming also adds some depth and body to the composition and makes this an especially memorable track. You can’t front on that!