Cover art for Looking Down the Barrel of a Gun by Beastie Boys

Looking Down the Barrel of a Gun

Beastie Boys
Track 26 on Video Anthology 

Producers

Beastie Boys & Dust Brothers
One day when Dust Brother John King was scratching elements of Pink Floyd’s “Time” over “Last Bongo in Belgium" by Incredible Bongo Band, MCA picked up his bass and began… Read More 
Jul. 25, 19891 viewer45.4K views

Looking Down the Barrel of a Gun Lyrics

[Verse 1]
I'm rolling down the hill, snowballing, getting bigger
An explosion in the chamber, the hammer from the trigger
I seen him get stabbed, I watched the blood spill out
He had more cuts than my man Chuck Chillout
24 is my age, and .22 is my gauge
I'm writing rhymes on a page, I'm goin' off in a rage
'Cause I'm out on a mission, a stolen car mission
Had a small problem with the transmission
Three on the tree in the middle of the night
I have this steak on my head 'cause I got into a fist fight
Life comes in phases, take the good with the bad
You bought the coins on the street (Holmes), and you know you got had
Because it's all high spirit, you know you got to hear it
Don't touch the mic, baby, don't come near it

[Chorus]
It's gonna get you, it's gonna get you
It's gonna get you, girl, it's gonna get you

[Verse 2]
Looking down the barrel of a gun
Son of a gun, son of a bitch
Getting paid, getting rich
Ultra violence be running through my head
Cold medina, y'all, makin' me see red
Rapid fire Louie, like Rambo got bullets
I'ma die harder, like my kid Bruce Willis
I love girlies, waxing and milking
Coordinating trim is my man, Dave Scilken
Predetermined destiny is who I am
You got your finger on the trigger like the Son of Sam I am
Like Clockwork Orange, going off on the town
I've got homeboy's bonanza to beat your ass down
Well, I'm mad at my desk, and I'll be writing all curse words
Expressing my aggressions through my schizophrenic verse words
You're a headless chicken chasin', a sucker freebasin'
You're looking for a fist to put your face in
Well, get hip, get hip, don't slip, ya knuckle heads
Racism is schism, on a serious tip

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About

Genius Annotation

One day when Dust Brother John King was scratching elements of Pink Floyd’s “Time” over “Last Bongo in Belgium" by Incredible Bongo Band, MCA picked up his bass and began jamming along. From this jam session came “Looking Down The Barrel Of A Gun” – one of only two tracks on the Pauls' Boutique that the Beasties played instruments on (the other is “Hello Brooklyn”).

Samples include:

“Looking Down…” was performed in 26 known concerts.

Q&A

Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning

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Video Anthology (2000)
  1. 1.
    Intergalactic
  2. 2.
    Intergalactic (Colleone & Webb Remix)
  3. 3.
    Intergalactic (Colleone & Webb Remix 2) (Missing Lyrics)
  4. 4.
    Intergalactic (Sever & Hoffman Remix) (Missing Lyrics)
  5. 5.
    Intergalactic (Prisoners Of Technology Remix) (Missing Lyrics)
  6. 6.
    Intergalactic (A Cappella Version) (Missing Lyrics)
  7. 7.
    Shake Your Rump (Video Version) (Missing Lyrics)
  8. 8.
    Shake Your Rump (Madlib Remix)
  9. 9.
    Shake Your Rump (DJ J-Rocc & DJ Truly OdD Remix) (Missing Lyrics)
  10. 10.
    Shake Your Rump (Latch Brothers Remix) (Missing Lyrics)
  11. 11.
    Shake Your Rump (A Cappella Version) (Missing Lyrics)
  12. 12.
    Gratitude
  13. 13.
    Something’s Got to Give
  14. 14.
    Hey Ladies (Video Version)
  15. 15.
    Hey Ladies
  16. 16.
    Hey Ladies (Paul Nice Remix) (Missing Lyrics)
  17. 17.
    Hey Ladies (Count Bass D Remix) (Missing Lyrics)
  18. 18.
    Hey Ladies (Fred C Remix) (Missing Lyrics)
  19. 19.
    Hey Ladies (DJ Strictnine & Paranorm Remix) (Missing Lyrics)
  20. 20.
    Sure Shot
  21. 21.
    Sure Shot (Nardone Mix)
  22. 22.
    Sure Shot (Large Professor Remix)
  23. 23.
    Sure Shot (European B-Boy Mix) (Missing Lyrics)
  24. 24.
    Sure Shot (Mario Remix)
  25. 25.
    Sure Shot (A Cappella Version) (Missing Lyrics)
  26. 26.
    Looking Down the Barrel of a Gun
  27. 27.
    Looking Down the Barrel of a Gun (OD Remix) (Missing Lyrics)
  28. 28.
    Looking Down the Barrel of a Gun (DJ Moe Love Remix) (Missing Lyrics)
  29. 29.
    Looking Down the Barrel of a Gun (DJ Cheapshot Remix) (Missing Lyrics)
  30. 30.
    Looking Down The Barrel Of A Gun (Egon & Jon Doe Remix) (Instrumental)
  31. 31.
    Looking Down the Barrel of a Gun (Dub Hackers Remix) (Missing Lyrics)
  32. 32.
    Body Movin’ (Fatboy Slim Remix)
  33. 33.
    Body Movin’
  34. 34.
    Body Movin’ (Kut Masta Kurt Remix)
  35. 35.
    Body Movin’ (Shawn J. Period & Wizdom Life Remix) (Missing Lyrics)
  36. 36.
    Body Movin’ (Micky Finn & Special K Remix) (Missing Lyrics)
  37. 37.
    So What’cha Want
  38. 38.
    So What’cha Want (All The Way Live Freestyle Version) (Missing Lyrics)
  39. 39.
    So What’cha Want (Butt Naked Version) (Missing Lyrics)
  40. 40.
    So What’cha Want (Soul Assassins Remix Version)
  41. 41.
    So What’cha Want (A Cappella Version) (Missing Lyrics)
  42. 42.
    Sabotage
  43. 43.
    Shadrach - Live
  44. 44.
    Shadrach
  45. 45.
    Shadrach (Mum’s The Word Remix) (Missing Lyrics)
  46. 46.
    Shadrach (J Rawls Remix) (Missing Lyrics)
  47. 47.
    Shadrach (Joey Chavez Remix) (Missing Lyrics)
  48. 48.
    Shadrach (Peanut Butter Wolf Remix)
  49. 49.
    Three MC’s And One DJ (Live Video Version)
  50. 50.
    Ricky’s Theme
  51. 51.
    Pass the Mic
  52. 52.
    Pass The Mic (Pt. 2, Skills To Pay The Bills)
  53. 53.
    Pass The Mic (Prunes Remix) (Missing Lyrics)
  54. 54.
    Pass The Mic (Mike Nardone Remix) (Missing Lyrics)
  55. 55.
    Pass The Mic (A Cappella Version) (Missing Lyrics)
  56. 56.
    Holy Snappers
  57. 57.
    Root Down
  58. 58.
    Root Down (Free Zone Mix)
  59. 59.
    Root Down (PP Balloon Mix)
  60. 60.
    Root Down (A Cappella Version) (Missing Lyrics)
  61. 61.
    Netty’s Girl
  62. 62.
    Alive (Video Version) (Missing Lyrics)
  63. 63.
    Alive (Moby Remix) (Missing Lyrics)
  64. 64.
    Alive (T-Ray Remix) (Missing Lyrics)
  65. 65.
    Alive (Rapscallion Version) (Missing Lyrics)
  66. 66.
    Alive (Evidence Remix)
  67. 67.
    Alive (Bentley Rhythm Ace Remix) (Missing Lyrics)
  68. 68.
    Alive (A Cappella Version) (Missing Lyrics)
Credits
Producers
Writers
Recorded At
Mario C's, Los Angeles, California, United States
Released on
July 25, 1989
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Tags
RapHard RockIn EnglishUSAHardcore RapEast Coast RapRap-Rock
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