The Beastie Boys want all gold and platinum records for Paul’s Boutique recalled. Here’s why.

We’ve all seen those gold and platinum awards artists and others get to mark sales milestones for best-selling albums. They usually consist of a copy of that record (vinyl or CD) painted gold or platinum and then displayed in a frame. They look great on the wall.

The Beastie Boys have a bunch of these awards. But one day, one of them glanced at the gold records and noticed something strange. The label was correct but there was something wrong with the displayed A-side. There were just four songs; Paul’s Boutique has nine songs on side A.

They broke the glass, took out the record and put it on a turntable. What they heard was not Beastie Boys but…Barry Manilow. In other words, whoever created this prestigious award for The Beastie Boys simply painted an old Barry Manilow record gold, slapped a Paul’s Boutique label on it, framed it, and gave it to the band.

That’s funny, but it also raises some interesting questions about the authenticity of music memorabilia, material that can change hands for big dollars. If the band itself was presented a fake gold record by their own label, what other garbage is out there? Hence the demand for a recall.

See the whole exchange on Conan O’Brien’s podcast.