30+ Years of Metallica

Metallica was born in October of 1981, when drummer Lars Ulrich got together with guitarist/singer James Hetfield. The two recruited Hetfield’s friend and housemate Ron McGovney to play bass, Dave Mustaine to play lead guitar, and took the name Metallica after a suggestion from Bay Area metal scene friend Ron Quintana.

They started warming up for bands in LA’s metal scene, but after gaining success in San Francisco, they moved there and replaced McGovney with Cliff Burton. East Coast metal merchant Jon Zazula offered the band an album deal with his indie label Megaforce Records and in 1983 they  moved to New York in a stolen U-Haul to record their first album.

Shortly after arriving in New York in April 1983, Mustaine was replaced by Exodus guitarist Kirk Hammett and the boys hit the studio for the first time. Let’s take a look at the music that has shaped the metal scene in the years that followed, and why Metallica is considered by millions to be truly awesome.

1983 Kill em All

With an aggressive, almost punk-like feel, songs like “The Four Horsemen,” “Whiplash” and “Seek and Destroy” quickly captured the audiences attention and were considered instant classics.

1984 Ride the Lightning

This was produced by Flemming Rassmussen in Copenhagen at Sweet Silence Studios during the summer of 1984. Songs like “For Whom The Bell Tolls” and “Fade To Black” sat proudly with the aggression of “Fight Fire With Fire” and “Creeping Death.”

Ride the Lightning peaked at number 100 on the Billboard 200 with no radio exposure. Although 75,000 copies were initially pressed for the American market, the album sold half a million by November 1987. It was certified 6× platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) in 2012 for shipping six million copies in the United States.

1986 Master of Puppets

“Battery,” the title track and epic instrumental “Orion” were among the astounding compositions, and landed them a supportive role with Ozzy Osbourne, Master of Puppets hit the top 30 album charts and blew their fan base up.

This is probably one of my favorite Metallica albums of all time. Tragically however, while on tour in Sweden, during an overnight drive the bands’ tour bus skidded out of control and flipped, killing Cliff Burton.

RIP Cliff Burton

The $5.98 E.P. – Garage Days Re-Revisited

After 40+ auditions they hired Jason Newsted from Flotsam & Jetsam to take over bass duties. This album consisted of cover tunes and was literally recorded in Lars’ garage.

1988 And Justice For All

Released in August 1988, the album reached #6 on the US charts. This was the first video that the band released as well. The epic “One.”

1991 The Black Album

Tracks like “Enter Sandman” and “Nothing Else Matters” catapulted the album  straight to number one all over the world…and didn’t really leave for a couple of years, selling in excess of 16 million copies worldwide. The tour that supported it had almost 300 shows in three years.

1996 Load

Released on June 4, 1996, by Elektra Records. It sold 680,000 units in its first week, making it the biggest opening week for Metallica and the biggest debut of 1996.  It was certified 5× platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for shipping five million copies in the United States. Four singles; “Until It Sleeps“, “Hero of the Day“, “Mama Said“, and “King Nothing“, were released as part of the marketing campaign for the album. Personally, I didn’t care for it.

1997 Reload

After the huge success of Load, the boys were back on the road again. The tour was a collection of bells and whistles, with smokin live performances across a massive stage-set, all of which was captured on the DVD release Cunning Stunts.

1998 Garage Inc

The band collected their covers from the two previous Garage Days sessions and various b-sides as well as putting down 11 brand new covers with the  double disc release as a reminder of their musical lives and loves.

1999 S&M

Recorded over two nights at the Berkeley Community Theater, the live shows and album saw Metallica extending their musical legacy and reputation for always seeking new challenges and expanding their musical horizons.

2003 St. Anger

2001 was messed up for Metallica. Jason Newsted left in January, then James figured out that he needed to changes some things in  his life and went into an intensive rehab for drugs/alcohol.

After he got his shit together, the band excitedly took to the road with new bassist Robert Trujillo. (Suicidal Tendencies/Infectious Grooves/Ozzy Osbourne) Personally, I like him as a musician more than Newsted.

2008 Death Magnetic

After much needed break from recording/touring, the band got back in the studio, this time with producer/monster, Rick Rubin. A more traditionally made album, it was the perfect fusion of Metallica’s early past and their increasingly experimental future, and the popular response was huge, the album smashing album charts at number one everywhere. I fondly remember my son Niko at around age 3 moshing in our kitchen to this one lol.

2011 Lulu

In 2011, the band worked with one of the legendary Godfathers of punk and alternative music, Lou Reed on an album project based around writing by Frank Wedekind about a 19th century French prostitute named Lulu, which was then reinterpreted by Reed. He, in turn, built a series of song frameworks and invited Metallica to come in and fill the empty spaces.

Lulu, was released on October 31, 2011. While not well received, it once again proved that Metallica does what Metallica wants.

2014 saw Metallica continuing to work on a series of ideas for the forthcoming album whilst also continuing to seek new challenges. They performed “One” with Chinese pianist Lang Lang at the 56^th Annual Grammy Awards.

So, what does the future hold for both Metallica and their fans as well? I for one am both interested and excited. I grew up on these guys and have spent countless hours playing their songs on guitar. They helped shape my musical styles, thoughts, and inspired me to keep things real and keep them heavy.

I was very tempted to include some of my favorite tracks in this article, just for a trip down memory lane, but instead, I invite you to do it yourselves. Love them, or hate them, there is no denying the impact that these guys have made upon the metal scene throughout the years.

What is your favorite album/song/memory of these monsters of metal music? Please share your thoughts and remember to keep your head bangin!