The 10 Metallica Songs You Must Hear Before You Die

Metallica biographer Joel McIver, who was recently interviewed by Ultimate Guitar's Robert Gray (read the article here), gave us the lowdown on the essential Hetfield/Ulrich playlist.

Check out his top 10 list, originally posted on Dotted Music.

10. The last 3 minutes of "All Within My Hands" (St. Anger, 2003)

God, St Anguish is a shit album, but skip almost all the way to the end and you’ll hear an unexpectedly awesome outro on the last song, the otherwise dire and embarrassing “All Within My Hands.” It’s basically a three-chord doom riff with a thrash metal drum pattern, always a winning combination, and James’ vocals consist solely of the words “Kill, kill, kill!” What’s not to like? Apart from everything else on the record, of course.

09. "Fight Fire With Fire" (Ride The Lightning, 1984)

Kill ‘Em All was a fast album, but a year later Metallica upped the ante in spectacular fashion by writing this pulverisingly speedy song about nuclear warfare, gods crushing us like flies and so on and so forth. The acoustic intro caused some metalheads to worry that Hetfield et al had sold out for a minute, but once that fades and James’ brain-mincingly fearsome riff takes over, it’s fun fun fun all the way to the end – a fucking massive explosion.

08. "Dyer’s Eve" (…And Justice For All, 1988)

The first hint that all might not be tranquil inside Hetfield’s skull, “Dyer’s Eve” explored his Christian Scientist background in no uncertain terms, as well as providing a triumphant close to the album which kickstarted progressive thrash.

Yes, the production sounded obsolete within weeks of AJFA’s release and poor old Jason Newsted was mixed out almost completely, but what killer songs, eh?

07. "Breadfan" (Garage Inc., 1998)

Yes, it’s a cover. Yes, it’s not properly produced. Shut up. This frankly gobsmacking upgrade of a hoary old NWOBHM tune was so far ahead of any other metal cover version you can think of at the time of its release (as a B-side on an AJFA-era single) that it would have been tragic if it wasn’t so funny. It’s so fast. It’s so heavy. It’s so good. Etc. Etc.

06. "Trapped Under Ice" (Ride The Lightning, 1984)

“No release from my cryonic fate” has to be one of the most metal lines ever written, and the fact that it comes as part of this aneurysm-inducingly nippy song from the band’s early days is another massive bonus.

Rarely played in concert but often cited as one of the finest Metallica songs of all, “Trapped Under Ice” is still almost impossible to beat.

05. "Sad But True" (Metallica, 1991)

The Black Album’s opening one-two (”Enter Sandman” and this song) is hard to beat if you’re a fan of MTV-era Metallica, but “Sad” surpasses “Sandman” for me because a) it’s so satisfyingly heavy and b) I haven’t heard it on the radio eight million times. You can see James recording the rhythm part (in straight D, as I recall) in the video clip. Watch and learn.

04. "Damage, Inc." (Master Of Puppets, 1986)

Every song on Puppets is a stone cold classic, a claim that no other thrash metal album can match apart from Slayer’s Reign In Blood, but I’ll point to “Damage, Inc” because it’s so fast and mean.

You have to admire the way that James’ lyrics don’t bother addressing politics, drugs, the environment etc: he just sings about wanting to fuck you up.

03. "Helpless" (Garage Days Re-Revisited EP, 1987)

Yes it’s another cover. Stop whining! If any proof were needed of Hetfield’s insane right-hand precision, listen to the tremolo picking in the chorus of this song. I’d also list Jason’s super-fat bass tone and Kirk’s awe-inspiring solo as reasons to listen to this tune, especially considering that the entire EP was recorded in a garage smelling of cat piss.

02. "Motorbreath" (Kill ‘Em All, 1983)

The lyrics are puerile but I think we’ve established by now that this is the entire point, right? Anyway, there is no clearer statement of intent (OK, maybe “Whiplash” qualifies too) in the Metallica catalogue.

“Motorbreath” is fast, dumb and violent – and although I’m glad that the band grew up and wised up as the years passed, songs from this era are still indispensable.

01. "Disposable Heroes" (Master Of Puppets, 1986)

My favourite Metallica song of all time. Why? It’s probably a combination of that E/G/F# chord progression which the band used so much back then, plus the song’s insane speed, plus Hetfield’s fabulously aggressive lyrics about getting killed in a war. And it goes on for ages too. Listen to this (or even better, watch them play it live) and you’ll be left reeling. Songs like this kinda put “Mama Said” and “The Memory Remains” into perspective, don’t they?

Read the entire list, with audio previews of the songs, at this location.

Joel McIver’s 2004 bestseller “Justice For All: The Truth About Metallica” has just been updated and reprinted. See www.joelmciver.co.uk for details.

Comments

[IRONMAIDENTLICA]

2 of these songs are covers.....what about master of puppets, one, creeping death, call of ktulu, to live is to die, orion, fade to black, sanitarium, ...and justice for all, Battery? i could go on but i wont....also a song from st anger?...really?!

[corey3815]

I've always secretly thought the "KILL KILL KILL KILL!" part of All Within My Hands was badass.

[Zeppelin Addict]

the point of this was what though? crappy list by no means a 10 best song compilation... if anything a couple dark horse songs that tend to get overlooked by incompletely avid fans..

[zapatista89]

wow. news...

[Creep_C-1]

here comes all the list of songs that everybody else thinks should be on here

[FionnRuadh]

I like how he dosen't just pick the famous ones.....

[SGofawesome]

IRONMAIDENTLICA wrote:

2 of these songs are covers.....what about master of puppets, one, creeping death, call of ktulu, to live is to die, orion, fade to black, sanitarium, ...and justice for all, Battery? i could go on but i wont....also a song from st anger?...really?!

The point of this is to have people listen to some songs that you don't hear every day, which would be the ones he listed. The ones you hear every day are the ones you put.

[raasbo]

Breadfan...really?! The rest are okay, for the most part. I agree with the Trapped Under Ice part though.

[MetalIsForever!]

Where's Fade and Sanatarium? Or Jump In The Fire???? And stop dissing St Anger.

[sticknick]

Whatever. Just listen to all the albums.

[Metallica1554]

It all comes down to personal preference

[EREV777]

my fav album is Kill em' all

[Raven_Flight]

I agree, Disposable Heroes is one of the best songs.
I think this top ten was just a "Listen to this songs, ****ing black album fan", it's pretty bizarre and personal, like someone above said.
But yeah, cool songs, I think To live is to Die should be a must listen too.

[wesker888]

You have to admire the way that James’s lyrics don’t bother addressing politics, drugs, the environment etc: he just sings about wanting to **** you up.

lol

[DiabolusnMusica]

Idk if this guy mentioned n the book the attempt by lars of sequence the songs on RtL MoP AJFA and DM, I personally always liked the tracks Nº 5, trapped under ice, disposable heroes, shortest straw and all nightmare long, those are probably the most badasses song metallica have made. anyway this guy listed his favorites, surelly you'll have ur own, nothing t bitching about.

[Jøhnny]

Breadfan? Helpless? Maybe there could be something like Cliff's masterpiece "Orion" instead of some cover song, but that's just my opinion...

[slipperymess]

...Blackened?

[xberserkx]

Such a strange list, pretty subjective.

[Rukasu Rindu]

Needs more Orion. D:

[korbhag]

The only Top 10 Metallica list someone could do is actually a "Top 10 Metallica songs you should skip" since pretty much 85% of their songs are worth listening to.

[foofighters4eva]

master? nothing else..? sandman? one? fade? orion? and justice? agree with dyers eve tho

[azisnomarsa]

Either of orion or call of ktulu, or to live is to die. At least one of these should have been in this list.

[Thayil_Noise]

Orion is missing, To live is to die, how about The outlaw torn? and who hasnt heard sad but true yet?

[maidenfan15]

Rarely played in concert but often cited as one of the finest Metallica songs of all, “Trapped Under Ice” is still almost impossible to beat.

I lol'd. This is by far the weakest song on the album and I have never heard anybody call it one of Metallica's best.

[xberserkx]

maidenfan15 wrote:

Rarely played in concert but often cited as one of the finest Metallica songs of all, “Trapped Under Ice” is still almost impossible to beat.

I lol'd. This is by far the weakest song on the album and I have never heard anybody call it one of Metallica's best.

it's definitely one of the weaker songs, but I'd say Escape is the worst

[siraxlrose]

if they were to put a st. anger song on here i would say some kind of monster, that chorus riff is just awesome.

[Rocker_94]

What a brutal list. We have 3 minutes from a St. Anger song, and 2 covers. Like everyone else above me, I can make my own list, and it includes Creeping Death, Master of Puppets, Battery, Sanitarium, For Whom The Bell Tolls, And Justice For All, Fade to Black, One, Call of Ktulu (or maybe Orion instead), the list goes on!

[FearOfTheDuck]

This guy comes across as a bit of a "METALLICA RULES MEGADETH SUCK" kinda person to me.
Alright list, though Phantom Lord should be in there!

[ThatWouldBeJon]

haha glad he added breadfan, always loved that cover

[COBHC_Erick429]

im purposely not gonna listen to them, just to prove this guy wrong. hes getting on my nerves

[floomdesk]

9-1 are all shitty, St. Anger wasn't good, but it sure was their best album.

[joshua029]

all of their songs are greats / instant classics...

[MonsterOfRock]

Oh C'mon! Seek n Destroy, Creeping Death, Ride the Lightning, Orion, Puppets, Blackened, Fade/Sanitarium/One, The Unforgivens...

Should you ever listen to Metallica, you should listen to most of Metallica!

Good to see All Within my Hands there. I've always liked that song along with Sweet Amber, from St. Anger.

[Rimfrost]

I would probably have Fixxxer and Where the wild things are, somewhere on my list. Trapped under ice i can agree with, i really like that one. I would probably also have the four horsemen in there.

Oh yeah and Somekind of monster and all within my hands. And finally my favourite of them all: No leaf Clover. I think it´s one of their finest ballads.

[Robert Gray]

FearOfTheDuck wrote:

This guy comes across as a bit of a "METALLICA RULES MEGADETH SUCK" kinda person to me.
Alright list, though Phantom Lord should be in there!

Well, I must say that the impression you have of Joel couldn't be further from the truth. In his "The 100 Greatest Metal Guitarists" book, Joel voted Dave Mustaine as being at number one...

[VanTheKraut]

I like how this guy picks one of Metallica's worst at #10 and covers at # 7 and 3.

[highwind5150]

To Live Is to Die...nuff said...man...quite an interesting list to say the least.

[UnaLaguna]

Bleeding Me is not a "normal" Metallica song, but you can't say it isn't a remarkable piece of work - especially the S&M version.

[bass-man9712]

IRONMAIDENTLICA wrote:

2 of these songs are covers.....what about master of puppets, one, creeping death, call of ktulu, to live is to die, orion, fade to black, sanitarium, ...and justice for all, Battery? i could go on but i wont....also a song from st anger?...really?!

i agree with eerything beside the st anger bit, its subjective anyway so everypone will have different opinions about it

[jethro bob]

floomdesk wrote:

9-1 are all shitty, St. Anger wasn't good, but it sure was their best album.

?? it wasn't good, but it sure was their best?

[sickman411]

Interesting... the "dire and embarassing" first part of All Within My Hands would have made my list.

[DualReaver]

what the hell is wrong with this mciver guy

[St.Anger5612678]

Hey man you guys are missing the point. First of all how in the heck can you just pick 10 songs? I heard trapped under ice live in Tampa recently, f'ing incredible! I agree on Disposable heroes, another awesome track. I think you guys are missing the point. top 10 to hear BEFORE YOU DIE! This implies that they are the top 10 'tallica songs that you may or may not have listened to, unless you are a true hardcore fan like me since '89 seen them ~15 times including 5 this year and twice in chicago back to back, own every album, LOVE every album (even st.anger, hells yeah frantictictic-tock) . Like a guy above said, listen to ALL of the albums, they are all killer. And Justice for All, if you don't believe me expand your mind. 'tallica will slay any other metal band, always have always will. Sad but true. hehe

[St.Anger5612678]

by the way those 2 covers are awesome too. man if you saw what them like I have seen them through my eyes, or if you have ever seen them live, your mind would have been blown a long long time ago...TALLICA metal KINGS!

[mac_daddy]

hmmmm not the best picks

[Anjohl]

I disagrtee with this entire list. Here is my top ten, in no order:

10) Fade to Black
9) My Friend of Misery
8) For Whom the Bell Tolls
7) Outlaw Torn (S&M)
6) Mercyful Fate
5) The God That Failed
4) Dyers Eve
3) The Day that Never Comes
2) Welcome Home (Sanitarium)
1) Mama Said

[GenerationKILL]

Two covers and "the end of a st. anger song" make the top ten list whilst songs like "one, sanitarium, creeping death" or even "call of the ktulu" and "orion" do not.

So this guy wrote a book on metallica you say? I was curious about it, but now im just assuming this guy is another musical ******* with an opinion thats overblown and hyped up.

I mean c'mon, not even ONE instrumental? esspecially orion, which showcases some of cliffs' ability as a song writer and bassist? or 'ktulu, another instrumental that flawlessly exudes the vibe of that H.P. lovcraft classic?!

gimme a break.

[GenerationKILL]

I also thought their covers of "turn the page, whisky in the jar, am i evil, blitzkrieg, stone cold crazy and killing time" were WAY WAY better than the two he listed, and im sure lots of you agree. Especially turn the page, which is one of the most amazing covers, period.

[slipknot44]

Well..I Think "Jump In The Fire" And "The Shortest Straw" Should Be On This List.

[Fadetoblack5:03]

I can only say I'm disapointed by seening no "Leper Messiah" in either the list or the comments; great, often over-looked, song, plus a personal favorite.

[Nor'Easterbass]

i get why he was going for non-traditional 'tallica songs, but motorbreath should be jump in the fire or metal militia, helpless should be am i evil, breadfan should be the wait, and screw trapped under ice: creeping death any day of the week, pal.

[rip3149]

1 harvester of sorrow
2 welcome home (sanitarium) (live shit version)
3 no remorse
4 the unnamed feeling
5 no leaf clover
6 so what
7 through the never
8 seek and destroy (no life till leather version)
9 leper messiah
10 slither

there are 10 obscure tracks that any non-fan could hear and get hooked.

[Mondo Generator]

Hangar 18 duh

[smittyanthrax]

disposable hereos deserves to be number 1.period

[AussieBassKid]

they're mostly shit songs.

[lazy town]

KILL KILL KILL KILL KILL KILL KILL KILL! KILL! KILL! KILL!

checked

[Stikit2duhman]

metallica biographer?!

[Shreddaboi12]

Metallica1554 wrote:

It all comes down to personal preference

thats exactly what hes done here, but apparently, his opinion represents all of ours.

[Dr Funkenstein]

Robert Gray wrote:

FearOfTheDuck wrote:

This guy comes across as a bit of a "METALLICA RULES MEGADETH SUCK" kinda person to me.
Alright list, though Phantom Lord should be in there!
Well, I must say that the impression you have of Joel couldn't be further from the truth. In his "The 100 Greatest Metal Guitarists" book, Joel voted Dave Mustaine as being at number one...

If I had known that beforehand I wouldn't have even bothered reading this article. However, Metallica should be compulsory listening for all. Almost everything is awesome.

[adamzam]

if anyone of your guys actually appreciated what Metallica was doing you would listen to al of their songs and appreciate that we were even graced with such talent. St.Anger, Load and Reload were great albums. If Metallica kept putting out cd's like RTL and AJFA etc. I would have got bored with the same shit and lack of creativeness. I can almost guarantee that most of you on here are like 18 years old and have no idea what good music is.

[StilletoBoy]

Top 5 (In My Opinion)
5)Unforgiven 3
4)To live is to Die
3)Leper Messiah
2)Hit the Lights
1)Master of Puppets

[riffer_raffer]

hmm, interesting thoughts on some lesser known 'Tallica tunes

[KingSquall802]

The title must be "The 10 Underrated/Seldomly Heard Metallica Songs You Must Hear Before You Die".

[Gromstrom]

i know its a cover, but their version of Blitzkrieg on Kill Em All is badass.

[Gromstrom]

Mine would be:
5) Dyer's Eve
4) Blackened
3) Blitzkrieg
2) Call of Ktulu
1) Creeping Death

[PowerStruggle]

adamzam wrote:

if anyone of your guys actually appreciated what Metallica was doing you would listen to al of their songs and appreciate that we were even graced with such talent. St.Anger, Load and Reload were great albums. If Metallica kept putting out cd's like RTL and AJFA etc. I would have got bored with the same shit and lack of creativeness. I can almost guarantee that most of you on here are like 18 years old and have no idea what good music is.

I am 18, and I think I do have some kind of idea what good music is.
But to decide that people who don't like St Anger are probably all just 18 year olds, kind of suggests that you don't really.

Although Metallica will always be my favourite band, St Anger is the worst album I have ever heard by any artist who has or had some integrity in their career. What are you babbling about?

But geez what do I know, I'm only 18. If it helps, I regularly listen to the following:
Pink Floyd, King Crimson, Rush, Metallica, Yes, Porcupine Tree, Led Zeppelin, Wishbone Ash aswell as various jazz artists and classical composers

But that's not good music huh. St Anger kicks the crap out of that.

[Euclides]

what the heck what about the 3 unforgiven songs, king nothing, master of puppets, frantic, somekind of monster, shoot me again, nothing else matters, ride the lighting, seek and destroy for crying out loud

[Casterillo]

IRONMAIDENTLICA wrote:

2 of these songs are covers.....what about master of puppets, one, creeping death, call of ktulu, to live is to die, orion, fade to black, sanitarium, ...and justice for all, Battery? i could go on but i wont....also a song from st anger?...really?!

You know your right, BUt it is im-****in-possible to make a top 10 best Metallica Songs because they have so many ****in awesome songs

[horandago]

when it comes to top 10 favs, they need a poll which includes every one of their songs and keep it going for about a year to see which is the top 10 - most popular

[Janak]

THIS IS OBVIOUSLY NOT A LIST OF THEIR BEST SONGS, YOU FUCKING IDIOTS. OTHERWISE IT WOULD BE TITLED 'BEST 10 METALLICA SONGS OF ALL TIME'.
Nobody wants to hear your top favorite 10, either.

[Ihle]

My world on St. Anger is fantastic, as well as rest of the album. Dont hate me...

[Ihle]

xberserkx wrote:

Such a strange list, pretty subjective.

All such lists are subjective.

[metallica-#1]

06. "Trapped Under Ice" (Ride The Lightning, 1984)
“No release from my cryonic fate” has to be one of the most metal lines ever written

ugh, the irony
no one seemed to catch on that this was not actually a line in the song.
"No release from my cryonic STATE, what is this? ive been stricken by FATE"
are the actual lyrics.....

Orion should be on the list, such a fantastic peice, so beautiful, so timeless, such a masterpeice of a song for Burton to leave us with

[kevintimmers]

my top ten.

10. Turn the Page (i just have to pick a cover, sorry)
9. The Unforgiven
8. King Nothing
7. No Leaf Clover
6. Blackened
5. Fade to Black
4. Seek and Destroy
3. Master of Puppets
2. Ride the Lightning
1. Orion

[kevintimmers]

sorry for the double post. but, i left out the trash songs such as: Fight Fire with Fire, Battery and Dyers Eve because its too hard to make a metallica list, IMO

[joaonofear]

ORION!!! >:|

[fadetoblack84]

How about you guys just listen to each song on every album, pick your favorites, but not tell anyone? This guy made a good list, because the songs he listed arent the songs Metallica will be remembered for (minus Fight Fire With Fire), and they all are pretty good to freaking great songs.

[ReiverOfSouls]

xberserkx wrote:

maidenfan15 wrote:

Rarely played in concert but often cited as one of the finest Metallica songs of all, “Trapped Under Ice” is still almost impossible to beat.

I lol'd. This is by far the weakest song on the album and I have never heard anybody call it one of Metallica's best.

it's definitely one of the weaker songs, but I'd say Escape is the worst

Amen to that. Though Gojira's cover of 'Escape' is f'n brutal.

[metalligeek093]

St. Anguish??....

[metalligeek093]

IRONMAIDENTLICA wrote:

2 of these songs are covers.....what about master of puppets, one, creeping death, call of ktulu, to live is to die, orion, fade to black, sanitarium, ...and justice for all, Battery? i could go on but i wont....also a song from st anger?...really?!

i know right?!? why would he put a song on a list like this then bash the entire album but for the last 3 mins??

[metalligeek093]

PowerStruggle wrote:

adamzam wrote:

if anyone of your guys actually appreciated what Metallica was doing you would listen to al of their songs and appreciate that we were even graced with such talent. St.Anger, Load and Reload were great albums. If Metallica kept putting out cd's like RTL and AJFA etc. I would have got bored with the same shit and lack of creativeness. I can almost guarantee that most of you on here are like 18 years old and have no idea what good music is.

I am 18, and I think I do have some kind of idea what good music is.
But to decide that people who don't like St Anger are probably all just 18 year olds, kind of suggests that you don't really.

Although Metallica will always be my favourite band, St Anger is the worst album I have ever heard by any artist who has or had some integrity in their career. What are you babbling about?

But geez what do I know, I'm only 18. If it helps, I regularly listen to the following:
Pink Floyd, King Crimson, Rush, Metallica, Yes, Porcupine Tree, Led Zeppelin, Wishbone Ash aswell as various jazz artists and classical composers

But that's not good music huh. St Anger kicks the crap out of that.

nice

[Steve 101]

St Anguish??? and could the bashing of the load reload and st anger. they went in a new direction so what. i like their new stuff as much as their old stuff.not to say ur not a true fan if udont like their stuff but cmon keep an open mind. i listen to metallica and u2. everybody who hears that laughs and i just look at them like woww.