Artist feature: Metallica - The Struggle Within

Jason Newsted -  circa 1987

With the band in turmoil over losing a friend and fellow musician, the decision to carry on was taken on the basis “that is what Cliff would have wanted”, and with the blessing of the Burton family, Metallica held auditions to recruit a new bass player. Some 40-odd bass players auditioned for the chance to become part of the massive machine Metallica was quickly becoming, and after having impressed the band by learning their entire set-list, it was agreed that Jason Newsted would replace Burton on the bass. Metallica finished their tour in early 1987 and returned home to San Francisco. As a result of the new bass player (credited as Master J. Newkid in the liner notes), and a newly built studio, came the all-covers Extended Play (EP) release – Garage Days Re-Visited. The EP is considered a collector’s item as all 5 track were included in the 1998 double-album Garage Inc. [but more about that later...]

The Garage Days Revisited Album Cover

Jason Newsted and / vs. James Hetfield

With Jason Newsted on the bass, Metallica returned to studio to record their 4^th full length studio album entitled ...And Justice for All. This was the first disk recorded without Burton and had some negative implications for Newsted. It is common knowledge amongst fans that Newsted was always treated as the odd-one-out, the new kid - so much so in fact that the bass guitar on ‘Justice was actually turned way down in the final mix. Newsted said in an interview that “the ‘Justice album wasn’t something that felt really good for me, because you really can’t hear the bass”. 

Although the album was a massive success – reaching # 6 on Billboard and going on to 8x Platinum status (12,000,000 albums sold) in the States – this fantastic offering is marred by the stale post-production. Allmusic.com sums it up as a “slightly flawed masterpiece”. The inaudible bass put aside, ...And Justice for All is a awe-inspiring musical feast. The album encompasses lyrical content dealing with political and legal injustice and censored speech with the most technically complicated song structures we have ever, and [probably] will ever hear from the Tallica boys. 

The huge hit off the album, One, stands testament to the complex, intricate, riff-mad music that gave Metallica their god-like status in the musical world.

The ‘Justice album also saw the very first Metallica music video. The video for the epic single One features scenes from the 1971 film adaptation of the book “Johnny Got His Gun”. The film tells the story of a young soldier who is severely injured by a mortar shell which claims his limbs, and the use of his eyes, ears and mouth leaving the man unable to interact with the world outside of his own thoughts. As fantastic as the video is, it caused some anger amongst the hard-core Metallica fans when it was first flighted on MTV in early 1989. Fans were accusing Metallica of “selling out” to the big commercial entities (what with the new record label and a video on MTV) and of losing touch with their fan base. My opinion is that the metal-heads were just angry because their favourite ‘underground’ band had become too big for them to carry around in their back pockets and although I feel it was a natural step forward for the band, they would continue to be crucified for going “commercial” in the years to come. [Watch the video here...]

Jethro Tull's Ian Anderson

Speaking of going commercial, One would see Metallica earn their first Grammy nomination in the inaugural Best Hard Rock / Metal performance category. Although they were the favourites to win the Grammy, they were ousted by Jethro Tull. This created quite a stir as Metallica was favoured to win after performing the song live on stage – favoured so much in fact, that Jethro Tull’s manager advised them not to even attend the ceremony. Entertainment Weekly mentioned the upset in their article “Grammy’s 10 Biggest Upsets”, saying "A record with flute solos bested Metallica's thrash-speed touchstone ...And Justice for All. This night, the devil horns were never unleashed". The Damaged Justice Tour in support of ...And Justice for All would see Metallica headlining and selling out huge stadiums around the world.

Metallica was on top of the world come the 90’s and following the tour in support of ‘Justice Metallica would stick to their inhuman work schedule. In October 1990 the band would enter One on One studios in Hollywood to lay the foundations of a new album. For the recording of this album, producer Bob Rock was hired to sit behind the controls. Having worked with the likes of Aerosmith, Mötley Crüe, Bon Jovi and The Cure the stage was set for what would become one of the biggest selling, and most widely recognised albums in recorded history, ever...