...and justice for all

Metallica broke into the mainstream with the socially conscious concerns of this progressive metal juggernaut.  The band had steadily built a reputation for an uncompromising thrash metal onslaught with their first three albums:  'Kill 'Em All', 'Ride the Lightning', and 'Master of Puppets'.   During a European leg of their Damage, Inc. tour, the band's tour bus lost control and flipped over, killing their bassist Cliff Burton.  The remaining members of the band eventually decided to carry on and auditioned over forty bassists to find a replacement, finally deciding on Jason Newsted from Flotsam and Jetsam. The group quickly recorded a bunch of covers to test the waters with their new bass player and released it as 'The $5.98 E.P.: Garage Days Re-Revisited'.   

They settled in at One on One Recording Studios in North Hollywood to record '...And Justice For All' with Mike Clink, who had produced Guns N' Roses' 'Appetite for Destruction'.    The band was unhappy with the sound they were getting and convinced Flemming Rasmussen, who had co-produced their two previous records to take over for Clink.  The album features Kirk Hammet on lead guitar; James Hetfield on lead vocals and rhythm guitar; Jason Newsted on bass; and Lars Ulrich on drums.  

Hetfield remembers:    "That album, songwriting-wise, it was just us really showing off and trying to show what we could do.  'We've jammed six riffs into one song? Let's make it eight. Let's go crazy with it.' I listen to some of that stuff, and it's pretty progressive. Sonically, it has its shortcomings, but that is the one where we were able to step forward from 'Puppets', and we were out on the road a lot during that record. That's when we first had major stage shows, with pyro and things falling, and that's when we started to get into more of the theatrics...We mixed that record while we were on the road. That's not an excuse for the way that it sounds, but our ears were beat. Anywhere I go, whenever I ask someone what their favorite record is, someone's bound to say 'Justice'. It's pretty great that, across the line, someone can jump into your history and feel comfortable."

Ulrich considers:     "'Justice' obviously was a huge record for us. ... We took the 'Ride the Lightning' and 'Master of Puppets' concept as far as we could take it.  There was no place else to go with the progressive, nutty, sideways side of Metallica, and I'm so proud of the fact that, in some way, that album is kind of the epitome of that progressive side of us up through the '80s...It's aged quite well.  There's a certain kind of specific sound to that record, peculiar sound — whichever adverb you want to choose — that's given it a kind of life of its own and a little bit of a vibe all its own. There have been a lot of great musicians we admire who've come up and talked about what a great inspiration that album has been to them and to their sound. It's obviously awesome to be part of that. That album also sent us on this whole other merry way, because when we came back from touring on that record in 1989, we were like, 'We have nothing more to offer on this side of Metallica,' and that set us off on some other adventures. When I think of the nine records we've put out, it's impossible for me to think of the music without thinking of the experience. And when I think of the experience, I have warm and fuzzy feelings, but I also have questions. Obviously, 'Justice' is well-revered, especially among a lot of our peers."

 With no radio play, '...And Justice For All' became the first underground metal album to break in the US.  It made it to number thirty-six in New Zealand, sixteen in Australia, thirteen in Canada, eight in Finland and Norway, seven in Switzerland, six in the US, five in Germany and Sweden, and number four in the UK.  The album was certified platinum within nine weeks and was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance.  It has since been certified eight times platinum.  





http://www.metallica.com/









'...And Justice For All' 
full album:



1. "Blackened"   James Hetfield, Lars Ulrich, Jason Newsted 6:41
2. "...And Justice for All"  Hetfield, Ulrich, Kirk Hammett 9:46
3. "Eye of the Beholder"  Hetfield, Ulrich, Hammett 6:30
4. "One"   Hetfield, Ulrich 7:27
5. "The Shortest Straw"   Hetfield, Ulrich 6:35
6. "Harvester of Sorrow"  Hetfield, Ulrich 5:45
7. "The Frayed Ends of Sanity"  Hetfield, Ulrich, Hammett 7:44
8. "To Live Is to Die" (Instrumental) Hetfield, Ulrich, Cliff Burton 9:48
9. "Dyers Eve"  Hetfield, Ulrich, Hammett 5:13