NEWS LETTTER Nr 5! (APRIL!)
MASTER OF PUPPETS
SPECIAL!
SPECIAL!
MASTER OF PUPPETS
SOME HISTORY
SOME HISTORY
Master of Puppets is Metallica's third album, released February 21, 1986, by Elektra Records. The album reached No. 29 on "The Billboard magazine 200" chart. To date it has sold over six million copies in the U.S. alone. It was the last album the band recorded with bass player Cliff Burton and is widely considered a landmark in the history of heavy metal. When it was released, Master of Puppets provided many metal fans with an alternate image to the commercially visible pop metal sounds of the era (Poison, Mötley Crüe, and Quiet Riot) - it sold over half a million copies at its time of release without any major video/radio airplay. The album is often credited for innovating thrash metal, while also frequently being tagged by critics 'one of the most influential heavy metal albums of all time.' [1].The band's line-up during the album's recording was James Hetfield (vocals, guitar), Lars Ulrich (drums), Kirk Hammett (lead guitar), and Cliff Burton (bass). The album is remembered in part due to the death of Burton shortly after the release of the album in a bus accident while supporting it on tour. The album is often quoted by other metal pioneers, including Slayer and Megadeth as a key influence, as well as many Metallica tribute bands [citation needed]. In February 2002 the progressive metal group Dream Theater performed the album in its entirety as a homage to the band. (Metallica themselves performed the full album as part of its Escape from the Studio '06 summer tour and at the Download '06 festival on the 10th June).The April 5, 2006 edition of Kerrang! magazine was dedicated to this album, providing its readers with a remastered take on Master of Puppets. This included tribute covers of each song on the album by Machine Head, Trivium, Mendeed, Bullet for My Valentine, Chimaira, Fightstar, Mastodon and Funeral for a Friend (in the order they appear on the album), cementing its position as a speed metal classic.To celebrate the 20th anniversary of its release, Metallica played the album in its entirety on their 2006 "Escape from the studio" tour.
TRACK LIST &
SONG INFO
SONG INFO
"Battery" (Hetfield, Ulrich) – 5:12
The song live:
Before the release of the black "Metallica" album it was the opener to Metallica's concerts and was the first hit out of three more off of the "Master of Puppets" album. It is still a fixed part of Metallica's live show.
The tribute:
The song "Battery" is an indirect tribute to the "Old Waldorf Club" in San Francisco on Battery street.
The subject matter:
The song is about a battery in the sense of beating each other up.
James once said: "There's a good and a bad side of a battery. We were very good at the negative."
"Master of Puppets" (Burton, Hammett, Hetfield, Ulrich) – 8:36
The song live:
Since its release it has almost always been a fixed part of Metallica's live show. The Best Solos Ever Reader's Choice:
The solo of "Master of Puppets" reached the 51st place in the "100 Best Solos Ever Reader's Choice" in the september 1998 issue of Guitar World.
The covers:
Primus recorded a cover of "Master of Puppets". Holochaust and Limp Bizkit just covered the song during their live shows.
The samples:
"Master of Puppets" has been sampled by Anthrax for "I'm The Man!" and by The Pulp for "Metal Techno".
Subject matter:
It is about the drug (especially heroin) addiction and its consequences.
"The Thing That Should Not Be" (Hammett, Hetfield, Ulrich) – 6:37
The song live:
Since it's release till the "Poor Re-Touring Me '98" tour it has often been a fixed part of Metallica's live shows.
The inspiration:
The song is based upon the short story "Shadow Over Innsmouth" by H.P. Lovecraft which has been written in 1936. "Shadow Over Innsmouth" was Lovecraft's sole story which has been released as a book when he was alive. His further short stories only appeared in his lifetime in a magazine called "Weird Tales".
A close similarity:
"That is not dead which can eternal lie, And with strange aeons even death may die."
- H.P. Lovecraft
"Not dead which eternal lie stranger eons death may die"
- Metallica (The Thing That Should Not Be)
This cit of a Lovecraft novel was also featured in the cover of Iron Maidon's "Live After Death" album (on the gravestone in the front).
The cover:
Primus covered this song in 1998.
"Welcome Home (Sanitarium)" (Hammett, Hetfield, Ulrich) – 6:27
The inspiration:
The song writing was inspired by the movie which is based on the same entitled book "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest".
The subject matter:
It is about someone who is in a sanitarium. A sanitarium is a mental institution which can be eft on a inmate's own will.
"No locked doors - No windows barred"
"No things to make my brain seem scared"
On the other hand the 'sanitarium' could also be a simile for the society.
"Disposable Heroes" (Hammett, Hetfield, Ulrich) – 8:16
The song live:
The first time the song was performed live was on September 14, 1985. Which is also the only time the song was played live with Cliff. Afterwards it was performed sporadically throughout the "Justice" tours. The most notably thing is that it was a set part of the "'94 Summer s**t" tour.
The lyrics:
They basically suggest that the whole drafting procedure within the military is as bad as the war itself.
The subject matter:
The song is pointing out that war is glorified, but in the reality it is the simple hell - where aren't any winners.
"Leper Messiah" (Hetfield, Ulrich) – 5:40
The song live:
The first time the song has been played live was in the "100 Club" in London, England on a secret gig which has been afterwards called "Damage Inc." on August 20th '87. The entire song has been only played live various times on tour between '87-'89 and once in '92. On the Load tour Metallica played it instrumentally as a pre-encore jam. Such a "Leper Messiah" jam is also included on "Cunning Stunts" which was filmed in September 1997 in Fort Worth, Texas.
Jaymz's dedication:
Once on tour James sarcastically dedicated the song to Jim and Tammy Fey Baker, two TV evangelists who embezzled millions of dollars of charity money.
The claimed credits:
Dave Mustaine claimed he wrote the song's main riff and was not given credit by Metallica. The matter was settled quietly.
The subject matter:
It is about so called messiahs who make a good profit on other people's faith.
"Send me money, send me green"
"Heaven you will meet"
"Make a contribution"
"And you'll get a better seat"
"Orion" Instrumental (Burton, Hetfield, Ulrich) – 8:28
Why it was named Orion:
To Metallica the middle part of the song sounded a kind of spacey and starry so they named the song after the star constellation Orion.
The cover:
Korn covered "Orion" a few times for their live show.
Tribute to Cliff:
The song "Orion" was the music Metallica had chosen for Cliff's funeral on October 7th, 1986. Services were held in his hometown of Castro Valley. He was cremated, and his ashes were spread at the Maxwell Ranch.
"Damage Inc." (Burton, Hammett, Hetfield, Ulrich) – 5:29
The covers:
The band Dream Theater plays a cover of "Damage Inc." together with the lead singer from Napalm Death on their live video "5 years in a Livetime".
A band entitled Shai Hulud did the song for the first installment of a series of 7 inches LPs as a tribute to Metallica called "Crush 'em All". The 7" was shared with a band called Boy Sets Fire which did a cover of "Fade to Black".
The subject matter:
It is about senseless violence and destruction.
DAS SONGS;
Battery
Master Of Puppets (S&M)
The Thing That Should Not Be (live 2006)
Welcome Home (Sanitarium)
Diposable Heroes (live 2006)
Leper Messiah (Live 2006)
Orion (Live 2006)
Damage Inc (Live 2006)
