Master of Puppets [Original recording remastered]

Metallica

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 25, 1990)
• Original Release Date: 1986
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Original recording remastered
• Label: Elektra / Wea
• ASIN: B000002H33
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1,285 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #721 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

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  #4 in	Music > Hard Rock & Metal > Thrash & Speed Metal
  #14 in	Music > Hard Rock & Metal > Hard Rock

Track Listings

1. Battery

2. Master of Puppets

3. Thing That Should Not Be

4. Welcome Home (Sanitarium)

5. Disposable Heroes

6. Leper Messiah

7. Orion [Instrumental]

8. Damage, Inc.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com essential recording

One of the defining albums of thrash metal, Master of Puppets is arguably Metallica's best album (as well as their last with bassist Cliff Burton). Focusing on the concept of power and abuses thereof, this is a collection of complex, intelligent music, played at about a hundred miles an hour. Not that these are short songs; this eight-song album clocks in at over an hour, which makes it all the more impressive that not one moment on this recording is boring. In tackling various approaches to their subject, Metallica is insightful lyrically as well as musically: "Welcome Home (Sanitarium)" is from the point of view of an institutionalized inmate and "Disposable Heroes" is the perspective of a soldier. If all you've heard of Metallica is what's been on the radio recently, check this one out. You're in for a surprise. --Genevieve Williams

Product Description

Japanese exclusive reissue of 1986 album, packaged in a miniature LP gatefold sleeve, features 8 tracks. CBS. 2003. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

165 of 183 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "DANCE PUPPETS! DANCE! ", April 24, 2000

By	Ilker Yucel "Kryptych" (Annapolis, MD United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

THIS is one of the finest albums every produced, not just in the genre of thrash metal. Metallica rocked with their first two albums, but this is the album that I listen to most out of all of them. There is not a single dull moment on this masterpiece of puppetry. All the songs are played with lightning fast precision, and glorious heavy metal power. And yet, 1) The songs clock in mostly between 5-12 minutes long, and 2) Amidst the mayhem of wailing guitars and pounding drums is the sound of melody and classically influenced arrangments and composition. This is largely in part to bassist Cliff Burton, the most classically trained member of the band. Sadly this would be his final album, but if he had to give a final farewell before his sudden and unfortunate death, this album screams with a power that engraves into the listeners' minds, "Cliff was here!"

-"Battery": great acoustic intro leading into a maniacal barage of Hetfield's harsh vocals and Ulrich's pounding drums that literally batter their way through your ears.

-"Master of Puppets": a classic in the truest sense of the word. Like "Battery," this song is fast, hard, and it beckons with energy the question of who is truly the puppet and who is the puppeteer.

-"The Thing that Should Not Be": again, a great acoustic intro that leads into a hardcore thrash rhythm.

-"Welcome Home (Sanitarium)": the lyrics are the real gem here, telling the story of a mental patient from inside the patient's mind. The music is great, but the lyrics can haunt you if you're not careful.

-"Disposable Heroes": while I may like their later song "One" better in terms of the lyrical device of the soldier's point of view, I still give this one credit since it came first, and let's face it...everything on this album kicks serious arse, including this one.

-"Leper Messiah": I could say again that this song is fierce in its brutal greatness, but I've been saying that about every other song, so...let's just say this is still yet another great song on this great album.

-"Orion": great instrumental, with a militaristic march that echoes the gradeur of Wagner, but without being oppressive. This is something for the Metal Militia to use as a warcry.

-"Damage Inc.": the intro to this song is absolutely incredible. It is my favorite part of the song, and thus that makes it my favorite song on the album. As a closer...it is amazing, and it has to be one of the best songs Metallica ever recorded.

Top-notch production, speed-licks only Hammett and Hetfield could dish out to give Eddie Van Halen a run for his money, and let's face it...like I said, it is a sad, but glorious and powerful farewell to Cliff Burton. He left us too soon. Behold his legacy! DANCE PUPPETS! DANCE!

82 of 92 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A milestone., July 17, 2001

By	Lord Chimp (Monkey World) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

Master of Puppets illustrates why Metallica was one of the most important metal bands ever.

After giving birth to thrash with Kill 'Em All, Metallica began refining their innovations with Ride the Lightning, which added a bit more maturity and compositional quality. Master of Puppets is a much larger step in the same direction, and had the band incorporating more progressive elements into their music. It'd be hard to count the metal bands doing half the pioneering things Metallica was doing.

The acoustic, quiet introduction to "Battery" explodes under an aggressive onslaught of hyperkinetic, muscular riffs and thick, heavy arrangements that characterize the entire album. That's not to say it's redundant, though. All eight songs are excellent, featuring enough variation of tempo and texture to ensure that they never get boring, which is crucial when some songs extend for eight minutes ("Master of Puppets," "Disposable Heroes," "Orion"). Cripes, you could dissect the riffery of the title track and probably create half a dozen normal metal songs. That"s part of Metallica's appeal: they cram a ton of ideas into their music, but all songs are perfectly crafted without the slightest sense of disjointed songwriting.

Speaking of the title track, it in particular sports a dynamic composition, where its middle section diminishes into a quieter, evocative guitar solo (one of the few played by Hetfield) before taking off all over again. "Welcome Home (Sanitarium)" mirrors "Fade to Black" in its progression of intensity. It starts with haunting melodies, turning up the crunch for the chorus, then kicks into high gear with a weighty, fast riff and a glistening lead that carries the song to its vengeful apogee. Hetfield isn't quite a master lyricist, but for the first time in Metallica's career, the lyrics were insightful with effective diction. Note the telling and vitriolic "Disposable Heroes" or "Leper Messiah." Hetfield was never a great singer, but he was a good metal vocalist. Although his ferocity was tempered by youthful pipes, he still managed to convey the viciousness required of music so heavy, so furious.

And even when the band eschewed words and singing, they could impress. "Orion" is a marvel of metal songwriting, being an eight minute instrumental with precise, articulate solos (including a short-but-sweet one from the late bassist Cliff Burton) and big, chugging riffs. Most metal bands wrote instrumentals that were three or four minutes long...never eight. But Metallica did it, and they did it well enough to make songs like "Orion" and "To Live Is To Die" (from ...And Justice) among my favorite metal instrumentals.

Add my voice to the many, many fans who have rated this album five stars (about 362 at the time of this writing). If Master of Puppets isn't the best metal album ever, it's very very close.

30 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Master of Metal, October 11, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Master of Puppets (Audio CD)

Metallica truly shows their maximum talent in this amazing album. This 24k gold CD holds beautiful sound quality that will blow any fan away. This spectacular CD is defenitely worth the purchase, especially if you are a die hard fan...10 times better than regular "puppets" album.