Metallica

Metallica | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (August 12, 1991)
• Original Release Date: August 12, 1991
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Elektra / Wea
• ASIN: B000002H97
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  DVD Audio  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Music
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1,322 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #334 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)
  • #1 in Music > Hard Rock & Metal > Thrash & Speed Metal
  • #3 in Music > Hard Rock & Metal > Hard Rock
  • #7 in Music > Hard Rock & Metal > Pop Metal

Track Listings

1. Enter Sandman

2. Sad But True

3. Holier Than Thou

4. The Unforgiven

5. Wherever I May Roam

6. Don't Tread On Me

7. Through The Never

8. Nothing Else Matters

9. Of Wolf And Man

10. God That Failed

11. My Friend Of Misery

12. Struggle Within

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Called "the Black Album" by many (due to its monochrome cover), Metallica marks the group's entrance into the mainstream, with shorter songs, simpler song structures, and slower tempos overall. That said, this is an excellent album, featuring some of the best songwriting Metallica has ever done. "Enter Sandman," "Wherever I May Roam," and "God That Failed," despite being slower and more groove-oriented than the band's earlier work, feature the same heavy riffs and heavier rhythms that have always been a feature of Metallica's music. The band goes introspective with "Unforgiven," and proves that they can write a ballad with "Nothing Else Matters," which succeeds better than one might expect. Overall, this is a high-energy album despite its laid-back approach, and is in many ways superior to the previous . . . And Justice for All, which was weakened by overly complicated song structures and mediocre production. -- Genevieve Williams

Product Description

1991 album by legendary hard rock/metal band Metallica that helped break them through to a larger audience. Produced by Bob Rock.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

85 of 100 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Black Album September 6, 2004

By Rebecca Lyle

Format:Audio CD

Here we have Metallica's breakthrough album, the Black album. This is what put Metallica into the mainstream, and it is indeed a masterpeice. Every song on this on is a classic. The talent is all there. The production is crystal clear. Everything about this album is epic. A lot of people complain that this is all a little too mainstream, but I disagree. I believe the boys to be in top performance, just because it's a little more accessible, doesn't mean that the talent is gone. Kirk plays some of his greatest solos on this album. I believe that everyone is in top form. Jason Newsted also gets a chance to prove himself on this one. As a bassist, I believe his basslines on the slower songs to showcase his talent the most. He packs a lot of emotion, especially in Nothing Else Matters. Overall, this is just a fun and enjoyable cd with talented musicians and songwriting. Highly recommended!

173 of 212 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Underrated Masterpiece! August 2, 2001

By The Wickerman

Format:Audio CD

It seems that many Metallica "fans" seem to enjoy putting this album down, for some reason. They claim that, with this album, Metallica lost their edge and sold out. Listening to this album, I'm wondering if we heard the same one. This album may not be quite as epic or technical as previous releases, but it's every bit as thrashy, heavy, and good. This album was my introduction to Metallica a few years back, and I've never stopped loving it. The songs are full of crunch and vitriol, and the two ballads ("Unforgiven", "Nothing Else Matters") are very emotional and melodic. There are still a lot of great solos, and Lars still dishes out some pretty impressive drumwork (especially on "The Struggle Within"). The production quality is excellent (probably the best of all their albums), so every instrument is distinct and hard-hitting. There are no bad songs, but if you want to hear a great one, check out "The Unforgiven". This is one of the best ballads ever, with very emotional lyrics and a great vocal performance from James Hetfield. If you love heavy metal and do not love this album, there is probably something wrong with you. I rank this album third, behind "Ride the Lightning" and "Master of Puppets", and one of my top 20 favorite albums. It's better than "And Justice for All" mainly because of the production quality, and better than "Kill Em All" because that album is too repetitive and rough around the edges (but still very good, mind you), and well, do I even need to explain why it's better than "Load" and "Reload"? The simple fact of the matter is that Metallica was still a great band at this time, and did not sell out with this album. This album was much heavier and better than anything else that was popular at the time (except for Pantera's "Cowboys from Hell"). "Load" and "Reload" were the ones where the music changed for the worse, but even those albums weren't so bad. If Metallica ever did sell out, it wasn't until the awful "I Disappear". If they ever get another bass player, and Hetfield ever gets out of rehab, let's hope they stop doing that kind of stuff and go back to the basics. Megadeth and Iron Maiden already made incredible returns to form with "The World Needs a Hero" and "Brave New World", if Metallica does another album like this, then metal is officially back. Otherwise, they may as well just call it quits. Anyway, buy this album, it is one of the best.

15 of 17 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars You have to admit... January 25, 2004

By A. Fondacaro

Format:Audio CD

This is one intense album. Yes, it's been played to death (so was "Stairway to Heaven," does that make Led Zeppelin a sellout? What about "Start Me Up?" "Free Fallin'?"), but does that make Metallica a sellout? No it doesn't. The word "sellout" just doesn't apply to Metallica.

The songs were not like their usual thrash-style, nor was the sound, or the lyrics, or the song structure, or the production. Does that make this a bad album full of bad songs? No. Does the album lack musicality? No. Does it lack the attitude that metal projects constantly? No.

People forget that this album houses one of THE most heavy songs ever written - Sad But True. Some hardcore losers might come out and say, "What about Morbid Angel's 'Nothing is Not?' Or Six Feet Under's 'Blood of the Insane?' or Samael's 'Shining Kingdom?' Huh? Huh? Huh?" And then call Metallica p@$$y sellouts. I don't think so. Yes bands like Slayer, Samael, Impaled Nazarene, Deicide (Children of the Underworld), Cannibal Corpse, Morbid Angel (James Murphy-era) might write songs that are far and away heavier than a lot of Metallica's songs, but you can't deny that "Sad But True" is a benchmark of metal heaviness and raises some serious hairs on the back of your brain. Keep in mind the other thing about Metallica that this album demonstrates, no matter how crappy the music gets, no one can match their power.

Then there are those that howl about "Nothing Else Matters." Once again, we hear moaning about how it was popular, teenie girls liked it, it's not heavy, it's not metal, it's not real, it's a sellout song, it's stupid, it's not Slayer, blah blah blah. Does this mean it's a bad song? No.

Some people talk about this album being the "beginning of the end of Metallica." The argument is that, again, it's not metal. Most of those people are metal heads who have never heard of another genre, and are exactly the close-minded, unintelligent saps that they claim they are because of their "different" musical tastes (It doesn't work that way. A lot of people listen to metal, death, black, grindcore, thrash, etc., and it doesn't make you unique just because you listen to metal.) The thing is, "Nothing Else Matters" was unlike any other metal song we had heard, and this close-mindedness was not the kind of audience the song needed, even though it found an audience elsewhere. What happens is that those people miss out on a great song and a great album. That's essentially the problem; it's not the band, it's the ears listening to it.

Imagine if this album had been released by a brand new band; they would be instant metal gods. But no, Metallica "betrayed" us. No they didn't. They made their music. If you don't like it, go back to Cannibal Corpse, but don't open your mouth and claim to know good music because all you listen to is a "unique" style of music called metal.