Elektra Records/Blackened RecordingsMetallica's seminal 1986 album Master of Puppets was released 30 years ago today. The album was Metallica's third, following 1983's Kill 'Em All and 1984's Ride the Lightning, and peaked at number 29 on the Billboard 200 -- a career high at the time. Master of Puppets has since been certified six times platinum.
The Master of Puppets title track has become one of Metallica's most enduring and popular songs. "A couple of years ago, we did a tour in Europe where we let fans pick the set lists," drummer Lars Ulrich tells Rolling Stone. "And, out of 20 or 30 shows, 'Master of Puppets' was the number-one most requested song at every show. It's crazy."
The 30th anniversary of Master of Puppets also brings along the 30th anniversary of bassist Cliff Burton's death. Burton, who also played on Kill 'Em All and Ride the Lightning, was killed in a bus accident just six months after Master of Puppets was released.
"He reveled in being unique and autonomous," Ulrich says of Burton. "And that's obviously one of the bigger messages of Metallica. There was nobody like that guy."
Along with the title track, Master of Puppets included the songs "Battery," now a staple of Metallica's live show, and the eight-minute instrumental "Orion."
"For me, 'Orion' was Cliff Burton's swan song," guitarist Kirk Hammett tells Rolling Stone. "It was a great piece of music, and he'd written the whole middle section. It kind of gave us a view into what direction he was heading. If he would have stayed with us, I think he would have gone further into [that] direction. Our sound would be different if he was still here."
This fall, Metallica will release Metallica: Back to the Front, a "visual history" of Master of Puppets that includes rare photos and interviews with members of Anthrax and Faith No More, and Burton's father, Ray.
Metallica has released six studio albums since Master of Puppets, the most recent of which being 2008's Death Magnetic. The band is currently working on their 10th album.
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