Difficulty: Easy – Intermediate
Composer – Hetfield, Hammett, Ulrich
Where to find this song – Metallica ( Black Album ) track #1
Release Date – August 1991
The Band:
James Hetfield – vocals, guitar
Kirk Hammett – guitar
Lars Ulrich – drums
Robert Trujillo – bass ( former position occupied by Jason Newstead )
The Bio:
Metallica was easily the best, most influential heavy metal band of the ’80s, responsible for bringing the ravaged music back to Earth. Instead of playing the usual rock star games of metal stars of the early ’80s, the band looked and talked like they were from the street. Metallica expanded the limits of thrash, using speed and volume not for their own sake, but to enhance their intricately structured compositions. The release of 1983’s “Kill Em All” marked the beginning of the legitimization of heavy metal’s underground scene.
Intro
Below are three excellent riffs from the intro. Be sure to see the new Metallica documentary “Some Kind Of Monster” out now on DVD. Thumbs up!
Riff 1
Begin the first part by placing your 3rd finger on the seventh fret on the “A” string. Place your 1st finger on the fifth fret on the “D” string. You will use your 2nd finger for the sixth fret on the “low E” string, and your 1st finger to play the fifth fret on the same string.
Riff 2
For the second guitar part, begin by using your 2nd finger to slide on the seventh fret on the “A” string. Then, use your 1st finger to play the sixth fret on the “low E” string. Remembering all the open notes on the “low E” string, continue to the first and third frets on the “low E” string and the “A” string to play the power chord at the end of the measure. The entire measure repeats itself here as well.
Riff 3
Up until the end of the third measure, all is repeating here also. Begin the first measure of this part by using your 1st finger to slide from the second fret on the “A” string to the seventh fret on the same string. Then, use your 2nd finger to play the sixth fret on the “low E” string. Last, use your 1st finger to play the fifth fret on the same string. Repeat until near the end of the third measure.
Near the end of the third measure, notice that you will be playing a few power chords here. You will need to begin by using your 1st and 3rd fingers to play the third and fifth frets on the “low E” string and the “A” string. Next, just remember the open note and move those same fingers to the second and fourth frets on the same strings. Repeat that again, and then end the measure by using your 1st finger, back to its original position, on the second fret of the “A” string. THAT IS IT!!! Pretty easy huh?
