| In a nutshell, Metallica was the brainchild of James Hetfield and Lars Ulrich. In 1981, after both placing an ad in The Recycler, a local LA paper, seeking out fellow musicians, the two met and decided to form a band. In July 1983, Metallica's first album, Kill 'Em All, was released. The lineup: James Hetfield on vocals and rhythm guitar, Cliff Burton on bass, Kirk Hammett on lead guitar, and Lars Ulrich on drums. Unfortunately, on September 27, 1986, Cliff Burton was tragically killed in bus crash, and Jason Newsted was chosen as his replacement. Fourteen years later in January 2001, Newsted voluntarily left the band and Robert Trujillo stepped in to fill the void. |
