Metallica: The Stories Behind the Biggest Songs

by Chris Ingham

Metallica formed in 1981 in Los Angeles, California, their original line-up consisted of Ulrich, rhythm guitarist and vocalist James Hetfield, lead guitarist Dave Mustaine, and bassist Ron McGovney. Mustaine and McGovney subsequently left and were replaced by Kirk Hammett and Cliff Burton.

Genres: Music, Nonfiction, Rock N Roll, Biography

192 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2003

Reviews

[Stephen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Detailed book looking at the stories behind the songs and music of Metallica. Felt this book was okay

[Jon · Rating 2 out of 5]

Chris Ingham seems enthusiastic about Metallica, and heavy metal in general. So enthusiastic that he has peppered this book with so many exclamation points that I imagine an audiobook of this work would feature Ingham screaming the whole time, with chopping guitar chords as added emphasis in case we missed THE POINT he wanted to make. Harping on his hard rock punctuation and average writing might seem like a cheap shot - this is essentially a really large Fanzine after all - but it still bugged me. I do think even fan books, equipped with pictures upon pictures, can and should still feature good writing and substantial content. In the case of this Metallica book, it struggles on both counts.

Now, before all the haters start ripping into me, lemme say that I thought the first half of this book was quite good. The material was substantial enough that I could overlook the writing. (Most things have limitations and we can be charitable enough readers to work through those weaknesses and focus on the quality within the work.) The background info on the bands that influenced Metallica (mainly Lars) was interesting and good at showing where the band was coming from. The section on the Kill 'em All album was nice, because Ingham seemed to acknowledge the ridiculousness in much of the album's lyric, while still showing an affection for its youthful, bratty, metalhead fervor. This seems really nice to me. The lyrics on Metallica's first album are silly thrash fodder that are often simply secondary to the music, which is blazing along at hyperspeed. It's teenager doing what they do sometimes, and there's something kind of amusing and cool to some of that high school emotional intensity - my own high school creative writing classes and theater experiences remind me how great a whole lotta angst can sometimes be.

The book stays interesting through the Ride the Lightning and Master of Puppets albums. Ingham does a decent job showing James' considerably improved lyrics and why these two albums really are important, excellent metal albums. But what's blaringly lacking is discussion of, in my mind (and I'm not alone on this one), Metallica's best instrumental, "Orion". He gives it about two sentences, then moves on, whereas the other instrumentals receive much deserved attention.

He also spends no small amount of praise on Cliff Burton, who seems to have reached mythic status in the Metallica/heavy metal universe. Sure, Burton was great, and his influence on Metallica is without question huge, but the band certainly didn't crumble into a group of benign saps after his death. Ingham tries to support Jason Newstead and acknowledge that filling Burton's spot would be impossible for anyone. Except Ingham seems to still want Newstead to do just that; he acknowledges how Newstead was never fully included and on the same level with Hetfield, Ulrich and Hammett, and probably got a real raw deal (his few writing creds as one example). But Ingham never gives Newstead his due either. He glosses over his contributions as if to say, "yeah, yeah, Jason helped too, sometimes."

Fast-forwarding to where my biggest problem with this book is: the Load and Reload albums. These two discs have been the target of no small amount of controversy among "fans", be they "die-hards" or "posers". The ranting about Metallica selling out and becoming an alt-metal or pop-metal band has been huge. As to selling out, it seems a dumb argument. Metallica has been filling arenas almost their whole career. They've been the most popular metal band for a really long time. Have they really been outside the mainstream? Tons of people claiming not to be metalheads still like Metallica, and that's before the 90s. Ingham hardly tackles these issues, and instead, seems to avoid the controversy by writing as little as possible either in support of or in opposition to Load and Reload. He just kind of glosses over it with a shrug and some limp comments about how some fans felt about those albums. If all he's gonna do is say what a couple of fans said, what the crap is he writing a book for? He acknowledges (correctly) that "Where the Wild Things Are" contains some of Hetfield's best lyrics, but doesn't delve into it at all, like he's scared of being pounced on by some "die-hard" fan who is still screaming that Kill 'em All is the only Metallica album worth anything. Pretty spineless of Ingham, if you ask me.

Basically, Ingham praises what is safe to praise, and says nothing about the things where opinions are mixed. He can knock on the production of ...And Justice For All because everyone has already bagged on that. He can praise "Enter Sandman" and "The Unforgiven" because there's enough support behind those songs to smoother the dissenters. He can praise "Until it Sleeps" because it was also a hit; his comment that it's remarkable that such an angry song as "Until it Sleeps" was such a hit seems to forget about songs like Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit", Nine Inch Nails' "Closer", and (cringe) Limp Bizkit's butthole anthem "Break Stuff" that all received substantial radio play and all feature some pretty pissed off lyrics. But Ingham can't defend songs like "The House Jack Built" or "Where the Wild Things Are" because too many people would get upset at him. He's pandering to the blandest of Metallica fan, and it's obnoxious.

Perhaps I'm getting carried away and not being fair. Maybe the book deserves three stars. The first half certainly does, but the second half drops off so hard that I just got upset. But I guess I can hardly put all the blame on Ingham, afterall, even Metallica seems a touch wishy-washy when talking about Load and Reload. And maybe that's the biggest problem with those albums. Nobody was ever fully committed to what was happening there and so the albums stand no chance. That same lack of commitment exists in this book.

[Kathy Wallen · Rating 2 out of 5]

April 7, 2026

Before I say anything else, you should know a few things about me that shape the opinions I have. I'm a girl, I'm still in high school, and I didn't get into Metallica until August of 2025. And I got into Metallica backwards. I heard Load, Reload, and the black album first, and it took me a while to warm up to their first four albums (AJFA is my least favorite out of that bunch). The very first Metallica song that I heard all the way through was The House Jack Built, which is not only my favorite song off Load (which is also my favorite album) but also my very favorite song of all time. So considering all of this, can you understand why I got a little bit miffed when I read this?

"The House Jack Built" is cited by many fans as the first signs of a crack in the album, one of the weakest songs that Metallica has recorded. Many hardcore thrash fans regarded the entire album as a kind of betrayal, referring to the band snidely as "Alternica," implying that the had "song out" for a more lucrative or "respectable" alt. rock crowd.

Uh... Excuse me? How is "Jack" a "crack in the album, one of the WEAKEST songs that Metallica has recorded"? HOW? The song is nearly seven minutes long, yet it's structured so well that you don't even feel the passage of time. The music is perfect. The singing is perfect. The lyrics are perfect. If you have ANYTHING bad to say about "Jack," it's probably about the talkbox solo. Sure, I'm not a huge fan of it either, but it's honestly not that long and is not that big of a deal.

Am I biased? I sure am. Do I care? I sure don't. Calling "Jack" one of the weakest songs that Metallica had recorded is a wildly inaccurate statement to make, especially considering that "Poor Twisted Me" is on the same freaking album. I don't think that "Poor Twisted Me" is a bad song, but it's mid. It's not the greatest. How does that song earn praise from Mr. Ingham ("one of the best hard rockers on Load") but not "Jack"?

Oh, and get a load (no pun intended) of what Mr. Ingham had to say about "Thorn Within":

Another slice of old-school pitch-black Metallica heaviness, as though to prove that they were still capable of turning them out. Had the entire album been made up of songs like this, the hardcore fans would have been delighted.

I absolutely love "Thorn Within," and the praise is deserved. But to praise this song and say that fans would have been happy if the entire album were made up of songs like this, when "Jack" sounds like "Thorn Within" and calling "Jack" one of the weakest songs that Metallica had recorded on the album, is just goofy.

One more thing. "Low Man's Lyric" is a FANTASTIC song and I will die on that hill. How Mr. Ingham could call the lyrics "adolescent" is beyond me.

With my personal grievances out of the way, I guess I should talk a little more about the book itself. I was looking forward to learning the stories behind the songs. I liked the first half-ish of the book when Mr. Ingham was covering Metallica's beginnings and their first three albums; I found that to be enjoyable to read. The book kinda went downhill at the halfway point, probably because I'm bitter that Mr. Ingham wasn't giving Load and Reload the full respect that they deserve. Or maybe it was because at that point, I realized that Mr. Ingham was inserting a lot of his own opinions and interpretations into the book instead of letting Metallica's members, the actual songwriters, speak for themselves.

Read the intro, for example, to my favorite song off the black album, "Holier Than Thou":

Certainly the fastest and most traditional Metallica-sounding track on the album, ‘Holier Than Thou’, perhaps rarely for a James lyric, also has its roots in a very real-life scenario. While every band will freely admit that the few precious hours they spend onstage are better than any drug in the world, the more level-headed bands will also readily admit that the touring cycle contains just as many boring oft-repeated regimes as it does orgasmic highs. For many artists, coming off stage and into the dressing room on such a high is one of the hardest parts of the job, because once you're off stage and out of the adulation, how do you maintain it?
Partying after the show is as much a part of the band experience as the performance. Most bands accept that creating a successful act the size of Metallica is a team effort involving various different businesses, from record companies to promoters and agents, local radio and press. All of these different ‘teams’ need to be thanked, spoken to and groomed by the band or their organization to keep everyone sweet. For the people in the bands it's often where the real bad rock star attitude comes from, as it's easy to believe 100 strangers each telling you that you were “so wonderful tonight” when in fact you know that you missed several notes, that the onstage sound was a mess, and your voice was screwed from the second song in.

What the fudge does any of that have to do with the actual song? It isn't about partying and drugs; it's about judgement. In case you missed it: "JUDGE NOT, LEST YE BE JUDGED YOURSELF! HOLIER THAN THOU! YOU ARE!" (And also: "Before you judge me, take a look at you. Can't you find something better to do?") I can't find a single thing that makes "Holier Than Thou" about partying and drugs, yet that's what the entire "Holier Than Thou" segment in this book is about. Make it make sense!

There were a few other goofy examples in this book, but I can't think of them off the top of my head. I don't have much to say on Mr. Ingham's reviews of St. Anger and Death Magnetic, as I only listen to one song from the former ("Shoot Me Again") and none from the latter, so who knows how accurate they are. But now that I think about it, that's kinda what this book is. It feels like a review of all the songs through his personal lens instead of objectively exploring the story behind each song. There's so much needlessly flowery language and fluffy passages in this book that don't need to be there at all, like he's trying to be grand and important, but it just falls flat and instead comes across as self-righteous (a bit "holier than thou," perhaps). Instead of explaining where the songs came from—you know, like the title implies—Mr. Ingham kinda just analyzes all the songs and interprets them his own way. Gee, if that's what I wanted to read, I'd write my own book.

I don't regret reading it, but if you're looking for an unbiased exploration of Metallica's songs, then this isn't it.

[stupidus · Rating 2 out of 5]

Reads like a fanzine. Some info and a lot of assumptions and/or half-assed song interpretations. Here's an idea: why don't you actually do your job and just ask Hetfield what he wanted to say and let the readers decide for themselves...

[Peter Marendeak · Rating 1 out of 5]

Számomra csalódás volt a könyv. Nem annyira életrajzi kötet, mint inkább retrospektív albumelemzések sorozata. Csepegtet ugyan háttérinfomrációkat, de ez a kisebbik része a kiadványnak. Sajnos a tartalom messze nem ér fel a külsőhöz. Az pedig a hazai kiadó figyelmetlensége, hogy ennyi hiba maradt benne.

[Manon Kroon · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was a very interesting read

[James · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hell yeah

[Mika Auramo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Chris Inghamin Metallica-kirja on mielenkiintoista luettavaa: ensin esitetään bändin esikuvia ja muita vaikuttajia, sitten yhtyeen muotoutuminen ja alkuvaikeudet. Pääosassa ovat yhdeksän levyä, ja jokaisen kappaleen sanoituksia on taustoitettu ja keskeisimpiä säkeitä ja viittauksia tekstin ulkopuolelle on valotettu.

Kirja tarjoaa vaihtoehtoisia tulkintoja ja uutta näkökulmaa biisien ystäville. Nothing else matters -hittiä verrataan osuvasti muiden aikalaisten pliisuihin viisuihin. mm. Gunnareiden November rain -tekeleisiin ja vastaaviin. Sandman on Gaimanin sarjakuvista, Unforgiven saa uusia ulottuvuuksia Death Magnetic -levyllä jne.

Lemmyt, Antraxit, Venomit ja heavypunk-vaikutteet tulevat hyvin esille, mutta Burtonin jälkeen tullutta Jason Newsteadia lyödään turhan lujaa. Robert Trujullon esittely unohtuu kokonaan.

Kuvitus on hyvää ja virittää hyvin tunnelmaan, mutta tekstin lukeminen ei onnistu kunnolla kuin lukulaseilla: fontti on pienempää kuin vakuutussopimuksissa. Sinkkubiiseistä annetaan perustiedot sekä listasijoitukset.

[denudatio_pulpae · Rating 3 out of 5]

Z tą historią to może się już tak nie zapędzajmy, w książce znajdziecie bardziej zbiór ciekawostek na temat poszczególnych utworów plus trochę wzmianek na temat wpływów działających na Metallikę, kilka zdań na temat samych płyt i dużo zdjęć. Ingham postarał się nawet, żeby było momentami zabawnie.

Najbardziej rozbawiły mnie niektóre komentarze do chyba najbardziej kontrowersyjnych Load/Reload, na przykład Chris Ingham pisze:
"Thorn Within - Kolejny kawałek najczarniejszej, ciężkiej Metalliki starej szkoły, napisany jakby po to, by udowodnić, że zespół wciąż potrafi tak grać. Gdyby cały album brzmiał tak, jak ta piosenka, trashowcy wpadliby w uniesienie".

Co na to trashowiec Joel McIver:
"Thorn Within" zaczyna się nudno, przechodzi w potwornie bezbarwny riff oparty na bezsensownym zlepku dźwięków i roztapia się w morzu szarości".

Panowie, zdecydujcie się.
6/10

[Jason Gillespie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This isn't even something that needs to be said. I'm not only a huge Metallica fan, but I've been utterly fascinated by the lyrical writing of James Hetfield since first listening to 'The Four Horseman '. To be able to delve a bit deeper into the meaning and magic behind some of metal's most iconic songs was fantastic. The growth as a writer that James experienced, the influence of Cliff Burton, the inspiration in both music and lyrics from a varied and deep series of sources. It all combined to an excellent reading of musical creativity. Enjoyed this book a lot. Will continue to read for years to come.

[Ami Morrison · Rating 4 out of 5]

Stories behind every song. It was a pretty interesting to read. Although, most of the songs were analyzing and best guesses from the author, not official word from MetallicA. A few of the songs had snips of interviews from the past that talked about how the songs were created or the meaning behind them, but most of the info came from the author translating what he thought the songs meant. Still very interesting to read and a must for any MetallicA fan. :)

[Sameer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Its METALLICA. Need I say anything more?

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

not too bad.

[Marsmannix · Rating 4 out of 5]

i was impressed by the outstanding discography analysis by the author. otoh, it would have to be pretty dreadful for me NOT to like a book about Metallica. \m/

[Kenny Bird · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the second time I have read this. I did enjoy it but some information is not correct as they have used unreliable sources such as Wikipedia.

[Krzysztof · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lots of interesting information about the interpretations of their songs