Metallica is one of the best rock bands of all time with some of the most loyal fans. Their songs touch people to their core, affecting everyone differently. That’s why it’s almost preposterous to even attempt to rank their songs. For every OG who swears by the eighties thrash material, there are just as many fans that swear by Reload or St. Anger. Here is our attempt at listing ten of the top Metallica songs.
10. “Welcome Home Sanitarium” – Master of Puppets
This song showcased the band’s softer side as their second ballad after Fade to Black. Based on the novel One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, the six and a half minute track is one of their best. The song also remains a staple at live shows and is easily considered one of the top Metallica songs ever.
9. “Battery” – Master of Puppets
Though it’s the opening track for Master of Puppets, this thrash metal classic is sometimes played near the end of their sets. The song begins with a clean acoustic guitar introduction before drums and bass come in, cutting to very fast thrash metal. The song has been covered by everyone from Deftones to Sum41.
8. “Seek and Destroy”- Kill ‘Em All
As the first song the band ever recorded in a studio, it hold a special place in the heart of many Metallica fans. It’s a popular live track that is often extended at live shows. The song also contains several guitar solos, highlighting the band’s technical expertise.
7. “Enter Sandman” – Metallica
Off their self-titled album (also called the Black Album), this is the song that opened the band up to a larger audience. With its iconic riff and radio-friendly sound, it helped result in over 30 million copies of the album being sold.
6. “Nothing Else Matters” – Metallica
This song was the third single from their self-titled album, Metallica. As one of Metallica’s best known songs, the power ballad has become a staple in live performances. Hetfield wrote the song for himself, and didn’t intend for it to ever be released to the public. I think it’s safe to say we are all happy it was. Even Elton John has said that it’s one of the best songs ever written.
5. “Creeping Death” – Riding the Lightning
This was the only official single off of Ride the Lightning. Written from the perspective of the Angel of Death, “Creeping Death” describes the tenth plague of Egypt. Kirk Hammett wrote the iconic guitar riff for the bridge section when he was just 16 years old.
4. “For Whom the Bell Tolls”- Ride the Lightning
Fun fact: this track is inspired by a Hemingway novel! Crazy right? The song itself starts with a highly distorted bass riff from Burton. The track then quickly pivots into a head banging groove. The song is also the fifth most performed song by the band. To deserves to be on the list of top Metallica songs.
3. “One” – …And Justice for All
This song was the band’s first top 40 hit on Billboard’s Top 100. The song also features one of Kirk Hammett’s most memorable guitar solos. The song portrays a WWI soldier who is severely wounded and unable to speak or move—begging God to take his life. Interestingly, “One” was the first Metallica song for which a music video was created.
2. “Fade to Black” – Ride the Lightning
The single off of Ride the Lightning, is the first power ballad from the band. It offers the best of Metallica, having the 15th best guitar solo ever as rated by Guitar World readers. The song covers the topic of suicide and Hetfield as admitted to being in a depressed mood when he wrote it. In a 1991 interview with Guitar World, he told the publication “I was pretty depressed at the time because our gear had just been stolen, and we had been thrown out of our manager’s house.” Since its release, “Fade to Black” has been a fixture in Metallica’s live performances.
1. “Master of Puppets” – Master of Puppets
This is the album’s only single and title track. It’s also the song that put them on the map for thrash metal. Hetfield has described the meaning of the song as being about the control drugs can have on a person. The drugs become your master and control you with puppet strings. The song has been featured in pop culture many times including the film Old School and the fourth season of Stranger Things.
