…and Justice for all was Metallica’s fourth album and the first after the demise of Cliff Burton. As a footnote, I still remember the day when I first heard about the accident that took his life. I was listening to the radio, to the only show in Sweden were Hardrock, and Metal was really in focus. Before the show even began, there was a introduction by the host in a very serious voice. Informing that there had been an accident with the Metallica tour bus, just outside of Ljungby Sweden. And that the then 24 year old Cliff Burton hadn’t survived the accident.
I was devastated. This was my absolute favorite band at the time and I don’t think that I was the only one wondering if they were to go on as a band or not. I can only imagine what the other guys in the band must have gone though. It must have been particular hard for Kirk who switched bunks with him prior to the accident.
Cliff Burton is now considered to be one of the best bassists of all time, at least in the Metal Realm. I’ve seen countless videos on YouTube where other bassists have praised his technique and unique approach to the instrument. There’s not doubt in my mind that he paved the way for many other bassists out there. His innovation of what could be done with a bass cannot be overstated!
So, therefore it might sound as a blasphemy when I call …and Justice for All, the first album without the genius Cliff Burton, my favorite album by the band. The bass duties are instead handled but the band new bassist Jason Newsted. He’s style was totally different from Cliffs in every way. To start with, Jason played with a pick, while Cliff used his fingers. The lead bass style is also gone.
…and Justice for All has been heavily criticized over the years since the bass i practically inaudible on it. To that extend that fans have actually remixed it and released a bootleg called ….and Justice for Jason, where the bass is more “normal”. I’m not saying that’s right or wrong, it’s certainly not how the album was received by the world. And, I must say, I don’t really care about if the bass is audible or not.
I was never a bass fan anyway. I’m of course talking about the sound range and not the instrument. I really hate when there’s too much bass in the mix. It’s just annoying and gives me a headache. But it’s not the lack of bass on …and Justice for All, that makes me love this album- It’s the riffs, the multiple time signatures and tempos changes. There are a couple of songs that are almost 10 minutes long and they never sound tired or boring since there’s so much variation in them.
There’s no real fillers on …and Justice for All. I might not be as fond of Harvester of Sorrow as most of the other tracks but it’s certainly no filler. There’s also To Live is ti Die, where Cliff Burton has a writing credit. It’s not the song I would pick first on …and Justice for All. It’s an almost instrumental, with just a few lines on lyrics, which I believe was written by cliff. You can barely hear it though.
For the rest of the songs Jason Newsted has one writing credit, Kirk hammet has a couple and Lars Ulrich and James Hetfield has a finger in everything just as usual. I’ve said it before, but they are the Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley of Metallica. It’s their vision and they word seems final. It must be hard to “just be in the band” without much say in what’s gonna happen in the future.
I love this album and I would consider it to be one of those album I would take with my to a deserted island!
