To Live Is To Die: The Life and Death of Metallica's Cliff Burton

by Joel McIver

Metallica, the seventh-biggest recording act in American history, are consummate musicians--but it wasn't always that way. A significant proportion of their playing expertise was acquired from a pivotal three-year period in their history--1983 to 1986--during which their music, a potent variant of thrash metal, evolved from garage level to sophisticated, progressive heights thanks to the teachings of their bass player, Cliff Burton. The San Francisco-raised Burton, born in 1962, pushed the band to new musical levels with his musical training, songwriting ability and phenomenal bass guitar skills. Across three albums--Kill 'Em All (1983), Ride The Lightning (1985) and Metallica's undisputed masterpiece, Master Of Puppets (1986)--Burton's awe-inspiring playing, derived from a unique blend of classical and punk approaches, received worldwide recognition from fans and bass players alike. He was the first heavy metal bassist since Black Sabbath's Geezer Butler to regard the bass as a lead instrument, delivering intricate live solos based on classical fugues and even laying down a solo track on Metallica's debut album. Cliff's life was short but influential; his death was sudden and shocking. At the age of just 24, he was killed when Metallica's tourbus overturned on a remote Swedish mountain road in the early hours of September 27, 1986 for reasons which have still not been ascertained: he was crushed to death after being thrown from his bunk through a window. The driver, who has never been identified, told the rest of the band that the bus had hit black ice, leading to the accident: singer James Hetfield refused to believe him and has often spoken publicly about his doubts. With Cliff's death, Metallica's most critically acclaimed period of activity ended. They went on to record huge-selling albums, but by their own admission never pushed the creative envelope as radically as they had done in the first four years of their career.

Genres: Music, Biography, Nonfiction, Memoir, History, Biography Memoir, Pop Culture

272 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2009

Reviews

[Bruno Croci · Rating 4 out of 5]

Such a great character. If you're a Metallica fan, this is mandatory for you. The book reads really quick and nice, and this will make you like Cliff and Metallica even more.

[paper0r0ss0 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Vita, opere e morte del grande Cliff Burton, bassista dei Metallica degli anni d'oro. Gli esordi, l'evoluzione, il successo di una delle piu' grandi band rock attraverso il percorso umano di un ragazzo dalle enormi doti musicali e tecniche. Il risultato complessivo del libro e' controverso, come forse tutte le opere del genere, appesantite da tratti noiosi e ripetitivi. Al netto delle imperfezioni, emerge comunque lo spirito di un ventenne geniale e determinato che in tre o quattro anni e' riuscito a marcare un'epoca e uno stile musicale.

[Eric · Rating 1 out of 5]

While it's great that McIver got to interview people very close to Cliff Burton (ie, his parents, Trauma band members, girlfriend), this book is a padded, repetitive, and ultimately, wasted opportunity. Yes, Cliff was a major influence on Metallica, a great guy, a fantastic bassist, and an open-minded music fan, but does the reader need to be constantly reminded of this every few pages? And worse, McIver sways between being a historian and a very vocal music critic, feeling the urge to over-emphasize what he sees as the band's pluses and minuses. Thanks, but I have my own opinions about Metallica, and I don't need someone else's to be rammed down my throat.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just finished To Live Is to Die, and as one of the few books I'll be fortunate to finish all summer, I must say it proved quite entertaining. Picked it up at Twist & Shout on a whim, and didn't expect it to be nearly as engrossing as it was. Metallica fans will already be well-acquainted with the tragic ending (on a lonely stretch of highway in Sweden, in August 1986), but for those who want a glimpse into one of the man who gave the band its defining charisma during their heyday, definitely worth checking out.

In his cruelly short life, Cliff Burton rewrote the book on what the bass guitar could be in a rock band, so it's fitting that a book has been written about him. The brightest parts of this book are where Cliff's multi-faceted personality, as a musician, a band member, and a person, come out. Cliff is described, by many who knew him best, as one-of-a-kind, yet wholly down to earth and easy to rlate: in the best parts of the book, it's not difficult to imagine sitting in the same room with him, jamming at rehearsals, partying back stage, or talking about H.P. Lovecraft in his parents' San Francisco home.

Author Joel McIver has published several renowned books about the history and classification of heavy metal, and this one was clearly a labor of love. Exhaustively researched, To Live Is to Die offers excellent interviews from Cliff's bandmates, family members, his girlfriend Corrine, and countless other figures in the legendary bassist's life. These interviews offer a very candid presentation of an exuberant personality, and an innovative playing style that made Cliff Burton's name synonymous with 'bass guitar genius'.

McIver's best writing emerges when he lets Cliff's loved ones do the talking for him. While the interviews are great, and make up the most memorable content of the book, McIver often veers into subjective, unwarranted summaries of Cliff's life or philosophy. This is especially evident in the book's final chapter, Cliff's Legacy, in which the author plays a heavy hand speculating what Cliff would have contributed to the band had he lived to see middle age. These sort of personal predictions cut away at the book, but are a reasonably subtle blemish on an otherwise fine biography.

What McIver sacrifices in journalistic integrity, he certainly makes up for in deep analysis of Burton's playing and musical contributions to Metallica. Each chapter is broken up by a series of months, or studio albums, and offers an appreciable attention to detail. The chapters that cover the band's first three LPs each feature the kind of close-up examination of Cliff's contributions to Metallica's sound. These passages are written with musically-adept readers in mind, but are simple enough for more casual fans to digest as well. Bass players in particular will appreciate the nitty-gritty details that McIver picks out of Burton's playing style, narrowing in on interesting fills and licks that were his trademark. It gave me a new appreciation not only for Cliff's playing, but record production, Metallica's arrangements, and bass guitar in general! This coming from an avowed metalhead and music lover. Call the book an eye-opener.

This book may be the epitome of a 'niche read', as it will likely appeal first to die-hard metalheads, with more open-minded music lovers finding something to appreciate (it would be a great gift for the Metallica maniac in your life). It's over 250 page of sheer, adolescent headbanger worship, with little room for much else. With that being said, To Live Is to Die is remarkably adept at painting a picture of a unique and exciting time in one band's career, and is no slouch at shedding some light to one of the most fascinating personalities that heavy metal has ever produced.

[Adam Cormier · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great book to understand the live & times of Cliff Burton and is impact on Metallica. As a Metallica fan, I knew some of the details behind his death but didn't fully understand the freakish nature of the accident and how it affected those left behind.

To truly have a good understanding of Metallica, I would recommend this book and 'Enter Night' by M. Wall. To Live is to Die focuses chiefly on only Cliff's living years, legacy and his impact on the first 3 records and influence on his bandmates. Enter Night, will fill in the rest.

Cliff certainly played a big part in influencing the music skill set of his bandmates. His unique style and impact on the musical direction overall also explain why the band razzed Jason Newsted so much, as the shoes were impossible for him to fill.

I had to order this one off Amazon, as I couldn't find it locally. It was well worth the effort, and I would highly recommend to other fans of Metallica to check out this book. Also check McIver's other list of writings, it's a pretty extensive list.

[Daniel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm a huge Metallica fan, especially old Metallica, but lately I've been disappointed by most rock biographies that wallow in sleeze and debauchery (I'm looking at you, Motley Crue's "the Dirt") or after-the-fact bios that try to support a thesis(I'm looking at you, "Jim Morrison: Life, Death, Legend" by Stephen Davis.) But as a fan of both Metallica and the legendary bass playing of Cliff Burton, I decided to give this one a shot.
This was a fascinating read. While Burton died at the tragically young age of 24, he left behind a volume of innovative bass playing that still resonates in the rock and metal scenes today. While the story doesn't delve too deeply into Burton's life (most of his friends described him as a private person who generally didn't indulge in the wild behavior that originally earned his band the nickname 'Alcoholica'.) it did reveal many things that I didn't know - Such as his reading habits. I remember the first thing that attracted me to the then-new Master of Puppets album in 1986 was the track "The Thing That Should Not Be " which paraphrases HP Lovecraft, whom I was literally reading at the time. There was also the passage where replacement (and current) guitarist Kirk Hammett and Burton initially bond over their mutual love of Dungeons and Dragons books.
The other thing that attracted me was the analysis of Burton's bass playing. Most rock bios tend to stay away from the musicianship side of the rock life style. This book analyses Burton's style of playing from his bands Trauma and Metallica, and how he brought a level of musical knowledge to the band, constantly raising the bar for them and transforming what would have been a simple garage band into stadium rock gods. As a former bass player myself, I found these chapters engrossing and fascinating. Nothing has made me want to pick up my bass again more as these chapters.
Even the last few chapters that analyze Metallica's post-Cliff years, his impact and influence on Metallica through 'And Justice For All' and the 'Black' Album, and his ongoing legacy on Metallica and the metal scene in general. From other reviews, I was prepared to hate this section but I was facinated as they viewed Metallica's future through what we knew of Cliff. Would the more mellow 'Black' Album have happened? Most likely. Would he have cut his hair and changed to a more commercial hard rock? Probably not. But it added an additional layer to an already fascinating read.
So for metal fans, bass players and other Metallica fans, definitely check this out. It is well worth it.

[J.ames · Rating 3 out of 5]

After reading the Mustaine bio, Enter Night about Metallica and this book, there are some common themes: WWCD- What Would Cliff Do? After Master of Puppets, Black Album, Load, etc...., we don't know, Metallica doesn't know, Dave Mustaine doesn't know. NO ONE KNOWS. Leave it alone, move on, focus and celebrate Cliff for what he brought to Metallica and music overall. One single truth is evident - without Cliff coming to Metallica, there is no Ride the Lightning or Master of Puppets in the form we all listen to today. I do agree with the author that Cliff not only changed Metallica to develop into the mammoth they would become, but also heavy music overall.

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

To Live Is To Die is not your typical biography and it's jarring sometimes to read because I've read enough of these to know the formula. The person we're reading about finds fame, life spirals out of control, and then after hitting bottom they rise from the ashes with a renewed purpose and sense of self. McIver's book is a tribute to a man and his legacy that is still felt to this day. While Cliff was only with us a short time his passing still affects us because he was so damn good, and his influence is still being felt by new generations of musicians.

It's hard to believe that we only had Cliff for three short years, but those years were pure magic. This was a man who was loved by everyone who knew him, and the book is a celebration of a man who loved music and never allowed it to go to his head. In a biography you expect moments of excess but Cliff's story isn't like anyone else's because he never felt like a rock star even when the band began to gain attention. Cliff was just Cliff, a man everyone loved and respected. As I read this, I began to see just how important he was not just as a musician, but as a person.

For fans of Metallica who loved those early albums this is a tribute to a man who helped change the landscape of metal. You get a true sense of who he was, what he was like, but the only real tragedy is that he was taken away from us too soon. There was great deal of sadness that I can't help but feel when I listen to Master Of Puppets because it would be the last time Cliff would ever appear on a Metallica album. Who knows what he would have achieved if he had lived. The first three Metallica albums were a landmark moment for metal and introduced us to a genius called Cliff Burton.

[denudatio_pulpae · Rating 2 out of 5]

Cliff Burton zginął przedwcześnie, z tym wszyscy się zgadzamy. Chłopak miał talent, przynajmniej tak twierdzą ludzie, którzy znają się na muzyce. Oba te składniki zaowocowały u części fanów pewnym rodzajem kultu po zmarłym basiście. Joel McIver zadaje nawet pytanie:
"Którą Metallicę wolicie - z Cliffem czy bez Cliffa?"

Należę raczej do młodszej grupy fanów Metalliki. Gdy 27 września 1986 roku w Szwecji doszło do tragicznego w skutkach wypadku, prawdopodobnie nawet nie było mnie jeszcze w planach. Może dlatego nigdy do końca nie zrozumiem tego fenomenu.

Nie twierdzę, że ta biografia jest zbędna. Jeżeli nie macie nic przeciwko temu, żeby przeczytać ponownie historię Metalliki napisaną przez McIvera z kilkoma nowymi ciekawostkami na temat Cliffa - czytajcie. Mnie osobiście trochę razi to uwielbienie, którym ta książka ocieka, a najbardziej irytuje to bezsensowne pytanie: co by było z Metalliką gdyby żył Cliff. Jak ktoś lubi sobie pozajmować myśli bezproduktywnym analizowaniem rzeczy, których nie można w żaden sposób sprawdzić - bawcie się dobrze. Akurat Joel McIver z dużą pewnością siebie stwierdza, co w różnych sytuacjach zrobiłby Cliff.

Szkoda, że nikt nie podjął alternatywnej wizji - wiecie, coś w stylu: Cliff odchodzi do Megadeth i razem nagrywają balladę o tym jak Mustaine'a wyjebali z Metalliki.
5/10

[Pablo Cohelo · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book about Cliff Burton is a story of his impact on Metallica and people all around him during mostly 1983 and 1986, when in September 27th he died in bus accident in Sweden, while touring with Metallica's third masterpiece album - Master of Puppets.

+ untold story of great musician
+ interviews and comments of Mettalica's bandmembers and other famous musicians
+ a piece of history of greatest metal band of all time

- author contradicts himself many times in the book
- author glorifes Cliff Burton all the time (no criticism or different opinion)
- author repeats himself many times

[Cian Aherne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such an awesome character, loved the Metallica story as much as Cliff’s. The kind of book that makes you want to continuously listen back through the Metallica catalogue and pinpoint the different points of mutation for the band’s music. Little repetitive at times but it’s an homage to Cliff so I can see why The adulation was repeated plenty.

[Damian · Rating 3 out of 5]

Qué grande fue Cliff y qué pronto se fue. Leyenda absoluta.

[Eriki · Rating 5 out of 5]

My personal bible. Everyone should learn something from Cliff as a person

[Jon-Erik · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a great document about one of my childhood heroes and someone I relate a lot to, even if I'm no musician. I read it in a day. I loved the in-depth explanations of the music.

Just one quibble: McIver concludes that Burton would have been down with the black album on the basis of a few quotes about the future of the band but doesn't bother with much of a counterpoint. Kirk Hammett has a quote about how can you say some of the songs on it aren't "heavy?"

That was never the problem. The problem was they went mainstream. The same kids that picked on us for listening to metal were buying tickets to the show after this. Like its cousin hardcore, thrash was a bit of a cult with its rituals, beliefs, and shibboleths.

You paid a social cost to be a member, which was fine because you usually were a member because of your social status. We traded tapes—really, really horrible copies—because it wasn't on the radio and went to shows in pool halls because the scene wasn't about stadiums.

Maybe the author being British makes this all opaque to him. Just like how he gratingly refers to San Francisco as "Fr*sco." (OK, two quibbles.) But anyway, it had less to do with the heaviness of it—Fade To Black wasn't that heavy, Escape wasn't that heavy—and more to do with it being for outsiders.

And that is why I agree with a Kirk Hammett quote where he says they paved the way for grunge. Not for the reason he thinks. But because those of us a bit on the younger side were looking for something that felt more like that again. It wasn't just Seattle bands or metal bands or punk bands. I think a lot of Sublime, for example—a band as eclectic as Cliff Burton's tastes—that I saw once in a strip mall in Hesperia. And even though it was mostly what we no refer to as comic universe stuff, there was something punk about west coast gangster rap too, all of the obligatory SoCal stuff from back then.

As Chuck Klostermann notes in his book about the 90s, the worst thing you could do was sell out. McIver makes that case that Burton felt the same way. It's really, really hard not to feel like the Black Album was a sell out, engineered as McIver repeats, to play on the radio and with several music videos (where before they had a grand total of one: One).

Even if we disagree about the Black Album, there really was nothing interesting to come out of the band after that. Either way, Burton made Metallica and they were never the same after him.

[stupidus · Rating 3 out of 5]

Make no mistake this book will further mythologize Mr. Burton.

Like an inane fan McIver will offer his look on what Metallica would have become if Burton would have survived which is totally uncalled for, not to mention preposterous.

In essence he argues that Metallica would have turned out pretty much the same after Puppets - if not even more "mellow" - because A) Burton had a more versatile taste in music (as opposed to his band mates), B) he had had professional musical training, and because C) Burton was actually sometimes caught saying something - anything - to the press about this or that issue (something he usually avoided for some reason or the other).

Right. Sounds like a fanboy to me.

Yes, Burton took his music seriously. Yes, he even - OMG! - actually studied music. Yes, he listened to more than just NWOBHM. He dug classical music, old school rockers (Lynyrd Skynyrd, ZZ Top, Ted Nugent, etc.), and even early R.E.M.

The reader has to assume that James, Lars and Kirk merely listened to metal music because McIver is too indifferent to actually ask them to verify this. I for one do not think that assessment to be entirely or at all valid. But this is how mythologies are of course built.

I feel strongly that latter days chroniclers like nothing better than to portray Cliff as larger than life figure even when most people who actually knew him and spend time with him would describe the man as being very much fun loving down-to-earth kinda guy who didn't take himself seriously at all, who just liked to play some loud music, smoke pot, drop some acid and drink beer with his buddies - and of course read his books and romance the ladies.

He was essentially a hippy who was more or less into "creepy" or just weird stuff, death, horror, zombies, mythologies etc. - just like millions of teenaged guys the world over before and after him.

I'd like to draw parallels with Cliff and Dave Mustaine. They were both self-assertive guys if not adamant and/or borderline obsessive, smarter than average, "older" than their age would imply, who both drew inspiration from variety of musical genres and last but not least who were both motivated if not down-right driven to succeed in life.

Cliff surely in part out of respect for his supportive family and for his deceased older brother in particular, and Dave because he was dealt crappy cards in life from the get go. Mustaine had and probably will always have a life-long trauma that requires him to constantly prove that he is worth something, too, that he can become someone "important", as well.

Dave found family in Metallica - a band he essentially turned from just a daydream into a reality - until he had nothing again - except huge load of bitterness on his shoulders.

The other guys in Metallica knowingly decided Mustaine's fate in the band days - if not weeks - before in full secrecy without giving him a proper chance to even try and mend his ways. What's even worse is that they waited until the very last minute to sack him before his replacement would arrive in town. If that's not a betrayal of epic proportions, I don't know what is. Mustaine felt betrayed by the very same people he called his friends and whom he loved. I would have felt exactly the same had I been in his shoes.

This is the kind of a shame that James and Lars will eventually take to their graves I assume.

I think the only real difference between Cliff and Dave would arise from their outer personalities. Dave was always more extroverted kinda guy - or who probably just figured that by adopting this so-called fuck-off/Mr. Tough Guy attitude, people would more likely leave him be.

I believe that we all develop one or more defense/coping mechanisms in order to not feel as hurt and/or to not be an easy target for others to begin with. Some decide to use their fists (Dave), others to use their tongues (Dave, Lars, Cliff, James). Many decide to use their legs (Lars, James, Kirk), and most just try to become more or less invisible (Kirk, Jason). But again most people probably tend to use what ever method - or combination of methods - they assume would best suit for any particular situation. Some tend give it a thought, others tend to just react. Chances are that if you happen to be intoxicated, you probably mainly react. In vino veritas, as the Romans were fond of saying.

Cliff on the other hand was most likely always a bit more introverted kinda fella. Maybe because he had such a luxury by being the youngest child, coming from a middle-class, supportive family where kids were raised to be so-called free spirits. Dave never really even had a proper family and generally had more or less chaotic upbringing and at times very religious indoctrination, something that James would probably have understood only too well (if they ever spoke about it, and I'm pretty sure they did - if only when intoxicated).

I think in the USA particularly people are quick to label an individual as either shy/reserved/quiet or loud/people-person/happy-go-lucky. I think it's almost never this clear cut case.

Yet once again people tend to see Cliff as shy, James as shy, Hendrix as shy, Cobain as shy, Slash as shy, and yes, even Axl Rose as shy (only to name a few well-known rockers). They are amazed to see how these same people positively come to life on stage as if someone had set them on fire! They are puzzled why they really only seem sociable when they happen to be intoxicated on alcohol, drugs or live performance rush - or all three.

We used to call such folks manic-depressive, now the politically correct term is bipolar. We need to medicalize these people because we can't accept them as showing different aspects what it is to be, nay, feel human. I tend to think that if a person doesn't feel strongly about most things in life, then s/he's mostly not alive at all. YMMV.

In conclusion, Metallica had four guys who all wanted to lead (James, Lars, Cliff and Dave - in no specific order).

Because I'm a nice guy and because I want to believe that most of us are pretty decent folks, I'd like to believe that Dave was "let go" because everyone kinda understood that he had the necessary attitude to make it happen for himself. Both Lars and James were cocky but ultimately wimpy who might never have mustered enough courage to actually play professionally without Dave's and Cliff's contribution and - dare I say it - their stage presence and natural charisma.

At least that's my interpretation, folks. Just some food for thought. I could be totally wrong - though I rarely am. ;)

[Albert Buchatskyy · Rating 2 out of 5]

My gosh that was BORING... If you remove all "Cliff was so awesome" from here, there would be no book. I mean, there's literally no interesting information whatsoever. You're reading a very short Cliff's story (unfortunately his life was very short indeed) which is basically 10% of information and 90% of "oh Cliff was sooo great!", "Oh Cliff was sooo unbelievable!", "Cliff has invented metal!" and "Cliff has found the cure from cancer!" Sometimes you might think you're reading a little girl's secret diary. Then the story ends... and you see there are still 50% of the book left! What the hell has the author written there? Oh, you won't believe me - 50% of the book is the short Metallica story with tones of speculations on "How do you think would Cliff react to this and that?" Are you stupid? These idiotic "Would Cliff be against Load and Reload?" would be good (yet still boring) on a fan forum, but in a book??? Are you kidding me?? So... yeah. Don't waste your time on this one. Very boring, very repetitive, very empty book.

[Carey]

I had to dnf this book, not because it's bad (it's not), but because it was making me really fucking sad at a time when I'm already really fucking sad.

I don't know why I'm so obsessed with this person who died before I knew he existed. Maybe it's the sheer unfairness of it all. The universe randomly took out a true visionary and (by all accounts) all around good person at the ripe old age of 24. Yes, Cliff was a part of a band that I love more than is probably healthy. But Cliff was more than Metallica. He was a creative force of nature putting beauty into the world. Even if metal isn't your jam, get on youtube or whatever and listen to "Orion." It's an instrumental masterwork that deserves a place of honor with the standard pantheon of classical greats. When Cliff died, a light was snuffed out, not just in terms of metal or even music, but in terms of humanity's capability for artistic creation. And it's not fair.

P.S. I'm not one of those assholes who wishes it had been Lars instead of Cliff. That's fucked up and uncalled for. I wish no one had died.

[Kari S · Rating 4 out of 5]

A difficult book to rate. At best it's an excellent - and one of a kind - biography of Cliff Burton and would easily be worth the four stars. But on the other hand, the book gets a bit repetitive and often enough the author dives quite deep into personal speculation of what Burton would think about Metallica today (or Metallica in 2009-ish to be more specific. I am not sure when the writing work was done but it's not mentioning Death Magnetic so I presume pre-2008.). Some of that definitely feels like quite a reach. For my taste he also goes a bit too deep into analyzing the albums Burton played on, but I suppose that serves a purpose for some.

All in all I feel a lot of the book would be a 4 but a lot of it is a very solid 3. For me this would be a perfect example of a 3.5 book, but as Goodreads doesn't allow half-stars, I'll go with a 4. Which feels a bit high, but I think a bigger portion of the book deserves the 4.

[Michael Dunn · Rating 4 out of 5]

A loving tribute to Cliff Burton, whose bass work on Metallica’s first three records helped start the wild run of success the band would enjoy across the decades. The book showcases a talented, determined and down to earth person who found a home alongside the young thrash metal band.

Not sure if the speculation of whether or not Cliff would’ve been on board with the various changes Metallica would make to their sound was truly necessary beyond pointing out how his diverse music tastes meant he wasn’t just some “Metal or nothing!” guy, plus there are some bits that just feel like they’re rehashing the Metallica story, but all in all, it’s engaging stuff.

[Kyle Pichler · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great book diving into the life of a very unique musician. While many rock biographies seem to fixate on the debauchery surrounding the bands, it is refreshing to read a book more focused on the music. Even though hard partying is touched on, the focus is more on Cliff and his personality, musicianship, and influence on Metallica and the metal genre in general than on the partying. I would highly recommend to any fan of rock/metal music, and is a real bummer that almost all Metallica fans have never had the chance to see Cliff live.

[Partman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cliff Burton is an amazing person. Oh the book is pretty good too. Everone who said anything about Cliff said the samething. Cliff was a one of a kind. I read this as paperback to have a copy. I will also buy for my Kindle so I can take notes on songs and timing for my play back listening pleasure. I hear Anesthesia and Orion different now.

[Jacqueline Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well I joined the Metallica family in 1991 at the Black Album, the rest was too heavy for me. However, overtime I have many other favourite tracks. Orion is my all time favourite. I knew a bit of Metallica's troubled back story, this book although prominently about Cliff dabbles on that. There's a bit of music technical stuff but not too heavy.
Just a celebration of Cliff and Orion 😍

[Joe Colorado · Rating 3 out of 5]

Overall a pretty good book. Definitely worth it if you're a Cliff Burton fan or a big Metallica fan.
The author did a lot of research and has a lot of quotes from first hand sources. However, he relies too much on quotes instead of the story. Also, the updates at the end get pretty speculative and off track.

[Eduardo C · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great book, lots of data. I do recommend to read the book with Spotify and headphones jumping through Cliff music, influences, etc. There are lots of details about songs compositions and explanations about how they recorded it.

[Tim · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you are a Metallica fan this is a must read.Cliff Burton was such a amazing talent and was such a tragic loss for the music industry.Those first 3 Metallica albums are the best.It is so great reading a book to celebrate his life.

[Elina · Rating 2 out of 5]

Kirja ei tunnu niinkää Cliff Burtonin tarinalta vaan enemmän Metallican biisien esittelyltä yksityiskohtasesti. Sanastollisesti välillä hankalaa jos ei tunne musiikin teoriaa sen enempää. Huonohko kirja mahtavasta ja musiikkimaailmaa mullistaneesta muusikosta.

[Stefan Stanchev · Rating 5 out of 5]

Завладяващ биографична книга с много приятно оформление и лесно четим текст. Клиф Бъртън даде много за метъл музиката, ала си отиде много млад, едва на 24 години. Задължително четиво за всеки метъл фен!

[Alex Carlson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderfully written, and McIver did an amazing job writing to music fans, musicians, and the music illiterate. I was born a few weeks after Ride the Lightning, but he did such a good job with stories and interviews recreating a time in Cali a lot of metal fans would've loved to live through 🤘

[Kenny · Rating 5 out of 5]

If I could give it 100 stars, I would. Breathtaking.

[fern · Rating 4 out of 5]

Though this is written at a 10th grade level, the content makes it worthwhile.