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Clifford Lee Burton (February 10, 1962 – September 27, 1986) was an American musician who served as the bassist for the thrash metal band Metallica from 1982 until his death in 1986. He is renowned for his musicianship and influence.
Burton's early musical ventures include performing in bands such as EZ-Street and Agents of Misfortune, and frequently collaborating with guitarist Jim Martin. He was discovered by James Hetfield and Lars Ulrich while performing in Los Angeles, who asked him to replace bassist Ron McGovney in Metallica. After the release of their first two albums Kill 'Em All (1983) and Ride the Lightning (1984), Burton and Metallica achieved their worldwide breakthrough with Master of Puppets (1986), often cited as both the band's best work and one of the best metal albums.
While touring in 1986 to support Master of Puppets, Burton died following a bus crash in Sweden. He received posthumous writing credits on ...And Justice for All (1988) for the song "To Live Is to Die". He was posthumously inducted to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame as a member of Metallica in 2009. He also appeared in a 2011 reader poll from Rolling Stone recognizing the greatest bassists of all time, and on Rolling Stones list of the 50 greatest bass players of all time.
In his teenage years, Burton developed an interest in rock, classical, country and eventually heavy metal. He began playing the bass at age 13, after the death of his brother, who died from a brain aneurysm. His parents quoted him as saying, "I'm going to be the best bassist for my brother." He practiced up to six hours per day (even after he joined Metallica). Along with classical and jazz, Burton's other early influences varied from Southern rock and country music to the blues.
Burton cited Geddy Lee, Geezer Butler, Stanley Clarke, Lemmy Kilmister, and Phil Lynott as major influences on his style of bass playing.
In 1982, Trauma traveled to Los Angeles to perform at the Whisky a Go Go. Among those in attendance were James Hetfield and Lars Ulrich, both members of Metallica, which had formed the previous year. Upon hearing, as Hetfield described it, "this amazing shredding" (parts of which later became "(Anesthesia) - Pulling Teeth"), the two decided to recruit Burton for their own band. They asked him to replace departed bassist Ron McGovney, and since Burton thought that Trauma was "starting to get a little commercial", he agreed. The idea of having to move to Los Angeles did not sit well with Burton, who said he would join only if the band relocated from Los Angeles to his native San Francisco Bay Area. Metallica, eager to have Burton in the band, left to make a home in El Cerrito, a town located across the bay from San Francisco. Burton's first recording with Metallica was the Megaforce demo. A demo tape the band had made prior to Burton's joining, No Life 'til Leather, managed to come into the hands of Jon Zazula, owner of Megaforce Records. The band relocated to Old Bridge, New Jersey, and quickly secured a recording contract with Zazula's label. Their debut album, Kill 'Em All, features Burton's showcase, "(Anesthesia) – Pulling Teeth", which displayed his use of effect pedals, such as a wah-wah pedal and Big Muff, which are not commonly used by bassists.
Metallica's debut album, Kill 'Em All, was originally intended to inherit the name of one of their earlier demo releases (predating Burton's participation), which was Metal Up Your Ass, but the record company did not like the title and insisted on changing it. Burton said "We should just kill 'em all, man," which gave the band members an idea for the new title. The album was released on July 25, 1983, through Megaforce Records.
The band's second studio album, Ride the Lightning, showcased the band's rapidly evolving musical growth. Burton's songwriting abilities were growing, and he received credit on six of the album's eight songs.. Retrieved April 26, 2007. Burton's playing style and use of effects is notably showcased on two tracks: the chromatic intro to "For Whom the Bell Tolls" (often mistaken as a guitar intro), and the "lead bass" on "The Call of Ktulu".
The band's improving musicianship on Ride the Lightning caught the attention of major record labels. Metallica was signed to Elektra Records, and began working on their third album, Master of Puppets, which is considered by most critics to be a landmark album in heavy metal. Among the tracks featured in the album are the instrumental "Orion" (which features a prominent lead bass section) and the title track, which was Burton's favorite Metallica song. Cliff Burton R.I.P. Interview . Retrieved April 26, 2007. Master of Puppets was the band's commercial breakthrough release,. Retrieved April 26, 2007. and Burton's final album with Metallica.
Burton's final performance was in Stockholm, Sweden, at the Solnahallen Arena on September 26, 1986, one day before his death. metal-george's Cliff Burton Page . Retrieved April 26, 2007. The final song he performed was "Fight Fire With Fire" according to setlist.fm and the cassette included in the deluxe box of Master of Puppets or "Blitzkrieg" according to the band's homepage.
In 2013, Aria released a replica of Burton's bass, called the Aria Pro II Cliff Burton Signature Bass. The company had received permission from Burton's family and Metallica to produce the instrument. The bass was officially unveiled at the Winter NAMM Show in Anaheim, California. On January 25, 2013, Burton's father Ray attended the press conference where he signed autographs and talked about Burton's life and the instrument. Current Metallica bassist Robert Trujillo was also present and was the first to try out the bass, playing parts of "(Anesthesia) – Pulling Teeth". Ray Burton said, "What a beautiful instrument and a wonderful tribute to Cliff."
The bus driver said that the crash was caused by the bus hitting a patch of black ice on the road, but Hetfield later stated that he first believed the bus flipped because the driver was drunk. Hetfield also stated that he walked long distances down the road looking for black ice and found none. When local freelance photographer Lennart Wennberg (who attended the crash-scene the following morning) was asked in a later interview about the likelihood that black ice caused the accident, he said it was "out of the question" because the road was dry and the temperature around , above the freezing point of . This was confirmed by police who, like Hetfield, also found no ice on the road. Ljungby detective Arne Pettersson was reported in a local newspaper to have said the tracks at the accident site were exactly like ones seen when drivers fall asleep at the wheel. However, the driver stated under oath that he had slept during the day and was fully rested; his testimony was confirmed by the driver of a second tour bus that was carrying the band's crew and equipment. The driver was determined not at fault for the accident and no charges were brought against him.
Burton's body was cremated and the ashes were scattered at the Maxwell Ranch. At the ceremony, the song "Orion" was played. Shortly after Burton's death, Jason Newsted from Flotsam and Jetsam became Metallica's new bassist.
Metallica wrote a tribute to Burton titled "To Live Is to Die" for ...And Justice for All. Burton also received a writing credit for the lyrics in the middle of the song, as well as the bass lines being a medley of unused recordings Burton had performed prior to his death. A non-Metallica tribute to Burton, "In My Darkest Hour", was created by thrash metal band Megadeth. According to Dave Mustaine, after hearing of Burton's death, he sat down and wrote the music for the song in one sitting. The lyrics, however, are unrelated to Burton's death. Mustaine was Metallica's lead guitarist in the early days and was a close friend of Burton at the time. Thrash metal band Anthrax dedicated its album Among the Living to him, as did Metal Church with The Dark.
In 2006, a memorial stone was unveiled in Sweden near the scene of the fatal crash. The lyrics "...cannot the Kingdom of Salvation take me home" from "To Live Is to Die" are written on Burton's memorial stone. On April 4, 2009, Burton was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, with Metallica bandmates James Hetfield, Lars Ulrich, and Kirk Hammett. Subsequent bassists Jason Newsted and Robert Trujillo were inducted as well. During the ceremony, the induction was accepted by his father Ray Burton, who shared the stage with the band and said that Cliff's mother was Metallica's biggest fan.
A biography, To Live Is to Die: The Life and Death of Metallica's Cliff Burton, written by Joel McIver, was published by Jawbone Press in June 2009. Hammett provided the book's foreword.
On the “Hardwired… to Self Destruct Deluxe" bonus track “Fade to Black (Live at Rasputin Music)" James dedicates the song to Cliff, saying “For Cliff!” and “Can you hear us Cliff?”
A 2011 reader poll from Rolling Stone placed Burton as the ninth greatest bassist of all time.
In 2017, it was revealed that Burton's parents had been donating his posthumous royalty payments to a scholarship fund for music students at his alma mater Castro Valley High School. In 2018, the Alameda County, California, Board of Supervisors issued a proclamation declaring February 10, 2018, which would have been Burton's 56th birthday, as "Cliff Burton Day" after a fan petition successfully passed. The S&M2 concert in 2019 featured San Francisco Symphony bassist Scott Pingel paying tribute to Burton by playing his signature bass solo, "(Anesthesia) – Pulling Teeth", using an electric double bass with pedal effects.
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Categories: 1962 Births, 1986 Deaths, 20th-century American Bass Guitarists, 20th-century American Male Musicians, American Heavy Metal Bass Guitarists, American Male Bass Guitarists, Metallica Members, Musicians From The San Francisco Bay Area, People From Castro Valley, California, Road Incident Deaths In Sweden, Thrash Metal Musicians
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