Cliff Burton

Burton was born in Castro Valley, California, to Raymond "Ray" (1925–2020) and Janette "Jan" Burton (1925–1993). He had two elder siblings, Scott (1958–1975) and Connie. Burton's interest in music began when his father introduced him to classical music and began taking piano lessons. 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 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. == Career ==

While still a student at Castro Valley High School, Burton formed his first band called EZ-Street. The band took its name from a Bay Area topless bar. Other members of EZ-Street included future Faith No More members Jim Martin and Mike Bordin. Burton and Martin continued their musical collaboration after becoming students at Chabot College in Hayward, California. Their second band, Agents of Misfortune, entered the Hayward Area Recreation Department's Battle of the Bands contest in 1981. Their audition was recorded on video and features some of the earliest footage of Burton's playing style. The video also shows Burton playing parts of what would soon be two Metallica songs: his signature bass solo, "(Anesthesia) – Pulling Teeth", and the chromatic intro to "For Whom the Bell Tolls". 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. 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. Burton's songwriting abilities were growing, and he received credit on six of the album's eight songs. 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. 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. Master of Puppets was the band's commercial breakthrough release, 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. According to multiple sources, including the band's official website, the final song performed with Burton was "Fight Fire with Fire". == Equipment ==

Bass guitars When he joined Metallica in 1982, Burton's main bass was a red Rickenbacker 4001. Burton made several modifications to it, in particular removing the stock high-gain pickups, which did not suit his heavy use of effects pedals and aggressive finger-style playing. The neck pickup was swapped with a Gibson "Mudbucker" and the bridge with a Seymour Duncan "Classic Stack Jazz Bass" pickup. Burton used this 4001 on ''Kill 'Em All and several tracks on Ride The Lightning'' before technical problems forced him to retire it. Burton then briefly played an Alembic Spoiler II before it was stolen from his car. In 1985, Burton began endorsing Japanese manufacturer Aria. He initially played an SB1000 model before receiving his signature "SB Black n' Gold" bass, which he used on Master Of Puppets. 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." Amplifiers Burton initially combined a Sunn Beta Bass Amp with a Peavey Mark IV Series 400 head in early gigs, before switching to a pair of Mesa/Boogie D-180 heads for the heavy tone he became known for. One D-180 was used for his clean signal, the other for his effects chain. Burton favored Mesa cabinets, as well, combining a 4x12 and 1x15. Effects Burton used many effects pedals in his career. He made "distinctive" use of the Morley Power Wah Boost, using it to filter through frequencies for his bass solos. Burton included the Power Wah Boost on his pedalboard for almost every Metallica concert, while the effect can be heard on tracks like "For Whom The Bell Tolls". Other effects used include the Boss CS-2 Compression Sustainer, Ibanez TS-9 Tubescreamer, and Ibanez HD1500 Harmonics/Delay rack unit. == Death ==

Burton's final performance with Metallica on September 26th, 1986 was hosted at Solnahallen in Stockholm, Sweden on the Damage Inc. tour in support of the Master of Puppets album. Their next scheduled show at the Saga Theater in Copenhagen, Denmark had their tour bus driving south overnight along European route E4 (now G 557). Band members complained that the bunks on their tour bus were unsatisfactory and uncomfortable. The story of how Burton won the bunk differs between the two band members; as Kirk Hammett stated on VH1's Behind the Music, he and Burton drew cards, and Burton picked the ace of spades, thereby getting the first choice of bunk. Burton told Hammett "I want your bunk". Hammett replied "Fine, take my bunk, I'll sleep up front, it's probably better anyway". However, Ulrich's version of the event was that Hammett and Burton drew straws, while Burton drew the long straw, winning the choice of bunk. Burton was sleeping when, according to the driver, shortly before 7 a.m. on September 27, the bus skidded off the road north of Ljungby, just north of Dörarp, and flipped onto the grass in Kronoberg County. With no safety restraints on the bunks, Burton was thrown violently through one of the windows of the bus, which fell on top of him right afterwards, killing him instantly. He was 24 years old. 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. 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. == Legacy ==

Many metal bassists have expressed admiration, or have cited Burton as an influence to their playing, including Adam Duce, Alex Webster, Chi Cheng, Dick Lövgren, Johnny Christ, Justin Chancellor, Liam Wilson, Mike D'Antonio, Martín Méndez, Paolo Gregoletto, Paul Gray, Paulo Jr., Reginald Arvizu Tony Campos, and Troy Sanders. 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 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. == Discography ==

With Metallica Studio albums • ''Kill 'Em All'' (1983) • Ride the Lightning (1984) • Master of Puppets (1986) • ...And Justice for All (1988) (posthumous writing credit on "To Live Is to Die") Video • ''Cliff 'Em All'' (1987) Demos • ''No Life 'til Leather'' (1982) (credited but does not play) • Megaforce (1983) • Ride the Lightning (1983) • Master of Puppets (1985) Compilations • Garage Inc. (1998) (featured on "Am I Evil?" and "Blitzkrieg" only) With Trauma • Metal Massacre II (1982) (features on "Such a Shame" only) • Scratch and Scream (2013 reissue) (features on bonus tracks only) === With Apocalyptica === • Plays Metallica Vol. 2 (2024) ("The Call of Ktulu" cover features the original bass master track used in Ride the Lightning.) == References ==