Cliff Burton Remembered 1962-1986 [VIDEO]

Today sadly marks the 25th anniversary of Cliff Burton's death. He was without a doubt the most gifted & talented bass beatin' deity of all time. It was on this day back in 1986 while Metallica was touring overseas in support of "Master Of Puppets" he was tragically killed in an accident. The band was on their way through southern Sweden when the tour bus lost control & flipped over killing Cliff. The driver cited black ice as the cause of the accident but to this day there's been some dispute as to what really happened. Did the driver fall asleep, was alcohol involved? Either way the world lost not only the greatest bass player of our time but a truly gifted song writer, craftsmen & artist. Until Cliff bassist just held down the low end, kept tempo & maintained rhythm. He singled handedly changed all that. His influence can still be felt today 25 years after his death & he'll continue to inspire others well into the future. His play style of lead bass as it's best described took the instrument into new & unknown areas forever changing not just metal but all music genres forever.

When you listen to the first 3 Metallica albums "Kill Em' All" "Ride The Lightning" & "Master Of Puppets" or as I like to call it the good Metallica, it's very evident that Cliff Burton was much more than a bass player. His writing style, lyrics & subject matter was a true driving force. He wrote or co-wrote some of Metallica's biggest & best songs. Drawing from his own influences & literature he brought a level of seriousness to the band & in my opinion the song writing, lyrics & overall structure of Metallica's music suffered if not died when he did. I remember hearing the news of his death & thought well that's the end of Metallica, I was right. Sure they've continued as a band & their popularity is as strong as ever but the core sound of what I grew up listening to is gone. I miss Cliff Burton, I miss Metallica...