The definitive Metallica playlist

As the closing bars of "The Ecstasy of Gold" (from the classic Western The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly) faded, "Battery" would kick off Metallica live sets in the late 1980s and early 1990s. The opening track from the band's third and arguably best studio album, Master of Puppets, "Battery" builds to one of the greatest thrash songs of all time, even though it may be lost at times amid the overall excellence of Puppets.

Various critics and fans have touted this classic from Ride the Lightning as Metallica's best overall track. According to Metallica lore, lead guitarist Kirk Hammett wrote the riff for the bridge when he was 16 years old. Couple that with frontman James Hetfield's lyrics about the biblical 10th plague of Egypt, and it's a perfect example of how the band fused its thrash roots with more mature songwriting on its second studio album. 

This is one of the true gems from Metallica's debut record, Kill 'Em All on Megaforce Records. While the record highlighted the band's heavy influence from the British wave of heavy metal and late 1970s punk, this tale of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse showcased James Hetfield's promise as a songwriter. Fun fact for non-Metallica fans: former band member and Megadeth founder Dave Mustaine co-wrote the song and recorded his version ("The Mechanix") for said new group's debut album Killing Is My Business... and Business Is Good! two years later.

Another live favorite. It's also best known for Cliff Burton's legendary distorted bass intro demonstrating how much the band grew up between its first and second albums. Ride the Lightning is an easy listening experience for a metal record. It sets the table for the greatness that was about to follow from a band that's still never satisfied, especially co-founders James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich. 

It seemed like Metallica regained its metal edge or somewhat went back to its thrash roots of the early 1980s on its most recent release Hardwired... to Self-Destruct (2016). This track could easily have been part of Kill 'Em All or Ride the Lightning. Yet, it includes modern-day production value that lends to a more fine-tuned and enhanced quality. "Hardwired" delivers more than anything found on Metallica's previous two releases, St. Anger (2003) and Death Magnetic (2008).

Arguably the best track off Hardwired... to Self-Destruct, "Atlas, Rise!" earned a Grammy nomination for Best Rock Song. This piece takes us back to the Master of Puppets or ...And Justice for All days. If this song and album had come out in the early 1990s, perhaps some die-hard Metallica supporters would not have turned on the band or held back their "sell-out" criticism. Guess it's better late than never.

The opening track to ...And Justice for All, Metallica's first record following the tragic death of bassist Cliff Burton during a bus accident while the band was on tour in Sweden. At 6 minutes, 41 seconds, "Blackened" is a perfect example of the material found on Metallica's most complex record to date. No song was shorter than 5:13, and themes of government corruption, injustice, and more war filled an angry record that was also the first to feature Jason Newstead on bass. That said, "Blackened's" overall relentlessness makes it one of the band's most underrated tracks.

This may very well be Metallica's first "ballad." If anything, it's the first true melodic piece the group offered the public but managed to remain heavy in spirit. It also happens to be one of the band's more controversial tracks since it deals with suıcidal tendencies. The band has often spun it as an anti-suıcide tune that might bring awareness to the issue. Regardless, it's another live staple and features more special guitar work from Kirk Hammett and James Hetfield.

Metallica frontman James Hetfield has often stated that this opener to 1997's Reload is one of his favorite tunes to play live. It's one of the faster, heavier 1990s offerings from the band. It's also an example of how much the group matured as collective musicians. The same thrash/speed metal spirit is found in this track, but with a more polished production value that welcomes acceptance from mainstream rock audiences.

When Load, the follow-up to the band's self-titled 1991 smash release, also known as the "Black Album," the band members had cut their hair, and the music was geared more toward hard rock rather than thrash metal. However, one of the harder Load tracks is "King Nothing." This be-careful-what-you-wish-for theme of a song is one that the old-school headbangers and recently introduced MTV-dependent crowd can enjoy.

The first of three straight tunes from Master of Puppets that we'll highlight. It is one of the band's more melodic pieces but still heavy and powerful enough to claim itself as an elite track in the Metallica catalog. Another live favorite, Sanitarium is dark and disturbing while encapsulating the emotion of a record that launched the band to the top of the thrash metal world and opened the door for more mainstream success.

The title track to one of metal's greatest albums might also be Metallica's best song. According to the band, this was a favorite of late bassist Cliff Burton. The track is a harrowing, super-charged journey into the control that drugs have on a user. It's another example of Kirk Hammett's brilliance on lead guitar, as the solo here will attest. The song has long been a staple of Metallica live shows, especially when played in its roughly eight-and-a-half-minute entirety.

Metallica is also known for delivering some of metal's best instrumental tracks. At the top of the list is this gem off Masters of Puppets. It's considered one of the highlights of Cliff Burton's legacy, notably for its haunting, space-age bass intro and his bridge and solo work on the cut. It's perhaps the most progressive piece of music the band ever recorded. Some critics even compared the tune to something out of the Rush catalog.  

The first of several songs to highlight from the self-titled 1991 smash release, "The Unforgiven" would eventually become a conceptual piece, with parts II and III appearing on later Metallica records. It's generally branded a power ballad, but it's also one of the band's more progressive mainstream offerings with some intensely heavy chord progressions. To those long-time thrash fans, this was just one example on the "Black Album" of Metallica "selling out." It was also another example of why Metallica would become the planet's biggest metal/hard rock band.

The production value of the Metallica record, courtesy of renowned producer/engineer Bob Rock, is perhaps the biggest reason for its massive success. It's by far the most polished of the band's releases to that point. "Wherever I May Roam" is a fine example. The track could have found a home on Ride the Lightning or Master of Puppets, but it probably would not have packed the same punch from a production standpoint, and the power of Lars Ulrich's drumming would not have been reinforced without Rock's presence.

This was the fifth and final single released off the "Black Album." Similar to "Wherever I May Roam," it's a heavy track that is still friendly enough to appeal to the masses. In this case, another popular sing-along-tune for drunk frat boys during college parties throughout the Midwest spanning the early 1990s. Once again, Lars Ulrich's drums are featured prominently, but it also includes some of Kirk Hammett's better guitar work on the record.

War is another topic touched on throughout Muppets of Puppets. No song captures the experience and often helplessness a soldier feels amid combat than this underrated track. It's kill or be killed ("You will die, when I say, 'you must die.'"), and "Disposable Heroes" takes it all on with the same fury displayed on the rest of the record. The song also features James Hetfield at his best on the rhythm guitar.

Another unheralded cut within the Metallica catalog. It was one of the singles off Justice and is regularly featured during live sets. A song about the madness of the mind, "Harvester of Sorrow" has a Sanitarium-like vibe. And like most of the record in which it resides, it showcases some of Lars Ulrich's best drumming. The heart-pounding rhythm and pace of the song are like constant body blows to the ears. 

This 9-minute, 49-second romp to close Load was not released as a single but might be the best song on the album. It's gritty, eerie, and more down and dirty than anything else on the record. There's almost a classic rock feel to it. Something that we could see Thin Lizzy playing back in the day. While hardcore Metallica fans like to trash Load and Reload, the fact remains that the best songs on both are deeper cuts like this one, "The House Jack Built," "Bleeding Me," "Poor Twisted Me," and "Prince Charming."

Thanks to MTV, the signature track of the Justice album remains one of the most popular in the band's history. This anti-war anthem became an MTV staple, courtesy of the video featuring scenes from the forgotten 1971 war drama Johnny Got His Gun and more exemplary work from Hammett and Ulrich. When played live, the pyrotechnics are aplenty, often closing out the initial set before the encores.

This was one of the first Metallica songs to actually reach the public. Back when James Hetfield and Lars Ulrich bonded in southern California and shared dreams of becoming rock stars. It's raw, gritty, and pure aggression. The song doesn't always find itself on Metallica's live sets, but when it does, it's a treat. We have it positioned here to open the first encore.

Yes, it would be quite easy to omit this song. Hardcore fans consider it the moment the band officially sold out or went soft. The truth is, it was a top-15 Billboard hit for Metallica and further helped introduce the group to an entirely new audience. Come on, the song's been played at high school dances and was even re-mixed/sampled into a dance tune. We get it. Yet, it's still an important part of the band's progression and legacy.

"Seek & Destroy" is the first song Metallica officially recorded and has long had a presence during the band's live shows. It's often used to close a set heading into an encore or the show overall. Here, it finishes the first encore of our playlist. This is another piece about aggression and harboring those inner feelings of destruction that can better be released through music. The track also features one of the most familiar intros in metal music.

Another live favorite, "Whiplash" was the first single released from Kill 'Em All. The song is a celebration of the thrash metal movement and the ability of the genre to bring outcasts or introverts together to send their long hair spinning while banging their collective heads. While it's undoubtedly one of Metallica's most beloved tunes, metal legends Motörhead (which had a huge influence on Lars Ulrich, in particular) won a Grammy Award for its cover of the song in 2005.

For better or worse, this is Metallica's best-known hit among the masses. The tale of bedtime nightmares, which also became famed Yankees closer Mariano Rivera's walk-out music, is a major reason the Metallica album sold more than 30 million copies and took the band to astronomic heights of international popularity. Die-hard fans can probably go without hearing the song again, but it remains one of the highlights of its live shows.