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“(Anesthesia) Pulling Teeth” is to Metallica what “Eruption” is to Van Halen: an instrumental introduction to a colossal talent.
- Both songs are on side A of a debut album. “Eruption”’s placement is more audacious – what major label band now would present a guitar solo as its second song to the world? Still, imagine yourself as a new band. You are unveiling yourself to the world for the first time. You have 10 songs to do it. You’re going to hand one of them over to your bassist? You do, if he’s Cliff Burton.
- Both songs mix classical-influenced three-note arpeggios with bluesy bits, hopscotching among keys with little regard for structure. (But some of Burton’s figures, particularly starting around 1:10, hint at the melodic majesty of Ride the Lightning.)
- Both songs have brief accompaniment from drummers. That’s rare now with solo instrumentals. It always surprises me when Lars Ulrich enters in “Anesthesia”. The track is half-jam, half-song, and all pasted together – which sort of makes sense given the overall songwriting on Kill ‘Em All.
- Both songs are as much sound as song. “Anesthesia”’s peaks are Burton’s lashings with wah pedal; “Eruption” takes big gulps of Eddie Van Halen’s “brown sound” with whammy bar divebombs.
They don’t make musicians like this anymore. With this instrumental, Cliff Burton propelled himself onto the metal dais alongside Geezer Butler and Steve Harris. To this day, those Olympic metallists remain unchallenged. Will metal ever have another great bassist?
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Metallica – “(Anesthesia) Pulling Teeth”
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Van Halen – “Eruption”
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. . .
METALLICA: THE FIRST FOUR ALBUMS
Metallica: The First Four Albums – “Jump in the Fire”
Metallica: The First Four Albums – “Motorbreath”
Metallica: The First Four Albums – “The Four Horsemen”
Metallica: The First Four Albums – “Hit the Lights”
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I’m always surprised by how totally psychedelic the live versions of his solo were. It was trippy “moon music” in the midst of a concert by supposedly street-tough snotty kids.
“olympic metallist” is a magical little phrase, haha.
Funny thing about Pulling Teeth: even as a bassist myself, I don’t especially like it. But the sheer balls of laying it to tape, releasing it on their debut (like you say), AND playing it live in front of stadiums makes it this ridiculous, brilliant mission statement.
If the stories are true, Lars and James saw Cliff play this solo live with his old band at the Whisky (or some such) and it was what convinced them they needed him in the band.
Gallons of ink have been spilled about this guy–I don’t have much to add except I often wondered how/what Metallica would have evolved (to) had he lived. I do remember that he sure influenced everybody I knew-electric bass players up till then weren’t really flamboyant (Billy Sheehan not withstanding–musical styles aside) but Cliff changed all that. Plus the style he had–that Rickenbacker, the ‘Fits worship, the bellbottoms and the attitude just cemented it.
I’m enjoying reading your thoughts on the Metallica tracks. However, the comment “To this day, those Olympic metallists remain unchallenged. Will metal ever have another great bassist?” seems disingenuous, especially given your article “I don’t keep up with new music anymore”. There are many genre pushing and defining bassists in metal, obviously, for example Steve Digiorgio: http://youtu.be/90R4wve2PP8
Perhaps in a guitar-dominated genre they are just not given the recognition they deserve?
Steve DiGiorgio is probably the bassist with the most individual voice after the three original greats. But he hasn’t had the benefit of a consistently strong band to provide him the best context for his skills. He’s been metal’s most overqualified fill-in bassist for a while.
Very, very well-put. Love Steve, but he’s definitely the only reason I’d ever listen to Sadus. His recent session projects haven’t amazed me, but oh MAN are those remastered Human tracks going to sound amazing with his basslines now audible.
He’s really good, but his tone is so bad! Completely hollow.
I’m always amazed at how he did the harmonic tapping at the very end of this solo. My favorite words ever spoken by Cliff (off the Cliff ‘Em All vid): “Abso…mutha fuckin…lutley”. Followed shortly thereafter with “Fuck you, puss, fag, slut!
Anesthesia is overrated, but it doesn’t matter because:
1) Cliff is awesome.
2) It takes some balls to put a bass solo on your debut album.
“They don’t make musicians like this anymore. With this instrumental, Cliff Burton propelled himself onto the metal dais alongside Geezer Butler and Steve Harris. To this day, those Olympic metallists remain unchallenged. Will metal ever have another great bassist?”
Ah, will there ever be appreciation for Joey deMaio, or will the little kiddies continue to hate on him and his band?
Man I have to watch Cliff ‘em All again now – on VHS of course (thanks for the reminder deflepplin). Two things about Pulling teeth. That album – and that song in particular – was my gateway drug to Metallica. It was my brother’s tape and he was away in the military. I listened to it over and over. I distinctly remember playing (Anesthesia) Pulling Teeth over the phone to my best friend. Up to that point we were big Motley fans. We were both blown away. I became a huge Metallica fan then. That was probably 1988.
Other thing I have for you is that I always thought Metallica should do a song called “Two” – especially because “One” is so identified with the band. “Two” would be a new bass solo track. At the beginning of the track would be “Bass solo – take two.” I figured it would be perfect for Newsted, but perhaps a Robert T. solo would be a good way to really put his mark on the band. Especially with the finger picking style.
I would love to see how Metallica would have turned out if Cliff had lived. He was a barometer that that band needed.
Hate to point out the obvious, but what about Peter Steele?
Dude had unique tone, but to me he was more of a great songwriter than a great bass player.
Man, that MONSTROUS tone on Carnivore s Retaliation!
A great songwriter with both unique bass tone and bass voice!
I will forever maintain Roger Patterson deserves the same kind of acclaim. The similarities between his role in Atheist and Cliff’s in Metallica, as well as their personalities and untimely deaths, are strikingly similar. SO many of the riffs on the first two Atheist albums are Roger’s. Easily my biggest bass influence when it comes to metal. RIP.
My thoughts exactly as you can see below. But you typed them first…
‘the major rager on the four-stringed motherfucker!’
Every time I read/think of Cliff Burton my next thought goes to the great Roger Patterson (for the obvious parallelisms). Though he can’t record Atheist’s “Unquestionable Presence”, he wrote all that basslines that were ahead of his time in terms of Death Metal. It’s a pity that a promising career like his had to end so soon.
I have nothing against bass solos per se, but, until the drums kick in, this sounds like someone screwing around. And I say that as a Cliff Burton fan (who isn’t?) Cf. Sabbath’s “Bassically,” another debut-album bass solo that provides a groovy (and much shorter) segue between proper songs.
I’ve listened to this record so many times that it’s impossible to imagine it sans this song. There are aspects of it that annoy me: especially the drum part, but also its masturbatory nature. But since he was clearly not into self-aggrandizement, it’s hard to even level that as a complaint. It’s odd structure and gorgeously savage tones make it more than worthy of inclusion on a Metallica album.
It’s one of the most pondered questions in metal, “What would have happend if Cliff hadn’t died?” My answer is this: “Can you really imagine Cliff playing bass on The Black Album?”
In Jason Newsted’s defense, I’ll say that he did a great job on the Black Album. He had some very musical playing that slotted in perfectly with the songs. Obviously the songs themselves (and thus the individual performances) didn’t have the ferocious quality that would befit a Cliff Burton.
I have this fantasy. In this fantasy, I am listening to the fourth Metallica album, had Cliff Burton lived. This fourth Metallica album would sound like a cross between “Master of Puppets” and “Dimension Hatross” with a kiss of “Rage for Order” thrown in for good measure.
My other fantasy is to hear a band actually decide that that is the music THEY are going to make. Their debut album would be an approximation of what this fantasized fourth Metallica album would have sounded like.
It would so rule…
The idea that something bad or annoying can be described as masturbatory is strange.
Lemmy surely ain’t the best bass player out there but he surely influenced a horde of players, including me. I always liked the sound of the bass guitar until I heard it played with distortion; I was then blown away! Tom angelripper was also a major influence on me for the same reason.
You could divide metal bands into two categories based on their bass players: finger and pick players. I stick to the pick-players for the aggressivity and the tone of their sound. They fight against the guitars and push the drums. Finger players have a rounder sound, complimenting the guitars and teaming up with the bass drums.
If only we could hear the bass lines a bit more on the records!
Imagine how much better shit would have been if Metallica had a decent drummer, one who could have even remotely matched Cliff’s talent. Lars’ fumbling around on this track just screams baby tantrum.
Joe Lester of Intronaut is an amazing bass player, one of the best in metal.
entirely true, Joe Lester is incredible. however, I don’t think that he’s necessarily earthshaking in the way that Cliff was during that period. I’m also not sure that notoriety on Cliff Burton terms is applicable at this particular period in music history (which, ultimately, is unfair, but it just seems to be the case).
Agreed alex c. I think Lars is a pretty good drummer, but have always been curious how they would have sounded with REALLY good drummer.
SteveP: A tantalizing hint of what you’re talking about can be heard on the performance of “Battery” with Dave Lombardo at the Download festival in 2006.
hearing that LomBattery confirmed everything for me
in barely related news, metallica just finished recording a new album… and, yeah. what the fuck.
http://www.metallica.com/news/20110615_news.asp
Cliff was performing the same type of solo with his first band Trauma; friends had told me “You gotta see the bass player!”.. The first time I saw him play was when Trauma opened for Saxon in March 1982 in Palo Alto, California. Cliff did an amazing bass solo during their set that featured his wah-wah and playing slide with a beer bottle. Magic.
It is very difficult to follow the comments on here because they are all great and I have this overwhelming, “that’s what I was gonna say” feeling as I read them all. I agree that Cliff was amazing and like many other greats, his time here was way too short. I will go on to say that Kill “EM All was and is my favorite Metallica album and as time goes on, I cling to that because their sound has changed, their bass players have changed but this solo is forever immortalized!
I’m not sure why people expect that a alternate-universe metallica with a living cliff burton would be fantastic. Picture if Kirk or James died after making …Justice. People would have filled the internet up with posts about ‘Metallica would be releasing the greatest albums ever!’, but we all know how that turned out.
Realistically, the greatest thing that can happen to a musician’s legacy is that they die before they get the chance to slide into mediocrity/old age. Examples abound
I saw them play here in Vancouver in ‘85 for the Ride tour and there were stunning and I think everyone in the room was forever changed. A few friends were pretty tight with them and told me that Cliff was on acid during the set. Made sense. His solo was way out there. My buddy bootlegged the show and I think I still have the cassette somewhere….maybe time for some nostalgia.