Happy Birthday Kirk Hammett: 5 hit songs of the Metallica guitarist

Kirk Hammett, one of the most accomplished American guitarists and part of the legendary heavy metal band Metallica, celebrates his 60th birthday today. Hammett is widely considered to be one of the best musicians in this genre of music which started to gain massive popularity from the 1970s era.

Hammett was born on November 18, 1962 in California, US to a mother of Filipino descent and an Irish father who was a merchant marine. During his teenage years he started to take interest in music through his brother Rick’s large collection of hard rock music.

He then gradually gravitated towards the thrash metal genre. In the year 1982, he started his own band called “Exodus” along with fellow guitarist Gary Holt, lead vocalist Paul Baloff and Tom Hunting as the drummer. The band became a staple and locally famous act in the Bay Area thrash metal music scene.


As Hammett and his fans enjoy this special day, here are top 5 tracks from the legendary guitarist.

Master of Puppets

This is one of the most viral tracks of Metallica and reportedly, they have performed this song live for more than 1700 times. This track is believed to be one of the best examples of the band experimenting with complex chord structures which also makes this one of the band’s most ambitious songs ever. Although lead vocalist James Hetfield plays the first guitar solo of the song, Hammett’s solo, which comes later in the track, provides the song with the depth that has made it a fan favourite.

One

This track is part of Metallica’s acclaimed “Justice For All” album and reportedly Hammett used all the tricks in his book to build one of the best guitar leads of all time. The track consists of various guitar techniques such as shredding, tapping and string bending making it one of the most authentic tracks of the band’s and Hammett’s discography.

Hero of the Day

Hammett reportedly stated that the solo that played on this track is one of his favourite solos of all time. He stated that the solo was very “dynamic” and “melodic” during an interview in 2012. He further added that the solo “served” the song in the best way and he wishes that his other guitar solos also did the same for other Metallica songs.

Fade to Black

This track from Metallica’s “Ride the Lightning” album released in 1984 is believed to show Hammett playing some of his best guitar solos. One of the most unique things about this track is that Hammett improvises the solo whenever he performs live on stage.

Outlaw Torn

This is an orchestra-based song which showed that Hammett is not only comfortable when he plays the heavy metal genre, but has been able to increase his range of expertise and work with different kinds of soundscapes.

In 1983, Metallica’s former guitarist, Dave Mustaine was sacked by the band. In April, the same year, Hammett auditioned to be a replacement for Mustaine. After Hammett was able to play the solo of a song to perfection, he became the permanent guitarist of Metallica.

FAQs

Q1. What is Metallica’s net worth?
Ans1. As per latest reports, Metallica’s net worth is $900 million.

Q2. Who is James Hetfield?
Ans2. James Hetfield is the songwriter, lead vocalist, rhythm guitarist and the co-founder of the heavy metal band, Metallica.