Jason Newsted on Metallica's Black Album and The Blacklist
Jason Newsted joined Metallica after the tragic death of bassist Cliff Burton in 1986. His first album with Metallica was …And Justice For All which is often criticised for lack of bass in the mix. He speaks to Tim Shiel from Double J
"I have a very unique POV," he says. "I wasn't in the band, I was in this other band Flotsam and Jetsam. And then the band that I liked the most, I got to join for 15 years. Now I've been out of that band for 20 years, but I'm still business partners with them. So I can see it as a fan, and as a guy, and all these things at once. So, it is a lot of material. But if you're into it, and you know better – if you're a Metallica fan, and you know better – this is cool shit."
Newsted talks about the feeling of being in Metallica at the time the huge success of the Black Album. "It was so important to me," He adds "It was such a big deal. I was a giant sponge with legs and arms and eyes wide open. I didn't sleep very much. The world was whirling around us."
It's hard being the new guy in the band, Newsted handled it well for a while. "I think that maybe my section of it could have been even a little more accelerated and chaotic, because of how I stepped in. Those three guys were already together for a while, I came in and we toured for four and a half years and really took it to the people and everything, and then The Black Album came. So, I was still really whirling from the initial… whirl."
Newsted on The Metallica Blacklist
When talking about The Metallica Blacklist album that features covers from The Chats, Ghost, My Morning Jacket and other artists Newsted understands the connection the bands have. "What we've come to realise over time – with a movie, or a book, or a painting, or music – it's never too late to discover a good thing," he says.
"They weren't born, but they understand the quality of the music and that we meant it when we did it. Just as Iron Maiden, Motörhead and AC/DC paved the way, or at least cut the road, for us to go and do what we did on the next generation of heavy music, we did 1000 fold for so, so, so many millions of persons, players, bands, and fans."
In other Metallica news Lars Ulrich spoke with Zane Lowe from Apple Music about Newsted's time in Metallica.
"Jason gave 14 years, every day, every performance. He was there always. I mean, we always used to joke. It's like, 'He's so fired up. Come on, dude. Slow down.' He was the first guy and the last guy out. He was signing autographs when we were driving by waving on the way out of the buildings. I mean, he really was. I, now have finally equipped to appreciate every moment that he gave. And we have, I think so much respect for each other now, so much appreciation. Ten years ago when we did the 30th anniversaries, when he came up and played four nights with us at the Fillmore shows, played two nights with us, seeing Rob and him together up there."
He concludes "That felt like it was the beginning of the thawing of where we are now, but he's been very integral part of the reissue and the rerelease and has done interviews and been very, very helpful. He did the unboxing of the box for the cameras and the whole thing. And I mean, he's been so gracious."