In Memory Of The Greatest Bassist Ever!
Clifford Lee Burton was born on February 10, 1962 in San Francisco, CA. His parents were two San Francisco hippies, Jan and Ray Burton. It was from them that Cliff got his image, his hippie ideals, but most of all, his attitude. He liked to chill and hang out. He was really laid back, relaxed and happy. Cliff liked his beer, his pot, etc. Cliff had his own style. He drove a 1972 VW station wagon, he wore bell-bottoms, read H. P. Lovecraft, studied piano, and even went to junior college. He grew up near San Francisco with ex-Faith No More guitarist, Jim Martin. Burton was a cross between Clint Eastwood and E. F. Hutton... Not saying much, but when he did, people listened.
Back in late 1982, it was decided that former bassist Ron McGovney wasn't really pulling his weight in Metallica. He wasn't taking the band seriously, which James and Lars had a real problem with. By that time, Metallica was beginning to go down. Lars and James were having problems with their Lead Guitarist, Dave Mustaine, because of his growing addictions and abuse of alcohol and drugs, and the terrible conflicts that he and James had on stage were becoming more frequent. Also James didn't want to sing anymore because he felt he wasn't doing a good enough job, so he proposed that he play Rhythm Guitar only.
Cliff was discovered in August of 1982. One of Metallica's peer bands up north making the rounds about this time was Trauma. In addition to being a favourite Bay-area club circuit draw, the band was gaining recognition through their one-song demo, featuring "Such a Shame" that eventually was transferred to vinyl on Metal Massacre II. More noteworthy, however, Trauma possessed within its ranks "the most head banging bassist" Lars and James had ever seen - Cliff Burton.
They initially spotted him during a live Trauma show at LA's Troubadour. Lars and James were very impressed by the way he played the bass.
Metallica set out on a grand pursuit to get Cliff to join the band. Burton presented the LA station band with an ultimatum, 'If Metallica relocated to San Francisco, he would join them.
Metallica, with all their problems, relocated to San Francisco, where they were better received than in LA. Their first jam with Cliff occurred in the house of sound-man Mark Witaker, where their was a studio type setup in his garage. At the time James and Lars were living there, having relocated Metallica to the Bay Area in 1983 to be closer to Cliff. They recorded a 4 track demo and on March 5, 1983, Cliff played for the first time with Metallica at the Stone, in SF. This was the beginning of 3 incredible Metalli-years.
Cliff lived with his family in San Francisco, and for three and a half years he worked hard to take Metallica to the top. After replacing Ron McGovney in late 1982, Cliff instantly made a name for himself with his classic "wind-mill" style of thrashing on stage, with his hair flying out in all directions, and with his outdated, completely "unfashionable" image. With his hair hanging straight down from him head, he seemed seemed to be always dressed in a pair of bell-bottom jeans and a faded denim jacket. If it was cold, he wore a flannel shirt underneath.
Offstage, he was the ultimate laid-back Californian, a total opposite from his wild, aggressive on-stage attack. His sense of humour was great, as were his bass solos and everything about his stage presence. He was the most visual of all the band on-stage, he would just go wild. Cliff was also responsible for expanding the scope of Metallica's lyrical themes. Along with Kirk, he admired the works of H. P. Lovecraft.
The best example of how cool and unflappable Cliff was happened in the summer of 1985 at their Castle Donnington Festival appearance (August 17, 1985). Having ducked beneath a flying pear which ended up embedding itself in his bass bin, Burton coolly sauntered over to his stack, picked up the pear, took two bites out of it and hurled it back into the crowd.
Cliff was also a fine and inventive soloist, and his clever use of distortion and wah-wah in his "(Anesthesia) -- Pulling Teeth" showpiece made it one of the highlights of the band's live set. More importantly, Cliff was one hell of a nice guy and a much-loved figure in the Metallica camp. He always went out of his way to talk to the band's fans, no matter how tired he was. He was certainly the most unanimously appreciated by the band members as well as by the public.
For a while there it really looked as if 1986 was going to be Metallica's year. After all, their third LP, Master of Puppets, had literally taken the music world by storm and, in doing so, had made the band virtual mega-stars in the eyes of the metal-doting public. Metallica had finally "made it", and it seemed that nothing could halt their inexorable rise to even greater glory. Then, during the European leg of the group's phenomenally successful Master of Puppets world tour, something went wrong - catastrophically wrong.
Cliff Burton's memorial service was held October 7, 1986. His family and friends remembered him as a "world class local boy" with a love for Johann Sebastian Bach, Mexican food and his hometown. His parents said he was "an appreciative and thoughtful son. Because of his performing, he'd sleep all day and stay up all night and never wake us up. Once, a little boy came up to the door, early in the morning and wanted Cliff to sign his shirt. So Cliff staggered to the door and said 'Sure, of course I'll sign it.'" Connie, his sister, said, "I once called him up and said 'How do you like being a rock star?', and he was furious. He asked me never to refer to him that way again." At the conclusion of his memorial service "Orion" from the band's 'Master of Puppets' album, was played. The elaborate instrumental made a fitting tribute for the young bassist, since, as James Hetfield recalled, Burton was Metallica's most educated musician and "Orion" was largely his composition. Cliff's ashes were spread at various points around the bay area, including the Maxwell Ranch House area.
The gap left by Cliff's death widely spread across the pages of tributes run by the music press the week after the tragedy. In Kerrang!, for example, advertisements were taken by friends and fans alike; a bleak, black double-page spread ran messages from the Zazulas ("The Ultimate Musician, The Ultimate Headbanger, The Ultimate Loss, A Friend Forever"), and Anthrax ("Bell-Bottoms Rule!! Laugh it up, We Miss You"), while Music For Nations also took out a page ad which simply read: "Cliff Burton 1962 - 1986." The pain ran deep.
Gen Howards remembers: "When the Puppets tour had finished, I waited 'til the band went to the European tour and then I went on vacation to Cornualles. We all were very happy on what was happening, 'specially, that Metallica was becoming one of the most popular metal bands. We all had worked a lot in this, and then before our eyes everything was was going ok, and the future hadn't seemed better. Then a Wednesday morning, I take a "Sounds" volume, I opened it, and I almost shocked. It was a really beat. . . incredibly painful. . ."
Cliff Pictures
Quotes from and about Cliff
Many thanks to Over_Due (from Ozchat) for helping to compile this tribute to a bass guitar icon and overall music legend. I owe ya 1 mate!