Quote:
Originally Posted by edwardc77
Regarding Metallica I always heard lot of people (everywhere) saying things like :“Oh, I was so disappointed when the black album came out” or “I quit buying their records when they sold out with Bob rock” or even ”I stopped listening to them after Master of Puppets”.
So I decided to do some quick research, and I found out a few interesting things.
The first thing is that very few people bought the band’s first three albums when they came out.
When Cliff Burton died in 1986, Metallica hadn’t managed to achieve a single Gold Record …and that’s just 500 thousand copies.
Mostly they didn’t even headline tours back then but they were just a supporting act.
So how is it possible that so many people have this strong nostalgia for the good old early days of Metallica?
It just doesn’t add up.
Second thing, since we are talking about records that came out almost 30 years ago, I really doubt that most people under 40 knew about Metallica when Cliff Burton was still alive regardless of album sales.
Unless they were listening to Ride the lightning in kindergarten.
Cool but improbable.
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You equate record sales with greatness. This assumes that the general public has good taste in music, which is not always true. The GP & musical mainstream are usually several years behind on what is going on in the underground, and they usually don't get turned on to a poduct until it has been watered down and made safe. The Black album is a good example of this.
Bob Rock was one of the most prominent glam rock producers of the late 80's & early 90's. It was his job to make a Metallica album that would appeal to the mass market, and he unquestionably succeeded with the Black album, which was far more digestable & poppy in comparision to their previous work.
Before that time, Metallica, and thrash metal in general was intolerable racket that appealed only to dispossessed youth & outsiders. It wasn't until several years later that Master of Puppets began to be recognized as a masterpeice by the mainstream music press, something metalheads had known all along.
So I don't see any paradox.