Cliff Burton

 
 
I have put together this collection of articles quotes and interviews that are very interseting. I didnt write this but just put it together and so i take no credit for this.

1962-1986

On september 27th 1986 is a day all rock fans will never forget. On the
damage inc tour of Wales on the way to Copenhagen , Metallicas tour
bus hit a patch of black ice and began to swerve violently.The bus
overturned and threw the 24 year old bass player Cliff burton from his
bunk out the window killing him when the bus landed on him. All
passengers climbed clear of the bus including the other 3 band members
with minor injuries.  Cliff was born on the 10th of febuary 1962. Cliff
joined Metallica when James and Kirk attended San Francisco,s Trauma
featuring Cliff burton as bassist at the Whisky-a-go-go.They where so impressed
by Cliff that they immediatly set in pursuit to pursuade him into joining
metallica. He agreed but only if they would relocate to San-Francisco. CLiff recorded 3 excelent albums with metallica untill hi trajic death in that bus
accident. Kill em all, Ride the lighning and Master of puppets. Two weeks
later Metallica decided to find a new bassist and so Jason Newstead joined as the new bassist. On december 4th 1987 metallica released Cliff em all, a collection
of bootleg and unproffesional recordings from when Cliff was still in the band.
 The video certified both Gold and Platinum two months after its release and by the end of 1988 it became the top selling home music video.

"Cliff was so completely honest to himself and the people around
  him.  He hated all this being-put-on-a-pedestal bullshit."
                                          Lars Ulrich, 1986

          "To this day, I think of him every day."
                                          Kirk Hammett, 1988

"He was a great and very special talent.....Cliff's solos were
                    absolutely brilliant."
                                         Jason Newsted, 1988

"He was a wild, hippie-ish, acid-taking, bell-bottom-wearing guy.
He meant business, and you couldn't fuck around with him.  I wanted to
get that respect that he had.  We gave him shit about his bell-bottoms
everyday.  He didn't care.  "This is what I wear.  Fuck you." He loved
music.  He was really intellectual but very to the point.  He taught me
                    alot about attitude."
                                         James Hetfield, 1993

"We heard this wild solo going on and thought, 'I don't see any guitar
player up there.'  It turned out it was the bass player, Cliff, with
a wah wah pedal and this mop of hair.  He didn't care whether people
    were there.  He was looking down at his bass playing."
                                             James Hetfield
 

"I saw the bus lying right on him.  I saw his legs sticking out.  I freaked.
The bus driver, I recall, was trying to yank the blanket out from under
him to use for other people.  I just went, 'Don't fucking do that!'  I
already wanted to kill the guy.  I don't know if he was drunk or if he
hit some ice.  All I knew was, he was driving and Cliff wasn't alive
                          anymore."
                                         James Hetfield -1993
 

"I wasn't too angry in the beginning.  I was obviously grieving, but the
anger started setting in when I realized that it's not new that people in
rock-n-roll die, but usually it's self-inflicted in terms of excessive
drink or drug abuse.  He had nothing to do with it.  It's so useless.
                     Completely useless."
                                         Lars Ulrich, January 1987
 

"The only person who was able to figure out a time and write it on
a piece of paper was Cliff.  He had an immense knowledge of timing,
       musical harmonies and music theory in general."
                                                Kirk - 1987

"Cliff's taken classes in school on music theory, things like mixing
harmonies together.  I think he took a junior college course. "
                                                James - 1986

"When a man lies he murders some part of the world, These are the pale
deaths which men miscall their live. All this i cannot bear to witness any
longer, Cannot this kingdom of salvation send me home.
                                Cliff Burton
 

"You don't burn out from going too fast.  You burn out from going too
                   slow and getting bored."
                                     The late Cliff Burton

 Question:  What would you say to a band that's just starting
                      out on the rock scene today?

                        Cliff :  Quit!
 

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