Welcome Home (Sanitarium)
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| "Welcome Home (Sanitarium)" | ||||
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| Single by Metallica | ||||
| from the album Master of Puppets | ||||
| Released | October 23, 1986 | |||
| Recorded | September–December, 1985 at Sweet Silence Studios Copenhagen, Denmark | |||
| Genre | Thrash metal | |||
| Length | 6:28 | |||
| Label | Elektra | |||
| Writer(s) | James Hetfield / Lars Ulrich / Kirk Hammett | |||
| Producer | Metallica, Flemming Rasmussen | |||
| Metallica singles chronology | ||||
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"Welcome Home (Sanitarium)" is a song by the American heavy metal band Metallica. It was released as the third and final single from their third album, Master of Puppets. It was Metallica's last single to feature bassist Cliff Burton.
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[edit] Composition
Keeping with the theme of powerlessness of "Master of Puppets", the lyrics portray one being trapped in insanity, or perhaps trapped in a mental asylum. Hetfield said he actually wrote it as tribute to the film One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, and that the style was to create a "slow, clean, picking type of song" similar to "Fade to Black", but "this time with a chorus".[1] The song begins slowly with harmonics, which eventually leads into the main riff followed by the bass guitar, drums and solo. The lyrics progress and become more harsh, backed by harsher vocals (in comparison to the cleaner vocals of the song) and heavily distorted guitars. The song ends with several guitar solos, two heavy and fast drum solos by Lars Ulrich, and a few lyrics that hint about an uprising in the asylum. Like "Fade to Black", "One", and "The Day That Never Comes", the song starts off slow and clean, but becomes heavier and faster as it progresses.
The original demo version of this song features an extended ending which is eventually used as bass and guitar solos in the song "Orion".
Hetfield admitted that the main riff of the song was lifted from the band Bleak House's song, "Rainbow Warrior".[2][3]
[edit] Live performance
In the later 1990s, Metallica would often combine the song with "Master of Puppets" in concert, calling it "Mastertarium".
[edit] In popular culture
The song's intro can be heard during the Bass/Guitar Doodle on Cunning Stunts which led into "Nothing Else Matters".
"Welcome Home (Sanitarium)" is used as background music for the film Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills, which details the controversial West Memphis Three murder case, as the three boys listened to heavy metal. It has been used as the music for the opening credits for all 3 films, and is a theme of sorts for the series.
[edit] Covers
- Anthrax
- Apocalyptica (from Plays Metallica by Four Cellos)
- Bullet for My Valentine (from The Poison re-issue bonus track, later included on Kerrang!'s Master of Puppets remastered compilation)
- Corey Taylor (Slipknot/Stone Sour) Live cover
- John Marshall, Mikkey Dee, Tony Levin, Scott Ian and Whitfield Crane for Metallic Assault: A Tribute to Metallica.
- Limp Bizkit (for the Metallica Tribute Concert and MTV Metallica Icon feature in 2003 and Summer Sanitarium Tour 2003)
- Dream Theater (from the bootleg Master of Puppets where the entire Master of Puppets album is performed live)
- Razed in Black
- Thunderstone (from A Tribute to the Four Horsemen cover album.)
- Machine Head
- Primus
- Power metal band Blind Guardian quoted the lines "Welcome to where time stands still / No one leaves and no one (ever) will" in the song "Blood Tears" from their album Nightfall in Middle-Earth.
- Metal Force (bonus track from Metal Rebirth)
Sampled officially by "lost Boyz" with "Colabo" when a respected rap group sampled the most respected metal band...in the credits too
[edit] Personnel
- James Hetfield – Rhythm guitar, Vocals
- Kirk Hammett – Lead guitar
- Cliff Burton – Bass guitar
- Lars Ulrich – Drums
[edit] References
- ^ Bienstock, Richard (December 2008). "Metallica: Talkin' Thrash". Guitar World. http://www.guitarworld.com/metallica-talkin-thrash?page=0,4.
- ^ "Prime Cuts: Metallica - Page 3". Guitar World. 2009-01-14. http://www.guitarworld.com/primecuts_metallica?page=0%2C2. Retrieved 2011-08-14.
- ^ "The 5 Most Famous Musicians Who Are Thieving Bastards". Cracked. http://www.cracked.com/article_18500_the-5-most-famous-musicians-who-are-thieving-bastards.html.