Metallica Songs Biggest Hits & Top 10 All-Time
Last Updated: May 30, 2022 | Written by Matthew Campbell (Editor of My Wedding Songs and wedding DJ)
Metallica is an American (California) heavy metal rock band formed in 1981. Metallica was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2009. They were also most notably instrumental in bringing down Napster as an illegal music-sharing platform.
Current Band Members:
- Vocalist/guitarist James Hetfield
- Drummer Lars Ulrich
- Lead guitarist Kirk Hammett
- Bassist Robert Trujillo
Former band members:
- Lead guitarist Dave Mustaine
- Bassists Ron McGovney
- Cliff Burton
- Jason Newsted
Much to the chagrin of underground fans, Metallica hit the mainstream with the release of their fifth album titled The Black Album.
Spotify Metallica Playlist
Best Metallica Songs List
#1 One
Released in 1989
On Album …And Justice for All
Hold my breath as I wish for death
Oh please God, wake me
One is Metallica’s first Top 40 hit and brought them to mainstream and out from underground. The song’s theme and lyrics are based on the novel Johnny Got His Gun – about a soldier who is hit by a land mine and loses his limbs, eyes, ears, and mouth. His mind functions perfectly, however, leaving him trapped inside his own body.
#2 Enter Sandman
Released in 1991
On Album Metallica
The songs centers around childhood nightmares.
Exit light
Enter night
Take my hand
We’re off to never never land
#3 Nothing Else Matters
Released in 1992
On Album Metallica
This song could actually be interpreted as a love song. The song talks about being “so close, no matter how far” – a strong bond even while being apart.
So close, no matter how far
It couldn’t be much more from the heart
Forever trusting who we are
And nothing else matters
#4 Fade To Black
Released in 1984
On Album Ride the Lightning
The song talks about suicidal feelings.
Simply nothing more to give
There is nothing more for me
Need the end to set me free
#5 The Unforgiven
Released in 1992
On Album Metallica
The song is about the struggle of a person against the efforts of those who would try and control him.
Never shined through in what I’ve shown
Never free
Never me
So I dub thee unforgiven
#6 Turn The Page
Released in 1998
On Album Garage Inc.
The song was originally released by Bob Seger in 1973. The song is about the emotional and social ups and downs of a rock musician’s life on the road.
Here I am, on the road again
There I am, up on the stage
There I go playin’ the star again
There I go, turn the page
#7 Wherever I May Roam
Released in 1992
On Album Metallica
Did you know the song is used as entrance songs in sports for pro wrestlers, baseball players, and sports teams?
I adapt to the unknown
Under wandering stars I’ve grown
By myself, but not alone
I ask no one
#8 For Whom the Bell Tolls
Released in 1985
On Album Ride the Lightning
The song was inspired by Ernest Hemingway’s 1940 novel For Whom the Bell Tolls about the dishonor of modern warfare and the protagonist’s imminent doom during the bloody Spanish Civil War.
Stranger now are his eyes to this mystery
He hears the silence so loud
Crack of dawn, all is gone except the will to be
Now they see what will be, blinded eyes to see
#9 Sad But True
Released in 1993
On Album Metallica
The song is most notable for it’s tone – one step down on the 5-string bass down to ‘A standard’.
I’m your dream, mind astray
I’m your eyes while you’re away
I’m your pain while you repay
You know it’s sad but true
#10 Master Of Puppets
Released in 1986
On Album Master of Puppets
The song is about how drugs control you.
Master of puppets, I’m pulling your strings
Twisting your mind and smashing your dreams
Blinded by me, you can’t see a thing
Just call my name ’cause I’ll hear you scream
Have a favorite Metallica song, not on our list? Please share it below so that the song can be added to the list.
Metallica Highest-Charting Singles – U.S. Rock
- #1 Until It Sleeps, 1996
- #1 Hero of the Day, 1996
- #1 Turn the Page, 1998
- #1 No Leaf Clover (with San Francisco Symphony), 1999
- #1 I Disappear, 2000
- #1 The Day That Never Comes, 2008
- #1 Cyanide, 2008
- #1 Hardwired, 2016
- #1 Atlas, Rise!, 2016
- #1 All Within My Hands (with San Francisco Symphony), 2020
- #2 The Unforgiven II, 1998
- #2 St. Anger, 2003
- #2 Now That We’re Dead, 2017
- #3 The Memory Remains, 1997
- #4 Whiskey in the Jar, 1999
- #4 Spit Out the Bone, 2017
- #5 Moth into Flame, 2016
Other artist song lists to read: