Cliff Burton

Cliff Burton (Photbucket)

My hero, Clifford “Cliff” Burton, shows characteristics of leadership and courage. He had the courage to lead Metallica to move to the San Fransisco Bay area. He did this so they could get easily noticed in the 80’s music scene. Soon to become one of the most respected bassists to ever live creating blistering bass lines and amazing music.

The Band (http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.taramtamtam.com/wallpapers/Music/M/Metallica/images/Metallica_12.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.taramtamtam.com/wallpapers/Music/M/Metallica/index)

Cliff looks like your typical 80’s metal head. Long curly hair, smaller build and always wearing band shirts. He lived in San Francisco. He was born 1962 February 10th, and died September 26, 1986 in a bus crash in Sweden. Cliff made a difference by changing how metal, thrash, and hard rock were played; he had insanely fast finger picking and he made some of the coolest bass lines I have ever heard. He has been a big influence on me and most of my friends who play guitar and/or bass because there was a simplicity to his music but he made it sound so complex, and once again he can play extremely fast and for an extended period of time such as “Fight Fire With Fire” from "Ride the Lightning," which has been described as a “10 minute bass solo” and “Pulling Teeth” one of Cliff’s most famous bass solo.

He has inspired me to believe that I can do anything that I put my mind to because he had the ability to change the mind of all his band mates, even though they all wanted to stay in L.A. He also inspired me to learn guitar and bass because of one riff from Metallica’s “For Whom the Bell Tolls”.

This is why Cliff is my hero, with his amazing music and his courage and leadership skills he influenced me to learn the basics and soon the advanced techniques of speed and thrash metal.