Metallica are fucking rad said Flea, bassist for the Red Hot Chili Peppers, in his very heartfelt induction of Metallica. With his hair dyed blue and wearing a vintage Metallica T-shirt under a green blazer, Flea recalled the first time he heard Metallica, in 1984 while on tour with the Red Hot Chili Peppers.
“Dream big and dare to fail”, Metallica’s James Hetfield said to the audience. “I dare you to do that, because this is living proof that it is possible to make a dream come true.”
“It was 3 in the morning, we were tired, crammed into a van and sick of being on the road, and this music comes on the radio, and I couldn’t believe that it fucking existed,” Flea said, as Metallica’s James Hetfield jokingly covered his daughter’s ears.
“It was like I had been living in this normal world, where I knew what everything was that came on the radio, and all of a sudden my mind was being blown by this beautiful, violent thing that was unlike anything I had ever heard before in my life.”
“I didn’t know what it was; the only thing I knew for sure was that it was a mighty thing,” he said of “Fight Fire with Fire,” likening Metallica’s unique sound to a rarified “cosmic chemistry” and paying moving homage to the special gift of late Metallica bassist Cliff Burton.
“When a person gets rocking to their music, everything else disappears, and that person is just one with the rock. It is an inexplicable, awesome thing, and I bow down to it.”
Cliff Burton’s Dad was first to speak, giving his thanks and respect. Jason Newstead was next, followed by Robert Trujillo and Kirk Hammett.
“I think rock and roll is about possibilities and about dreams,” Metallica’s Lars Ulrich said. “The fact that the six of us can be up on the stage tonight, snot-nosed kids, outcasts, loners who grew up in very different parts of the world, in very different situations and make it here tonight, to this wonderful night in front of all these people down here … Rock and roll truly is about possibilities. Look at us. Metallica’s in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame! Can you fucking believe that?”
Metallica’s singer James Hetfield gave the Rock Hall a list of bands they should consider for induction that included Thin Lizzy, Deep Purple, Iron Maiden, Kiss, Rush, Alice Cooper, Motorhead, Ted Nugent and more.
“Dream big and dare to fail”, Metallica’s James Hetfield said to the audience. “I dare you to do that, because this is living proof that it is possible to make a dream come true.”
James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich hugged onstage after giving speeches, and thanked fans who have followed the band through its ups-and-downs that included the death of first bassist Cliff Burton in 1986.
Climax of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony came when Metallica took the stage to play. Metallica performed Master Of Puppets and Enter Sandman. Two of the group’s bassists, Jason Newsted and Robert Trujillo, jammed together. Metallica came back for the all star jam of “Train Kept A Rollin” with Jeff Beck, Jimmy Page, Joe Perry, Ron Wood, and Flea.
Thanks to MetOnTour for pictures!
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