"For Whom the Bell Tolls" is a song by American

thrash metal Thrash metal (or simply thrash) is an Extreme metal, extreme subgenre of heavy metal music characterized by its overall aggression and fast tempo.Kahn-Harris, Keith, ''Extreme Metal: Music and Culture on the Edge'', pp. 2–3, 9. Oxford: Berg, ...

band

Metallica Metallica is an American heavy metal band. It was formed in Los Angeles in 1981 by vocalist and guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, and has been based in San Francisco for most of its career. The band's fast tempos, instrume ...

. It was first released on their second studio album, ''

Ride the Lightning ''Ride the Lightning'' is the second studio album by the American thrash metal band Metallica, released on July 27, 1984, by the independent record label Megaforce Records. The album was recorded in three weeks with producer Flemming Rasmusse ...

'' (1984).

Elektra Records Elektra Records (or Elektra Entertainment) is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group, founded in 1950 by Jac Holzman and Paul Rickolt. It played an important role in the development of contemporary folk and rock music between the ...

also released it as a promotional single, with both edited and full-length versions. In March 2018 the song ranked number five on the band's live performance count. Several live albums and video albums include the song. In March 2023, ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'' magazine ranked "For Whom the Bell Tolls" at number 39 on their "100 Greatest Heavy Metal Songs of All Time" list.

Composition

The song was inspired by

Ernest Hemingway Ernest Miller Hemingway ( ; July 21, 1899 – July 2, 1961) was an American novelist, short-story writer and journalist. Known for an economical, understated style that influenced later 20th-century writers, he has been romanticized fo ...

's 1940 novel ''

For Whom the Bell Tolls ''For Whom the Bell Tolls'' is a novel by Ernest Hemingway published in 1940. It tells the story of Robert Jordan, a young American volunteer attached to a Republican guerrilla unit during the Spanish Civil War. As a dynamiter, he is assigned ...

'' about the process of death in modern warfare and the bloody

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...

. Specific allusions are made to the scene described in Chapter 27 of the book, in which five soldiers are obliterated during an airstrike after taking a defensive position on a hill. Cliff Burton plays the bass guitar introduction with heavy distortion and a

wah pedal A wah-wah pedal, or simply wah pedal, is a type of effects unit, effects pedal designed for electric guitar that alters the timbre of the input signal to create a distinctive sound, mimicking the human voice saying the onomatopoeia, onomatopoe ...

. There were three tracks of bass that he recorded, lead bass (distorted), bass (non-distorted), and harmonics over the lead. Burton wrote the intro before joining Metallica and first played it during a 12-minute jam at a battle of the bands with his second band Agents of Misfortune in 1979. The bell sound heard at the beginning of the track was actually produced by drummer Lars Ulrich striking an anvil with a metal hammer in combination with a bell from a sound effects reel.

Track listing

"For Whom the Bell Tolls" was released as a promo single with two versions of the song. An edited version appears on the A-side, with the full-length album version on the B-side.

Other versions

Metallica

In 1999 and 2019, Metallica recorded "For Whom the Bell Tolls" with the

San Francisco Symphony The San Francisco Symphony, founded in 1911, is an American orchestra based in San Francisco, California. Since 1980 the orchestra has been resident at the Louise M. Davies Symphony Hall in the city's Hayes Valley, San Francisco, Hayes Valley ne ...

for the live albums '' S&M'' and '' S&M2'', respectively. Other live versions appear on '' Cliff 'Em All'' (VHS, 1987), '' Live Shit: Binge & Purge'' (1993), '' Cunning Stunts'' (DVD, 1997), '' Français Pour une Nuit'' (DVD, 2009), '' Orgullo, Pasión, y Gloria: Tres Noches en la Ciudad de México'' (2009), '' The Big Four: Live from Sofia, Bulgaria'' (DVD, 2010), '' Quebec Magnetic'' (DVD, 2012), and '' Metallica: Through the Never'' (soundtrack, 2013).

Remixes

A remix by

DJ Spooky Paul Dennis Miller (born September 6, 1970), known professionally as DJ Spooky, That Subliminal Kid, is an American Electronic music, electronic and experimental hip hop musician whose work is often called by critics "illbient" or "trip hop". ...

appeared on the '' Spawn'' soundtrack, titled "For Whom the Bell Tolls (The Irony of it All)". Metallica later released it on " The Memory Remains" single, re-titled "For Whom the Bell Tolls (Haven't Heard It Yet Mix)". "The Irony of it All" has vocals from both the chorus and verses of the song, while "Haven't Heard It Yet Mix" only has vocals from the chorus.

Personnel

Credits adapted from ''Ride The Lightning'' liner notes. *

James Hetfield James Alan Hetfield (born August 3, 1963) is an American musician. He is the lead vocalist, rhythm guitarist, co-founder, and a primary songwriter of heavy metal band Metallica. He is mainly known for his raspy voice and intricate rhythm playi ...

vocals, rhythm guitar * Kirk Hammettlead guitar * Cliff Burtonbass * Lars Ulrichdrums, anvil

Charts

Certifications

References

{{Authority control 1984 songs Metallica songs Songs written by Cliff Burton Songs written by James Hetfield Songs written by Lars Ulrich Elektra Records singles Music based on novels Anti-war songs Adaptations of works by Ernest Hemingway