Fade to Black

The promo single came out on phosphorescent green vinyl. The lyrics deal with suicidal feelings. Ulrich recalled that the band was obsessed with death at the time, and Hetfield cited the theft of his favorite amp as a trigger. In 1991 Hetfield said fans had written to say the song helped them. Guitar World readers voted its solo the 24th best, and Rolling Stone ranks it 35 on its 2023 list of the 100 greatest heavy metal songs. It is 2x Platinum in the United States. Hetfield told Guitar World in 1991 that he wrote it at a friend's house in New Jersey, depressed after the gear theft and after being thrown out of the manager's house. He called it a suicide song and said the band took criticism for it, but also received hundreds of letters from fans who said it made them feel better. It begins with an acoustic guitar and grows heavier, a pattern the band repeated in Welcome Home (Sanitarium), One and The Day That Never Comes.