Metallica: Metallica, known among Heavy Metal fans as "The Black Album" for obvious reasons, was the first album of the band to reach n. 1 position both in USA and UK and a huge commercial success all over the world. At the time many said that Heavy Metal had been since the first nineties a woldwide spread and appreciated genre, but still lacked of big commercial success. After this Metallica album and some others of other metal and alternative rock bands in that period, this sort of tabu that prevented "extreme" music to be considered commercially attractive fell, and Heavy Metal, Hard Rock and Alternative music in general became part of everyone's life and listenings. "The Black Album" was the first Metallica work to be co-produced by the famous rock producer Bob Rock. This album confirmed the change the band was performing in his music since 1988; though maintaining the typical Metallica trademark, they experimented for the first time slow songs and ballads, as woldwide hits The Unforgiven and Nothing Else Matters testify. The latter contains also an orchestrial arrangement by Michal Kamen, thus paving the way to their full live orchestra experience in S&M in 1999.

Artist: Metallica
Year: 1991
Type: Studio Album
Format: CD
Produced by: Bob Rock, James Hetfield, Lars Ulrich
Genre: Heavy Metal, Speed Metal, Thrash
Musicians: James Hetfield (guitar, sitar, vocals), Jason Newsted (bass), Kirk Hammet (guitar), Lars Ulrich (drums, Percussion)