Nothing Else Matters

When James Hetfield composed Nothing Else Matters in 1990, he was on tour and missed home. The original idea was for it to be a personal piece, something for himself. However, after hearing it, Lars Ulrich saw the potential to include it on the album. At first, Hetfield hesitated to share it with the rest of the band, feeling that its intimate and melodic sound didn't fit Metallica's image, which until then had focused on more aggressive themes. The song, which spoke of a romantic relationship, turned out to be a turning point and became one of the group's most recognized pieces.

The recording of Nothing Else Matters took place at the One on One studio in Los Angeles, as part of the sessions for the 1991 self-titled album, popularly known as The Black Album. The production was handled by Bob Rock, along with Hetfield and Ulrich. A distinctive feature of this piece is its iconic E minor arpeggio in the intro, which in live performances is played a semitone lower. It is also one of the few songs where Hetfield takes responsibility for the guitar solo, while Kirk Hammett did not participate in the studio recording of this piece, something uncommon in the band's repertoire. The orchestral parts that enrich the song were arranged by composer Michael Kamen. The music video, filmed in the spring of 1991, premiered in February 1992 and was part of the visual narrative of the documentary A Year and a Half in the Life of Metallica, showing moments of the album's creation. In August 2021, this video reached one billion views on YouTube, marking a milestone for the band.