From album
…And Justice for All
Metallica
Details
TonalidadG
Compás4/4
Tempo99 BPM
Duración7:26
CompositorJames Hetfield / Lars Ulrich
Álbum…And Justice for All
ISRCQMKHM1700138
Credits
Music James Hetfield, Lars Ulrich
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The story behind
The song One by Metallica immerses us in the despair of a World War I soldier, a man who has been left completely incapacitated: blind, deaf, and mute, unable to move. In his mind, only a plea to God remains to end his suffering. The narrative becomes palpable when, in the music video, he tries to communicate with hospital staff, moving spasmodically in his bed to spell out SOS in Morse code. The piece, written by James Hetfield and Lars Ulrich, was released in 1988 as the third and final single from the album ...And Justice for All. The production was handled by the band along with Flemming Rasmussen.
The impact of One was significant, reaching number 35 on the Billboard Hot 100 and topping the charts in Finland. The music video, filmed in black and white by director Michael Salomon, premiered in January 1989 and intertwines the soldier's story with scenes from the 1971 anti-war film Johnny Got His Gun. In fact, Metallica went on to purchase the rights to the film so they could continue showing the video without having to pay royalties. This clip quickly climbed to number one on MTV. The song also marked a milestone at the Grammy Awards, winning the first award in the Best Metal Performance category in 1990, and was performed at the 2014 ceremony alongside pianist Lang Lang. Over time, One has become one of the band's most beloved pieces, a staple in their concerts, and the most performed track from ...And Justice for All. In 2023, Rolling Stone ranked it 11th on its list of the 100 greatest heavy metal songs of all time. The song's structure, with its distinctive tempo change and the "machine gun" section of guitars and double bass drumming, has been noted by some as pioneering in metal.
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