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68th out of 380 books
—
559 voters
To Live Is to Die: The Life and Death of Metallica's Cliff Burton
(Book). Metallica, the seventh-biggest recording act in American history, are consummate musicians but it wasn't always that way. A significant proportion of their playing expertise was acquired from a pivotal three-year period in their history 1983 to 1986 during which their music, a potent variant of thrash metal, evolved from garage-level to sophisticated, progressive h...more
Paperback, 272 pages
Published
May 1st 2009
by Jawbone Press
(first published 2009)
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Metallica is my favorite band and Cliff Burton is held onto this deity-like pedestal. He was a humble, grounded, and modest musician. He gave creative depth to Metallica where it otherwise lacked it.
The writing is so-so. Here's an example of a sentence before the bus flipped over killing Burton. " ... when disaster struck." A bus flipping over is disaster enough for me.
I liked this biography more because I'm such a Metallica nut. It made me appreciate the skills of a Walter Isaacson all the mor...more
The writing is so-so. Here's an example of a sentence before the bus flipped over killing Burton. " ... when disaster struck." A bus flipping over is disaster enough for me.
I liked this biography more because I'm such a Metallica nut. It made me appreciate the skills of a Walter Isaacson all the mor...more
Just finished To Live Is to Die, and as one of the few books I'll be fortunate to finish all summer, I must say it proved quite entertaining. Picked it up at Twist & Shout on a whim, and didn't expect it to be nearly as engrossing as it was. Metallica fans will already be well-acquainted with the tragic ending (on a lonely stretch of highway in Sweden, in August 1986), but for those who want a glimpse into one of the man who gave the band its defining charisma during their heyday, definitely...more
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This book is a great read not only for Metallica fans, but for any bassist who has been inspired by Cliff. Joel did a great job of breaking down many of Cliff's bass lines and fills and even pointed a few out that I'd never noticed before. This book inspired me to go back and listen to the early Metallica records with a whole new pair of ears.
I was also pleased to hear from Cliff's girlfriend at the time of his death. I believe this book marks the first time that she has spoken about her time wi...more
I was also pleased to hear from Cliff's girlfriend at the time of his death. I believe this book marks the first time that she has spoken about her time wi...more
After reading the Mustaine bio, Enter Night about Metallica and this book, there are some common themes: WWCD- What Would Cliff Do? After Master of Puppets, Black Album, Load, etc...., we don't know, Metallica doesn't know, Dave Mustaine doesn't know. NO ONE KNOWS. Leave it alone, move on, focus and celebrate Cliff for what he brought to Metallica and music overall. One single truth is evident - without Cliff coming to Metallica, there is no Ride the Lightning or Master of Puppets in the form we...more
While it's great that McIver got to interview people very close to Cliff Burton (ie, his parents, Trauma band members, girlfriend), this book is a padded, repetitive, and ultimately, wasted opportunity. Yes, Cliff was a major influence on Metallica, a great guy, a fantastic bassist, and an open-minded music fan, but does the reader need to be constantly reminded of this every few pages? And worse, McIver sways between being a historian and a very vocal music critic, feeling the urge to over-emph...more
Very good account of Cliff Burton's life. I learned a lot I didn't know about him. I didn't like that sometimes the author repeated a lot of stuff, but other than that I enjoyed the various stories from Cliff's friends and band mates. I loved that Dave Mustaine called him a "major rager and the four-string motherfucker" and the author says he was a bit of a contradiction in a good way.
i love this book really really much. it tells a lot about cliff and his life and the last days of his life. reakky sad that he died at the age of 24.
It was a good book that in depthly showed Cliff Burton's life once he was in metallica with a short time talking about his life before-hand.
It's good but every time his mom is interviewed she overuses "very very" when talking about something he did or a certain way he is. Annoying!
Good read. Read it in 4 days. Alot of information about Cliff. Alot of information on how Metallica got started. Real truth and facts interviewed by girlfriends,band members,friends and magazine articles. This book is more for memory about a man who died accidently before his time.
good book, it just shows how metallica sucks after he died
Great bio. Might read it again
A great look at one of metal's greatest bassists.
Amazing...Cliff Rulz!!!!
this book made me cry it tells a story by the best metal bass player that ever lived but sadly died by the age of 24.
mettalically inspirational
May 16, 2013
Thzad
marked it as to-read
May 14, 2013
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May 12, 2013
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is currently reading it
Apr 24, 2013
Juan Alvarado Valdivia
marked it as to-read
Apr 21, 2013
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marked it as to-read
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