Metallica guitarist Kirk Hammett has compiled a list of essential albums that every fan should have in their collection.
In an interview with Consequence [via Loudwire ], Hammett listed eleven titles that were part of his childhood and musical development.
Names like AC/DC , Black Sabbath , and UFO are part of the selection, but there's one in particular that catches your eye: Van Halen (1978).
“Everyone in the world should have Van Halen Van Halen songs sound like party songs, because that’s how Eddie [Van Halen] did his guitar riffs. And that’s beautiful in itself, because he managed to compose all kinds of songs with all kinds of emotions and feelings.”
Kirk also made a point of praising the late guitarist. According to him, Eddie "was the best" at using techniques like tapping and had "crazy note patterns," for example.
“He was the king of it all. Nobody did it better. So, for someone to do better than him, they'd have to reinvent the guitar from scratch, because Eddie reinvented the guitar. Nobody had done that since Jimi Hendrix . But then he came along, and he did it.”
Below, you can check out what Kirk Hammett has selected for his list of eleven essential albums:
UFO — Strangers in the Night (1979)
Jeff Beck — Wired (1976)
Al Di Meola — Elegant Gypsy (1977)
Led Zeppelin — Physical Graffiti (1975)
Van Halen — Van Halen (1978)
Journey — Next (1977)
Scorpions — Taken by Force (1977)
AC/DC — Back in Black (1980)
Black Sabbath — Sabotage (1975)
Jimi Hendrix — Band of Gypsys (1970)
The Tony Williams Lifetime — Lifetime: The Collection (1992)
READ ALSO: When Dave Mustaine was kicked out of Metallica: “We had a dream together and it all ended”
