The intro to “Don’t Tread on Me” on Metallica’s 1991 album Metallica interpolates the melody “America” from West Side Story.
“America” was composed by Leonard Bernstein for the musical West Side Story. Metallica used part of that melody in the introduction to “Don’t Tread on Me,” creating a brief musical reference that contrasts with the song’s heavy guitar-driven body.
“Don’t Tread on Me” is track six on the standard album. Its title and imagery connect to the Gadsden flag, whose coiled snake and motto also influenced the album’s packaging. The song was sent to rock radio but was not released as a commercial single, another detail that often causes confusion in lists of The Black Album singles.
The interpolation is not a cover of the entire musical number. It is a short quotation or adaptation in the introduction, while the song itself remains an original Metallica composition credited to the band’s principal writers.