What was the date range of Metallica’s main recording sessions for The Black Album?

Metallica’s main recording sessions for The Black Album ran from October 6, 1990, to June 16, 1991.

The dates show that the album was not made quickly. The band spent many months developing, recording, revising, and refining the songs before the record was released on August 12, 1991. Producer Bob Rock’s detailed working style contributed to the lengthy process.

Most tracking took place at One on One Recording Studios in Los Angeles. The musicians also spent about a week at Little Mountain Sound in Vancouver, and final overdubs and mixing were completed at A&M Studios in Hollywood during June and July 1991.

The extended schedule became part of the album’s history because Metallica and Rock frequently disagreed in the studio. Those sessions nevertheless produced a decisive shift from the denser, more technical presentation of earlier albums toward a slower, heavier, and more accessible sound.