Which Metallica album track began as an instrumental built around Jason Newsted's main riff?

“My Friend of Misery” began as an instrumental built around Jason Newsted's main riff for Metallica's 1991 album, commonly called The Black Album.

Newsted had joined Metallica after the death of bassist Cliff Burton and contributed ideas during the writing of the album. For “My Friend of Misery,” he wrote the main riff, and the piece was initially intended to continue Metallica's earlier tradition of including an instrumental track on every album.

The song ultimately received lyrics and vocals from James Hetfield. Its brooding arrangement and prominent bass-centered opening give it a darker, more reflective character than several of the album's radio-focused songs.

A common mix-up is to identify “The Struggle Within” or “Through the Never” as the unfinished instrumental idea. Those are separate songs. “My Friend of Misery” is the track specifically linked to Newsted's original instrumental concept.