“My Friend of Misery” began as Jason Newsted's bass riff and was first intended as an instrumental.
Newsted, Metallica's bassist at the time, wrote the main riff for the song during the Black Album period. The idea was initially connected to the band's tradition of including an instrumental track, a feature present on each of its previous albums.
The piece ultimately became a vocal song instead. James Hetfield wrote lyrics for it, and the finished track appeared as the eleventh song on the original album. Its brooding bass-led character makes it stand out within a record better known for radio staples such as “Enter Sandman” and “Sad but True.”
The song is sometimes overlooked when people discuss the album's songwriting because most Metallica compositions were developed primarily by Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich. Newsted nevertheless contributed important musical ideas, and “My Friend of Misery” is the clearest Black Album example of one of his riffs shaping a complete track.