Which Metallica song began as bassist Jason Newsted’s planned instrumental on The Black Album?

“My Friend of Misery” began as bassist Jason Newsted’s planned instrumental on Metallica’s 1991 album, commonly called The Black Album.

Newsted wrote the song’s main riff and originally intended it to continue Metallica’s earlier practice of including an instrumental track on each album. The band’s previous four studio albums had each contained an instrumental, making the idea a recognizable part of Metallica’s early album structures.

During development, the piece changed from an instrumental concept into a vocal song. James Hetfield and Lars Ulrich helped shape the arrangement, while Hetfield wrote lyrics that turned the track into a brooding reflection on isolation and dissatisfaction.

The final recording therefore carries a distinctive connection to Newsted’s songwriting, even though the album’s main songwriting partnership remained Hetfield and Ulrich. It is often discussed alongside “The God That Failed” and “Through the Never,” but those songs did not originate as Newsted’s planned instrumental.