“Nothing Else Matters” is the Metallica song from The Black Album on which James Hetfield plays the guitar solo instead of Kirk Hammett.
Hetfield wrote the song in 1990 while touring and initially intended it as a personal piece rather than a Metallica release. After Lars Ulrich heard it, the band developed it for the album. Its introspective lyrics and orchestral arrangement made it one of the record’s most distinctive tracks.
The studio recording is unusual in the band’s catalog because Hammett does not play on it. Hetfield handles the guitar solo, while composer Michael Kamen wrote the orchestral arrangements. Hammett later said he did not learn to play the song until the band was well into the album tour.
Listeners sometimes assume that every Metallica lead-guitar part belongs to Hammett. “Nothing Else Matters” is a notable exception, although Hammett has performed the song live in later years.