Which Metallica song from The Black Album features Jason Newsted playing a 12-string bass?

“Wherever I May Roam” is the Metallica song from The Black Album featuring Jason Newsted playing a 12-string bass.

The song was released as the album’s fourth single in October 1992. Its distinctive opening uses a sitar-like sound before the full rhythm section enters, giving the track an unusual timbral identity within Metallica’s catalog.

Newsted’s 12-string bass contributes to the song’s layered, ringing low-end texture. The instrument is a specific credit often overlooked when the track is discussed mainly as a travel-themed anthem or as a showcase for Kirk Hammett’s guitar work.

The song was written by James Hetfield and Lars Ulrich, with Hetfield credited as lyricist. It reached number 82 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and became a regular part of the band’s live repertoire. The 12-string-bass detail distinguishes it from the album’s other bass performances.