The intro to Metallica’s “Don’t Tread on Me” interpolates the melody of “America” from the musical West Side Story.
“Don’t Tread on Me” appears on Metallica’s 1991 album, commonly called The Black Album. Its opening uses material associated with “America,” a song from the 1957 musical West Side Story, whose music was composed by Leonard Bernstein. The interpolation is a brief musical reference rather than a cover of the full song.
The connection is easy to miss because the rest of “Don’t Tread on Me” is a Metallica composition with a heavy-rock arrangement. The song’s title refers to the Gadsden flag and its “Don’t Tread on Me” motto, while its lyrics use patriotic imagery and a warning against aggression.
“Don’t Tread on Me” was issued to rock radio after the album’s release but was not released as a commercial single. It is therefore sometimes omitted from lists of the album’s five official singles, even though it remains one of the record’s 12 original tracks.