Which song on Metallica’s 1991 album was originally intended to be an instrumental?

“My Friend of Misery” was originally intended to be an instrumental on Metallica’s 1991 album, commonly called The Black Album.

Bassist Jason Newsted wrote the song’s main riff. The idea began as an instrumental, continuing a pattern from Metallica’s earlier albums, each of which had included an instrumental track. During development, however, the piece was expanded into a vocal song with lyrics by James Hetfield and Lars Ulrich.

The final version appears as track 11 of the original album and runs for 6 minutes and 49 seconds. It is one of the record’s darker, more atmospheric compositions, built around a prominent bass-led opening and a slower, weighty arrangement.

The song is sometimes confused with “The Struggle Within” or “Through the Never,” both of which also appear late in the track list. Neither began as the planned instrumental. “My Friend of Misery” is the distinctive case because its origin is tied directly to Newsted’s initial instrumental idea and to the band’s tradition of including one such composition on each earlier album.