Which song on Metallica's The Black Album received orchestral arrangements by Michael Kamen?

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“Nothing Else Matters” received orchestral arrangements by Michael Kamen on Metallica's The Black Album.

The song is a power ballad written by James Hetfield and Lars Ulrich. Hetfield originally wrote it privately while touring and did not initially intend it to become a Metallica song. After Ulrich heard the piece, the band developed it for the album.

Kamen created the orchestral arrangement, and the recording included the London Symphony Orchestra. The added strings broadened the song's emotional scale without removing its guitar-based identity.

Another unusual detail is that Kirk Hammett does not play on the studio recording. Hetfield performed the guitar solo, making the track one of the relatively few Metallica studio songs without Hammett's recorded participation. The song was released as the album's third single in 1992.

Source: Wikipedia · fact-checked Oct. 2026

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