Jason Newsted: “I Saved Metallica”

Jason Newsted believes that he "saved" Metallica.

The bass player joined the 'Enter Sandman' group in 1986 to replace Cliff Burton - who had died in a road accident - and left in 2001 after relationships between the band members broke down. However, Jason insists it was his decision to exit which benefited the band and helped them carry on.

"I don't know if this is selfish, and anybody can take it the way they want, or maybe it's egotistical - I'm not sure - but I truly feel that I saved [Metallica] in 1986 by being the right choice [to replace Cliff] and being able to take all the s**t. I also saved their band 12 years ago by stepping aside and letting them carry on with what they wanted," he said.

The 49-year-old musician claims his bandmates at the time - James Hetfield, Lars Ulrich and Kirk Hammett - began to give up on music and he felt angered after having made the group his top priority: "I was not able to be on the same page with them anymore, they were taking too much time away from the band. We hadn't plugged in our amps for months and months and months by the time that I had made the decision and called the meeting to talk to them."

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