Jason Newsted recalls his last audition with Metallica: “I’ll never, ever forget it”

In a recent interview with Metal Hammer, Jason Newsted, former bassist of metal giants Metallica, recalls his last auditions to join the band.

“That evening, it was the third day that I played with the boys. I think I stayed overnight in San Francisco for the first time.That third night, they had ‘the elders’ come in for their blessing. So, Torben Ulrich [drummer Lars’ dad], the Burtons, a couple of the crew guys, people that had been there from the get-go”, Newsted recalls.

He remembers having played six classic Metallica tracks, which included “Master Of Puppets“, “Fade To Black” and “For Whom The Bell Tolls“.

“So I am just composing myself for a second, putting my bass down, turning off Cliff’s amp — I’m playing fucking Cliff’s amp, dude!’ Jan [Burton, Cliff’s mom] comes walking in the room by herself, and she grabs me, and gets my attention. She says, ‘Great job, son,’ and I’m like, ‘Oh fuck!’. She embraced me, and it seemed like it was quite a while, and she said, ‘You’re the one, you must be the one. Please be safe, we love you,’ and she gave me a kiss.That was 35 years ago, and I’ll never, ever forget it.”