Metallica History

Early 1981
An avid fan of New Wave of British Heavy Metal metal, Lars Ulrich (born December 26, 1963, in Gentofte, Denmark) decides he wants to start a band. So he places an ad in a Southern California magazine called Recycler, which reads: "Drummer looking for other metal musicians to jam with, Tygers of Pan Tang, Diamond Head and Iron Maiden."

James Hetfield and his buddy Hugh Tanner answer.

"I had been taking piano lessons, but guitar was definitely something I desired because you could move around a little easier. All of the bands that I liked had them. I just thought playing guitar was something I wanted to do. [When I finally got my first guitar] I had no idea how to play it at first. It's like there are six strings, and they just make one noise. Then I figured out you had to put your hands down, hold the strings down, and make different noises."
— James, Guitar One, 1997

"When we used to hang out over at Lars's house, he used to have an un-put together drum set lying in the corner and he'd always go, 'I'm gonna start a band.' We're like: 'Yeah, sure you are, Lars. Yeah, right.'"
— Brian Slagel (Metal Blade Records), Frayed Ends of Metal

"Lars had a pretty crappy drum kit, with one cymbal. It kept falling over, and we'd have to stop, and he'd pick the fucking thing up. He really was not a good drummer."
— James, on his first jam with Lars, Playboy Magazine, 2001

October 28, 1981
Although Lars doesn't even have a band, he still asks friend Brian Slagel (founder of Metal Blade Records), if he can record a track for the upcoming compilation album, Metal Massacre. Slagel agrees, and Lars recruits James Hetfield to sing and play guitar.

"Certainly the first time Lars and I got together for a jam [forming a band] didn't happen, there was no vibe. And when he came to me with an opportunity to be on a record, that was pretty interesting. At that time in my life I wanted to play music, I didn't want to work."
— James, Kerrang! Legends: Metallica

"One of the biggest things about hooking up with Lars was that he had lots of music I never heard. He was Danish. He had European stuff. The hardest stuff I had heard was Kiss, Aerosmith, just some of the punk stuff. Ramones, Sex Pistols. AC/DC, Scorpions, Judas Priest, Iron Maiden. But then when he brought in some of the more underground stuff, I was blown away."
— James, mtv.com, 2003

Fall 1981
Still without a name for his band, Lars chats with friend Ron Quintana, who is brainstorming names for a fanzine. Among Quintana's proposed names are "Metal Mania" and "Metallica." Lars convinces Ron to name the fanzine Metal Mania and "steals" the name "Metallica" for his band.

Among Lars's own ideas for the band name were: Blitzer, Grinder, Helldriver, Thunderfuck, as well as "Lars Ulrich" spelled backwards.

"Lars would visit S.F. and crash on my floor. He broke my cassette deck by constantly playing and rewinding my best live Diamond Head tapes, but always brought enough cool tapes and 'zines to make me forget about any problems."
— Ron Quintana, "San Francisco Heavy Metal. The Birth of a Scene"