10 Greatest Rock Music Gigs Of The 1990s
4. Metallica With San Francisco Orchestra
Out of all the different facets of rock music, metal has picked up a nasty reputation as being the dirtiest of all of the genres. Compared to what you've heard from the Beatles and the Stones, the idea of bands like Judas Priest and Sabbath touching on softer territory just seems silly these days. For all of the power behind metal though, Metallica's collaboration with the San Francisco Symphony showed that metal could clean up nice.
Having help from genius arranger Michael Kamen, this one live gig in San Francisco has some of the most haunting renditions of Metallica's most classic songs, even taking time to flesh out a full live arrangement of their entrance music The Ecstasy of Gold. From the opening blast of Master of Puppets, this entire set managed to please both sides of the aisle, with guitars that hit like an anvil alongside the chills from the string section going on underneath it all.
As to be expected, the best combination of both of these elements come with the ballads, with One standing out as an example of how to completely reinvent the song from the ground up. Outside of the shock factor of seeing these genres meet, this felt more like a statement from Metallica than anything else. Behind all the distortion and darkness, there were some expert level musicians who could really show their stuff.