10 Rock Bands Who Were Forced To Change Their Album Covers
4. Metallica - Kill 'Em All (1983)
Metallica's debut album – you know the one, with the blood and the hammer and the big, bold red and black – not only almost had a completely different cover, but it was originally intended to be called Metal Up Your Ass.
Had the band got their way, Metal Up Your Ass would have had a cover featuring a dagger-wielding hand emerging from a toilet bowl. However, Jon Zazula, the head of Megaforce (their label), convinced them to change both the title and the artwork, as he thought it was too explicit for distributors to stock.
In the end it was original bassist Cliff Burton who stepped in to save the day. The replacement title Kill 'Em All was his response to the record company and their distributors, and the replacement cover was designed at his request, reflecting the hammer that Burton carried with him everywhere, y'know, just in case he needed to smash something up.
Perhaps we should be thankful the Metallica boys didn't stick to their guns, as not only does the original artwork not hold any of the Kill 'Em All design's bold power, but the title seems gimmicky and forgettable; hardly worthy of one of the most popular rock and metal acts of all time.
In any case, the original artwork and title have subsequently appeared on a variety of official band merchandise, including t-shirts and live recordings, and suffice to say nobody is afraid to stock them now.