Jason Newsted was the bassist chosen to replace the late Cliff Burton who tragically died at the age of 24 back in 1986. He was part of the band until 2001 when he decided to leave.
In an interview with Dean Delray (Transcribed by Blabbermouth) he explained why the band’s drummer Lars Ulrich is so important for the success of the group, even though many people criticize him for not being as good as other Thrash Metal drummers.
Jason Newsted explains why Lars Ulrich is so important to Metallica
“Anybody that says that is a fucking idiot. They have no idea what they’re talking about. The depth of this guy, his foresight, his comprehension of what the hell was going on when he was 21, 22, 23. Seriously?”
“So if he can’t play the same fill as Dave Lombardo or whoever the fuck you pick for today, so what? Look at the scoreboard, motherfucker. Do not talk shit about that guy. He’s way ahead of you in most things, I promise you that — I promise you.”
“If we wouldn’t have had him and his ability to anticipate, to predict, to know geography, to understand what country and what city and what did what at what time and all this stuff, no way Metallica would be what they were. No way! So you need to get ahold of yourselves because there’s way more to it than just being able to hit a snare drum,” Jason Newsted said.
He also says he has a deep respect for James Hetfield
During a recent interview with “Let There Be Talk” (Transcribed by Rock Celebrities), Jason said that he has a deep respect for the band’s vocalist and guitarist James Hetfield, also saying that he thinks that the frontman will never recover from the loss of Cliff Burton.
“I don’t think that James will probably ever recover from the Cliff thing because of his abandonment and separation; (because) of things that happened to him and his family and suffering so far beyond his control. This is kind of shit that cuts so deep, you know, no matter how many people you’re talking with, it’s still going to be there.”
“So within all of that, he had to find a way to compartmentalize, you know, there’s a thing Ive learned over these past years with the respect that I’ve always had great respect for the guy, but even more so now there was never a time I didn’t respect him. His ability to harness and or process and field everything that comes at him and what he’s able to do with the crowd, there’s only a handful (of people that can do the same),” Jason Newsted said.