Bill Hale's Metallica The Club Dayz 1982-1984
By Michael Meade
Metallica Club Dayz cover
Courtesy Photography by Bill Hale
Bill Hale is one lucky guy! In the early 1980s he was assigned to photograph an up and coming metal band by the name of Metallica. He was there as they found their stride as a band, through the early problems (replacing Dave Mustaine with Kirk Hammet, and Cliff Burton's far too early death).
Metallica The Club Dayz 1982-1984 is of course a must own for Metallica fans, but should really be a part of every music enthusiast's collection. Hale has shared some truly amazing, never before seen candid photos and great anecdotes of the band that helped bring metal past metalheads to the forefront of rock. Not to mention cementing speed metal's place in North America.
Hale's humorous recollections definately form the soul of this book. The introductory stories of Metallica memories from John Strednansky (Editor and Chief of Metal Rendezvous Int. Heavy Rock - Metal Magazine), Ron Quintana, and Scott Earl (bass - Culprit) gave that much more heart to it; not that it lacked any for even a sentence.
The true heart of the book is of course Hale's photos. Backstage or down in the pit (the mosh pit, Bill worked all six shows presented without the safety of a photo pit), he captured moments of time in the lives of Mustaine, Hetfield, McGovney, Ulrich, Burton, and Hammet that countless fans would kill to have seen and experienced live.
There are many to choose from, but this writer's favorite shots are on pages 90-91; Burton, Mustaine, and a female friend sitting on a small stoop a few doors down from the Stone in San Francisco on March 19 1983. Not only for the fact that Dave would be out of the band soon and the coming tragedy of Cliff's passing, but also the emotions displayed on their faces; much the same sentiment Bill Hale says he feels about these two particular photos.
My next favorite is on page 107, Hale apologizes for the quality of the shot, but it's a rare photo of Cliff Burton and Dave Mustaine together after Mustaine was replaced on lead guitar by Kirk Hammet. It's a candid taken on August 12 1986, Megadeth opened for King Diamond at the Stone, without a trace of the Metallica/Megadeth animosity between them; this was also the last time Bill Hale saw Cliff Burton alive.
This piece, though shorter the book deserves, turned out a review/article hybrid but Metallica The Club Dayz 1982-1984 goes beyond any score, Bill Hale truly presents a priceless collection of photographs in a little documented part of the history of perhaps the biggest band metal will ever know.
Photographer Bill Hale
Courtesty Photography by Bill Hale
Bill Hale started photographing rock bands in 1979 at the age of eighteen. In the 1980s, Bill was the chief photographer for Metal Rendezvous International Heavy Rock-Metal Magazine.
While on staff he was able able to shoot many of the top bands of the day including Deep Purple, Black Sabbath, Riot and UFO. Bill was fortunate enough to photograph many legends before they ascended to "rock and roll heaven" - Phil Lynott, Bon Scott, Freddie Mercury and Rory Gallagher are on that list.
Metal Rendezvous gave media coverage to some of metal's biggest legends including Anthrax, W.A.S.P., L.A. Guns and Armored Saint. Bill's work has appeared in such metal magazines as Kerrang!, Enfer and Metal Mania.
Bill now lives in Hawaii and still works with rock and rollers.
(Biography courtesy Photography by Bill Hale & ECW Press)
Visit metallicatheclubdayz1982-84.blogspot.com, www.myspace.com/photo_books_by_bill_hale, and ecwpress.com for more on Bill Hale and to order your copy of Metallica The Club Dayz 1982-1984
