TODAY IN ROCK AND ROLL HISTORY - 08/12/1991

Metallica (commonly known as The Black Album) is the fifth studio album by American heavy metal band Metallica. Released on August 12, 1991 by Elektra Records, it received widespread critical acclaim and became the band’s best-selling album. Metallica produced five singles that are considered to be among the band’s best-known songs, which include “Enter Sandman”, “The Unforgiven”, “Nothing Else Matters”, “Wherever I May Roam”, and “Sad but True”.

Metallica played Metallica in its entirety during the 2012 European Black Album Tour. In 2003, the album was ranked number 255 on Rolling Stone’s 500 greatest albums of all time. In December 2019, Metallica became the fourth release in American history to enter the 550 week milestone on the Billboard 200. It also became the second longest-charting traditional title in history, and the second to spend 550 weeks on the album charts.