Lars Ulrich remembered the early struggles of Metallica, telling Voir:
“I sold my 7-inch singles, the EPs. I sold the whole box to a guy named John Strednansky for $300.
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“We needed money to eat. We ate.
“Since that time, I have bought some of the singles back. But at the time, you had to do what you had to do!”
He also remembered a label called Banzai Records printing and distributing the band’s material back in ’85 and how their edition of “Ride the Lightning” had a typo on the song listing, saying:
“‘For Whom the Bells Toll,’ that’s it!
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“Listen, at that time, we were very happy to be able to make records. There is a version of ‘Ride the Lightning,’ which came out on the Bernett label, it was a trick in France. It was green.
“At that time, there was not a lot of resources, they were doing what they had to do and they were passionate about it. They were in the right frame of mind. They believed in Metallica and as a matter of fact, stuff like that happened.
“This kind of stuff does not fade when you find yourself on a major label. Certainly I remember Banzai, it was a beautiful period, beautiful years. We appreciate everything they did at the time.
“Who would have thought that 33 years later, we would be sitting here together in a trailer. A trailer with an air conditioner, with drapery covering half of the trailer. Pure luxury!”