LOS ANGELES, CA – MAY 02: Metallica (L-R) Robert Trujillo, James Hetfield, perform at the 5th Annual Revolver Golden Gods Award Show at Club Nokia on May 2, 2013 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)
It was on this date in 1991 that Metallica changed the game and released the first single of their upcoming "Black" album, Enter Sandman. I'll never forget hosting a listening party for that record. You could not jam another person into that bar! After every song the fans cheered.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CD-E-LDc384
The summer of 1991 also found us in the theaters watching Terminator 2: Judgement Day!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CRRlbK5w8AE
Another big movie that came out in 1991 was "Silence of the Lambs!"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W6Mm8Sbe__o
Serial killer Jeffery Dahmer was arrested. Who could forget that creep!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iWjYsxaBjBI
"Iron" Mike Tyson is charged with rape.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tw7XeJYxQaI
This wasn't the summer, but the big news of 1991 was the Gulf War. In January of 1991, Iraq refused to leave Kuwait, and a U.S.-led air attack started in what was known as Operation Desert Storm. On Feb. 26, on Baghdad radio, Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein announced the withdrawal of Iraqi troops from Kuwait. God bless our troops.
Metallica released their self-titled fifth studio album on August 12, 1991. Affectionately known as "The Black Album," the LP became a game-changer for the band. It also had a massive impact on the music industry at large thanks to the game-changing technology then known as SoundScan, which premiered on March 1, 1991.
Per a feature piece from Billboard, "SoundScan, which is now known as MRC Data, measured album sales as they happened — stores scanned bar codes at the checkout register — and over the next few months [after its launch] it upended the conventional music business wisdom about what sold, as well as when and how. It revealed the popularity of several genres — alternative rock, country, hip-hop, harder metal — that had been seen as commercially marginal compared to bread-and-butter pop-rock bands."
Basically, SoundScan provided real-time data of what was actually selling at record stores and other retailers, and it has provided proof of Metallica's popularity.
Of course, not everyone is a fan of "The Black Album." Metallica appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live! in September 2021 and read 1-star Amazon reviews of the LP. Fortunately, they were good sports about the whole thing. Then again, when you make Metallica money, it takes more than a bizarre review to truly ruin your day.
So, which was the best 1-star review of "The Black Album"? One review that stood out read, "I bought this when it came out. I was horrified when I listened to it. I threw it off a bridge and watched a truck smash it."
That being said, just how popular are the metal icons? "The Black Album" is the biggest-selling record in the United States since the launch of SoundScan.
Metallica, however, has some very unique company on the list of the biggest-selling albums of the SoundScan era. Scroll through the gallery below to see which titles join them in the top ten.
10. Creed - 'Human Clay'
UMGCreed's 'Human Clay' has sold 11,690,000 copies. It was the band's second studio album and was released on September 28, 1999. The album features the hits "Higher" and "With Arms Wide Open." It topped the 'Billboard' 200 album chart for two weeks.
9. Santana - 'Supernatural'
Arista11,850,000 copies sold.
8. Adele - '21'
XL Recordings12,100,000 copies sold.
7. Whitney Houston - 'The Bodyguard' Soundtrack
Arista12,140,000 copies sold.
6. Backstreet Boys - 'Millennium'
Sony12,300,000 copies sold.
5. Bob Marley and the Wailers - 'Legend'
Island12,300,000 copies sold.
4. The Beatles - '1'
UMG13,000,000 copies sold.
3. Alanis Morissette 'Jagged Little Pill'
Rhino'Jagged Little Pill' sold 15,200,000 copies. The third studio album by Alanis Morissette, it rocketed the Canadian singer-songwriter to superstardom. 'Jagged Little Pill' features a number of hit singles, including "You Oughta Know," "Ironic" and "Hand in My Pocket." 'Jagged Little Pill' won five Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year.
2. Shania Twain - 'Come on Over'
Mercury15,730,000 copies sold.
1. Metallica - 'Metallica'
Blackened Recordings'Metallica' has sold 17,300,000 copies. Also known as "The Black Album," the LP features some of Metallica's biggest hits, including "Enter Sandman," "Nothing Else Matters," "The Unforgiven," "Sad But True" and "Wherever I May Roam." The album was Metallica's first to top the 'Billboard' 200 album chart. While it was massively successful, 'Metallica' only won one Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance.
