1986 Hit Named One of the Top Bass Lines of All Time - And It's a Metal Anthem

Heavy metal was everywhere in the 1980s, not that it isn't today, but hair metal ruled the '80s and dominated both rock radio and Top 40. But, in addition to hair metal, the decade also had some great straight-ahead heavy metal that wasn't about the image and more about the music.

Bands such as Metallica, Iron Maiden and Judas Priest broke out in the '80s, and they were far from the hair metal sounds that ruled the decade. These bands simply had a different style, sound and presentation than hair metal, and they built their own followings during this period.

Now, a 1986 metal song has been named one of the greatest bass lines of all time. This song also features a bass line from one of the best players in metal.

A 1986 Metal Song Has Been Ranked One of the Greatest of All Time

The song is Metallica and "Orion." The instrumental track, which arrived on Master Of Puppets, features the guitar work of late bass player Cliff Burton, God rest his soul.

In a tally for Guitar World magazine by their Bass Player magazine staff about the greatest bass lines ever, "Orion" makes the final cut. Burton and this song absolutely deserve it, and it's considered one of the greatest moments in metal.

"With not one but three bass solos – all of them radically different – 'Orion' is the one Metallica song that all bass players must listen to," the publication states. "Cliff Burton, who died a few months after Puppets was released, wrote this instrumental, and it shows."

They add: "The song leads off with a faded-in soup of bass notes, laden with chorus, and fades away again after a heavy guitar section to a classical bass motif that is mixed low in order to get your attention. Finally, Cliff lays down a blistering, distorted solo at the end of the song that most people mistake for a guitar part."

Burton had a unique talent, and "Orion" is the song that displays it more than any other Metallica song. In this track, he was really able to get creative and show what he could do. Burton, rest his soul, was one of the best bass players of the 1980s metal era. As someone who has written a book about the metal music of the '80s, I can say that there's really nobody above him. For "Orion," Burton and Metallica are deserving of being named among the top bass lines of all time.

This story was originally published by Men's Journal on May 29, 2026, where it first appeared in the Entertainment section. Add Men's Journal as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

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This story was originally published May 28, 2026 at 7:10 PM.