THE $5.98 GARAGE DAYS RE-REVISITED

"The $5.98 Garage Days Re-Revisited" is an EP released in 1987 by US thrash metal act Metallica. The tracks on the EP were rehearsed in drummer Lars Ulrich's garage, but recorded at the A & M and Conway Studios in Los Angeles, California in July 1987. This is the first release by the band to feature the then new bassist Jason Newsted after the death of original bassist Cliff Burton in a tragic tour bus accident on the 27th of September 1986 near Dörarp, Sweden. So the EP served as a kind of welcome to the new kid (Jason Newsted is referred to as Jason Newkid in the liner notes) but also to mourn the loss of Cliff Burton and then move on. The CD re-release of the EP was re-titled "The $9.98 Garage Days Re-Revisited" to reflect the changed price for the CD version. The original intention with putting the price on the front cover and in the title of the EP was trying to ensure that the fans didn´t pay overprice. Both the Vinyl and the CD releases have been out of print for years. "The $5.98 Garage Days Re-Revisited" was also included in the "The Good, the Bad and the Live (1990)" boxset and it´s also available as part of the "Garage Inc. (1998)" cover tunes compilation album.

The EP features five cover tunes of Diamond Head, Holocaust, Killing Joke, Budgie and Misfits (or actually six songs, as "Last Caress / Green Hell" by Misfits are actully two short songs that segue into each other). NWoBHM and hardcore/ punk from the late seventies and early eighties were always Metallica´s biggest influence and it´s showcased on "The $5.98 Garage Days Re-Revisited" EP more than anywhere else in Metallica´s discography. These five songs are excellent examples of how Metallica have always been able to make cover songs their own. From the fast-paced hardcore/ punk of Misfits to the almost doomy heavy metal of Holocaust this is a great release.

The production is very good. Clean, sharp and powerful. It´s excellent but not over- produced. Remember this was about having fun.

"The $5.98 Garage Days Re-Revisited" is a great release by Metallica. An EP I always enjoy when I give it a spin. It´s lost none of its magic in the twenty years that has past since I purchased it the first time. A 3.5 - 4 star rating is well deserved.