Was METALLICA's 'Welcome Home (Sanitarium)' Inspired By Work Of Another Band?

November 28, 2004

Did METALLICA inadvertently "borrow" a musical idea from another band for their 1986 dark "power ballad" "Welcome Home (Sanitarium)"? Several Internet reports definitely seem to suggest so.

A song called "Rainbow Warrior" by the obscure NWOBHM (New Wave of British Heavy Metal) band BLEAK HOUSE (photo) appears to contain undeniable similarities to the METALLICA classic. The BLEAK HOUSE track was released as a seven-inch single in 1980 via Buzzard Records, and was followed up by another seven-inch single in 1982 and various compilation appearances before the band apparently called it a day.

A self-proclaimed NWOBHM fanatic, METALLICA drummer Lars Ulrich spent much of his time in the early '80s tracking down obscure recordings from his favorite groups of the era. Ten years after the NWOBHM's glory days of 1982, Ulrich took time out to put together a multi-band compilation, "'79 Revisited: New Wave of British Heavy Metal", along with journalist Geoff Barton, whose work in the now-defunct weekly U.K. rock paper Sounds had kept Ulrich posted while he was in the States.

BLEAK HOUSE - "Rainbow Warrior" (mp3)
METALLICA - "Welcome Home (Sanitarium)" (Windows Media)

For more information on BLEAK HOUSE, click here.

Find more on
  • facebook
  • twitter
  • reddit
  • email

Comments Disclaimer And Information

BLABBERMOUTH.NET uses the Facebook Comments plugin to let people comment on content on the site using their Facebook account. The comments reside on Facebook servers and are not stored on BLABBERMOUTH.NET. To comment on a BLABBERMOUTH.NET story or review, you must be logged in to an active personal account on Facebook. Once you're logged in, you will be able to comment. User comments or postings do not reflect the viewpoint of BLABBERMOUTH.NET and BLABBERMOUTH.NET does not endorse, or guarantee the accuracy of, any user comment. To report spam or any abusive, obscene, defamatory, racist, homophobic or threatening comments, or anything that may violate any applicable laws, use the "Report to Facebook" and "Mark as spam" links that appear next to the comments themselves. To do so, click the downward arrow on the top-right corner of the Facebook comment (the arrow is invisible until you roll over it) and select the appropriate action. You can also send an e-mail to blabbermouthinbox(@)gmail.com with pertinent details. BLABBERMOUTH.NET reserves the right to "hide" comments that may be considered offensive, illegal or inappropriate and to "ban" users that violate the site's Terms Of Service. Hidden comments will still appear to the user and to the user's Facebook friends. If a new comment is published from a "banned" user or contains a blacklisted word, this comment will automatically have limited visibility (the "banned" user's comments will only be visible to the user and the user's Facebook friends).