‘The Ultimate Metallica Show’ Recap: Honoring the Zazulas + Metallica’s Early Days

I think it's appropriate to say this was a radio show unlike any other.

Yeah, we've played old-school songs before and we always love celebrating the early days of Metallica, but on the latest edition of The Ultimate Metallica Show, we pulled out all the stops. We threw up our horns in honor of the late, incredible Jonny and Marsha Zazula, the two legends who heard Metallica's demo tape, No Life 'Til Leather, and knew they were listening to something special.

After hearing the demo, they founded Megaforce Records. They released Kill 'Em All and Ride the Lightning.

And they changed heavy metal—truly, all of rock and roll—forever.

We weren't the only ones celebrating the Zazulas and Megaforce this weekend. Sunday night, Metallica put on an incredible concert in Florida in tribute to Jonny Z and Marsha, too. New Wave of British Heavy Metal rockers Raven opened the show, just like they did when they opened for Metallica in the early-'80s, and Metallica tore through 16 songs from their early days. You can read our full recap here and check out some photos and videos from the show on the Ultimate Metallica Instagram.

During The Ultimate Metallica Show, I played a couple of clips from Jonny Z as well as a clip from Metal Maria Ferrero, the first employee of Megaforce. If you missed the show, you can hear those clips, as well as see the full playlist, below.

The Ultimate Metallica Show — Hour 1

• "Blitzkrieg" — Garage Inc.
• "For Whom the Bell Tolls" — Ride the Lightning
• "Metal Militia" — Kill 'Em All
• "Seek & Destroy" — Cover by Chuck Billy and Jake E. Lee, The Blackest Box: The Ultimate Metallica Tribute
• "Whiplash" — Kill 'Em All
• "Escape" — Cover by Gojira, From Mars to Sirius
• "Ride the Lightning" — Live at Keystone, Palo Alto, California, Oct. 31, 1983
• "Creeping Death" — Ride the Lightning

The Ultimate Metallica Show — Hour 2

• "The Four Horsemen" — Kill 'Em All
• "The Prince" — Garage Inc.
• "(Anesthesia) - Pulling Teeth" — Live at Aragon Ballroom, Chicago, Illinois, May 25, 1986
• "No Remorse" — Cover by Diamond Head, Lightning to the Nations 2020
• "Motorbreath" — No Life 'Til Leather Demo Tape
• "Jump in the Fire" — Cover by Dee Dee Ramone, Punk Goes Metal
• "Phantom Lord" — Live at The Fillmore, San Francisco, California, Dec. 10, 2011
• "Hit the Lights" — Kill 'Em All

Jonny Z on the Early Days of Metallica

Jonny Z on hearing No Life 'Til Leather

Metal Maria Ferrero on Seeing Cliff Burton Perform "(Anesthesia) - Pulling Teeth" Live

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Don't forget, you can always hit me up in the Ultimate Metallica app if you have a song request or a Metallica memory to share. Send me a message anytime during the show or throughout the week.

Watch Metallica Perform "Phantom Lord" Live in San Francisco