Cliff Burton

The world of Metallica was rocked on Sept. 27, 1986, when the band's bassist -- Cliff Burton -- was killed in a bus accident. He joined up with the group just four years earlier, but in that time, provided an immense amount of influence on the sound that has made them famous...

Today (Feb. 10) would have been the 50th birthday of former Metallica bassist Cliff Burton, had his life not ended far too early. Burton performed on the band's first three classic studio albums, and his influence is still felt strongly in the worlds of rock, thrash and metal.