“Even though Dave might claim that he wrote Leper Messiah, he didn’t”: The story of every song Dave Mustaine co-wrote for Metallica – and what Megadeth did with those riffs

Dave Mustaine of Megadeth in 1987, and James Hetfield, Lars Ulrich and Cliff Burton of Metallica in 1985.

‘Metallica vs Megadeth’ has been the metalhead’s ‘Blur vs Oasis’ for 40 years now, and it’s a rivalry built predominantly off of two things. One: the fact that Megadeth singer/guitarist Dave Mustaine was Metallica’s first lead guitarist from 1982 to 1983 before being unceremoniously fired. Two: that Metallica used songs that Mustaine co-wrote for them, despite the fact he allegedly asked them not to as he packed his bags.

The dispute over whose names belong on what song has sometimes got pretty ugly, to the point that Mustaine once blocked a reissue of the Metallica demo No Life Til Leather over apparently incorrect credits. The issue has heated up once again, as in October, Megadeth announced that their final album will feature bonus track Ride The Lightning: a Metallica song that Mustaine has had co-authorship of since 1984.