Peace Sells But Who's Buying

Megadeth: Dave Mustaine (vocals, guitar); Chris Poland (guitar); David Ellefson (bass guitar, background vocals); Gar Samuelson (drums).
Recording information: The Music Grinder, Los Angeles, California.
Guitarist Dave Mustaine was an original member of thrash-pioneers Metallica. But he was booted from the band during the recording of that band's debut album, KILL 'EM ALL. Instead of moping around, Mustaine returned to California and immediately formed another group--Megadeth. He promised his fans that the new outfit would be faster and more lethal than his former band, and Megadeth's 1985 debut, KILLING IS MY BUSINESS, AND BUSINESS IS GOOD, made good on this threat. Megadeth and Metallica duked it out in the music press, but both acts thrived. In 1986, each released its finest record, Metallica's MASTER OF PUPPETS and Megadeth's PEACE SELLS...BUT WHO'S BUYING?
While Metallica initially shunned MTV, Megadeth used the video format to its advantage--becoming the first thrash band to do so. Both "Wake Up Dead" and the anthemic title track received constant play on MTV's HEAVY METAL HOUR; the latter song's brief bass intro was even used as the theme to MTV news in the early-'90s. Tracks such as "The Conjuring," "Devil's Island," "Good Mourning/Black Friday," and a cover of Jeff Beck's "I Ain't Superstitious" proved to be just as brutal. PEACE SELLS is an influential, all-time heavy metal classic.