Metallica took on their first true ballad with “Fade to Black,” off 1984’s Ride the Lightning. The ambitious, epic song showed Metallica bravely paving new directions that would influence the metal genre for years to come. The track grows from an acoustic, minor-key ballad into a electrified mix of thrashy guitars and wraps up with one of the most popular, gut-wrenching guitar solos ever. “Fade to Black,” truly, is the archetypal metal song. – Anne Erickson