1987 - The $5.98 E.P. - Garage days re-revisited

Released 21 august 1987

As you can tell by the not-so-serious cover, Metallica were just having a little fun with this EP of cover songs.  
Diamond Head, Holocaust, Killing Joke, Budgie and Misfits were all given the Metallica treatment.

A crushing version of Diamond Head’s Helpless opens the record, and it is far better than the original.  
This would be Metallica’s second time recording a cover of the forgotten NWOBHMers.  
They covered Diamond Head’s best song Am I Evil?
for the original “Garage Days Revisited” on the B-side to their Creeping Death single/EP.  
The inclusion of Misfit’s Last Caress is another highlight.  
This song is hilarious for its alarmingly crass lyrics.  
“I’ve got something to say, I killed your baby today!”  
You get the idea.

The 5.98 EP – Garage Days Re-Revisited introduced Metallica fans to new bassist Jason Newsted
and also gave them some homework to do — get out and find the original records from the influential bands covered.  
These were bands that many Metallica fans had little to any knowledge of at the time.  
Diamond Head and Misfits seemed to get the biggest “bump” from the free publicity offered by Metallica.