"The Unforgiven II" is a song performed by Metallica. It was written by James Hetfield, Lars Ulrich, and Kirk Hammett, and appears in the album Reload, as a sort of sequel to "The Unforgiven" (which appears on Metallica).
It is one of the only most popular songs by Metallica to have only been performed live once at a 1997 Billboard Awards when Metallica received artist of the year. You can watch the video for this provided on YouTube here, though the song is quoted to be never been performed live at a concert. Which are setlist staples for most if not all of their concerts. [citation needed] Ironically, "The Unforgiven" has been played at nearly every other live concert.
It is strongly rumoured that the song's main guitar riff is the same riff used in "The Unforgiven" but played backwards.
The opening of the song sounds strikingly similar to The Jimi Hendrix Experience's "1983... (A Mermaid I Should Turn to Be)" opening parts.[citation needed]
Track Listing
CD Single 1
- The Unforgiven II
- Helpless (Live)
- The Four Horsemen (Live)
- Of Wolf and Man (Live)
CD Single 2
- The Unforgiven II
- The Thing That Should Not Be (Live)
- The Memory Remains (Live)
- King Nothing (Live)
CD Single 3
- The Unforgiven II
- No Remorse (Live)
- Am I Evil? (Live)
- The Unforgiven II (Demo)
The Video
The star of the video is the same little boy from the original "The Unforgiven" video, in which he was about 7 years younger. [citation needed]
The Lyrics
The song's lyrics are abstract, and their meaning is often debated by fans despite the name implying it as being a happy ending to its predessor. However, when asked the song's meaning by a fan, Hetfield replied, "Forgiving no one and ending up alone." (The quote can be found on page 128 in, "So What: The Good, The Mad And The Ugly.)