Watch: Metallica dedicate 'Whiskey in the Jar' to Phil Lynott at Slane Castle
Metallica dedicated their cover of ‘Whiskey in the Jar’ at Slane Castle on Saturday night (8th June) to late Thin Lizzy legend Phil Lynott.
‘Tallica, of course, first covered Thin Lizzy’s version of the Irish traditional song for their covers album ‘Garage Inc.’ back in 1998 and they’ve performed it live over 70 times since.https://www.planetrocktickets.co.uk/article/metallica/
Four songs into their first Irish gig in almost a decade, Metallica treated the 75,000 strong crowd to their pulsating version of ‘Whiskey in the Jar’. It was the first time it’s made Metallica’s setlist since their gig at Unipol Arena in Bologna, Italy in February 2018.
When the song reached its climax at Slane Castle, James Hetfield paid tribute to Phil Lynott, simply saying: "We love you, Philip. Thank you!"
Watch the performance here:
Speaking to Hot Press in 2011, Papa Het said the death of Lynott - one of his musical heroes – hit him hard in 1986.
“It was one of those moments that was so sad." Hetfield said. "You just wondered, ‘Why did God take such a creative person?’. But I think there was a purpose to it all, because the struggles that he wrote about: with drugs, drink, ethnicity, all of those things, they almost speak louder now he has passed.
"For me, going through the struggle with alcohol and addiction in general, just going back and listening to his lyrics, it’s like, ‘Wow, I know what he’s talking about now.’ I love that.”
> Slane, you are beautiful! Show started tonight with Hardwired, Memory, Ride, and the Ireland favorite, Whiskey! Unforgiven just finished, and now it's time for Dead! #MetAtSlaneCastle #Metallica #WorldWired pic.twitter.com/skitX0gc8S > > — Metallica (@Metallica) June 8, 2019
In January it was confirmed that Hetfield is one of the contributors to the upcoming documentary film about Lynott - Phil Lynott: Songs For While I’m Away.
Directed by award-winning Irish filmmaker Emer Reynolds, Phil Lynott: Songs For While I’m Away follows Lynott’s life from his birth in the West Midlands to his upbringing in working class Dublin and achieving global stardom with Thin Lizzy before his untimely death 33 years ago.
Other musicians interviewed for the documentary include Lynott’s Thin Lizzy band mates Eric Bell, Scott Gorham and Darren Wharton, plus Skid Row’s Brush Shiels, U2’s Adam Clayton, Suzi Quatro and Midge Ure.
A release date for Phil Lynott: Songs For While I’m Away has yet to be confirmed.
Don’t forget, Metallica play Manchester Etihad Stadium on Tuesday 18th June and London Twickenham Stadium on Thursday 20th June as part of their WorldWired Tour. The last remaining tickets are on sale from Planet Rock Tickets now.
Metallica’s setlist at Slane Castle was as follows:
Hardwired
The Memory Remains
Ride the Lightning
Whiskey in the Jar
The Unforgiven
Now That We're Dead
Moth Into Flame
Sad but True
Halo on Fire
(Kirk & Rob's solos incl. 'The Wild Rover', 'ManUNkind', & 'Orion')
Frantic
One
Master of Puppets
For Whom the Bell Tolls
Creeping Death
Seek & Destroy
Spit Out the Bone
Nothing Else Matters
Enter Sandman