Cliff Burton (February 10, 1962 – September 27, 1986)

Clifford Lee "Cliff" Burton (February 10, 1962 Castro Valley, California, U.S. – September 27, 1986 Ljungby Municipality, Sweden) was an American musician, best known as the bass guitarist for the American thrash metal band Metallica.  Burton joined the band in 1982 and performed on their debut album, Kill 'Em All. Burton performed on two more Metallica albums, Ride the Lightning and Master of Puppets, both of which met with major commercial and critical success. Burton was known for his "lead bass" approach, in which the bass played a melodic and soloist role, in addition to holding down the harmonic and rhythmic foundation of the band.  On September 27, 1986, Burton died when the band's tour bus skidded and flipped over in rural southern Sweden. Burton was posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with Metallica on April 4, 2009.