Gratitude for Cliff Burton
27 September 2026:
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Today marks the 40th anniversary of Cliff Burton’s passing. He was important to me, and to countless others. It has made me happy to revisit Andriy Vasylenko’s excellent transcription of Cliff’s four-voice intro to “Damage, Inc.” One of the comments says that it is partly inspired by J.S. Bach’s organ piece “Come, Sweet Death” — I never knew that.
It is strange to think that I have grown almost twice as old as Cliff was when he died; and that in such a short time, he spread so much good creative energy that has lived on and touched millions of people’s lives. I am just grateful that he was here on the same planet in our lifetimes. Rest in peace, Cliff — cheers.
Part of Falling Leaves, a love letter to the dark half of the year.
