Motörhead‘s rare cover of the Metallica classic “Enter Sandman” has been unearthed for Motörhead Day — the annual “8th of May” celebration of the late Lemmy Kilmister and company.
The track hails from a 1998 ECW Wrestling compilation and was relegated to that CD for nearly 25 years. The cover has now been made widely available on streaming services and YouTube with a new animated music video that offers a Motörhead spin on the concept of the original Metallica clip.
The cover is a faithful rendition and highlights just how influential Motörhead were to bands such as Metallica and modern heavy metal in general. Lemmy’s interpretation is convincing enough that one could imagine him penning “Enter Sandman” in some alternate reality.
Metallica and Motörhead were close during Lemmy’s lifetime, with the former even playing Lemmy’s 50th birthday in 1995, all dressed up as the man himself under the moniker “The Lemmys.” Motörhead also went on to cover Metallica’s “Whiplash” in 2004 (winning a Grammy for that one), while Metallica would pay tribute to the Motörhead leader on the Hardwired… to Self-Destruct track “Murder One” — the name of Lemmy’s onstage amp.
Back in 2020, “The 8th of May” was designated as Motörhead Day on the 40th anniversary of their seminal album Ace of Spades. In addition to the holiday, the band’s camp continues to preserve the memory of Lemmy through the release of posthumous material, unreleased concert recordings, and celebratory box sets. Most recently, a shelved track from the Bad Magic sessions, “Greedy Bastards,” was unveiled.
A limited-edition 7″ vinyl edition of Motörhead’s “Enter Sandman” cover — featuring an B-side etching of the Motörhead Warpig — is available via the band’s website. You can stream the animated video below.
Meanwhile, Metallica have embarked on their 2023-2024 “M72 World Tour.” Tickets to their upcoming shows are available here.