Back in 1987 after the passing of Cliff Burton, Metallica began to audition new bassists for the spot. Among those giving it a shot were Flotsam And Jetsam bassist Jason Newsted, who would ultimately be chosen, and Primus bassist Les Claypool, who was just too weird for the band.
In an interview with Loudwire, Claypool is asked how he thinks Metallica would've progressed as a band with him in it, and he says they wouldn't have. They would've kicked him out.
Oh there would be nothing different because they would have booted me out after about, I would have given it five weeks, they probably would have booted me after five weeks. There is a reason why I didn’t get the gig. I didn’t fit the part. But they have [Robert] Trujillo now. He’s a spectacular bass player but he’s also just one of the nicest fellows in the music world, if not the world in general. He’s just a great guy. Have you ever met [him]? So they win: it’s a win, win, win.
Claypool has said multiple times that he was just too weird for the band, like in a 2011 interview with the Dallas Observer.
Is it true that the guys in Metallica said you were too good to be in that band?
Well, that's what James [Hetfield] said in the VH1 documentary. But I saw him later and told him that was bullshit and that the reason they didn't want me in the band was that I was a weirdo. I just didn't fit with them.
Claypool has since gone on to cover Metallica's "The Thing That Should Not Be," play "Master Of Puppets" live with Primus a ton, score the intro song to a little-known show called South Park, and even has a new album called The Desaturing Seven coming out.
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