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- For other uses of the words "darkest hour" see Darkest hour (disambiguation)
In My Darkest Hour (sample (help·info)) is a song on Megadeth's third album, So Far, So Good... So What! (1988). Band leader Dave Mustaine reportedly wrote the song in one sitting after learning of the death of former bandmate, Metallica bassist Cliff Burton in September, 1986. According to the CD's booklet, he wrote the lyrics with his bandmate at the time, David Ellefson. Mustaine was quoted in various magazines and Megadeth's Behind the Music as saying the song was inspired by Burton's passing. He claimed that neither James nor Lars informed him of Cliff's accident and he only found out when the band's manager called him. When he heard the news, Dave sat down and cried and then grabbed an acoustic guitar. In one sitting, he wrote the entire song, which is the only song he has ever written in such a way. The lyrics are actually about an ex of his, while the music was inspired by Burton's passing.
The song was released as a single and reached #26 on the UK charts, but it did not chart in the US. MTV refused to air the music video for the song, believing that the lyrics refer to suicide. The video does appear, however, in the documentary The Decline of Western Civilization II: The Metal Years and has since aired on music channels. It features stage performance as well as Mustaine's recording of vocals in the studio.
