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About

Genius Annotation

The fourth track on Metallica’s …And Justice for All, is based on the novel Johnny Got His Gun by Dalton Trumbo. There, Joe Bonham, a soldier in World War I, is hit by a landmine explosion that takes away his limbs and face, and becomes a prisoner in his own body – Joe lost his senses and can’t communicate, but is still kept alive by the medical crew. Thus the lyrics follow his plea to be put out of his misery.

A specific passage that inspired the song is:

How could a man lose as much of himself as I have and still live? When a man buys a lottery ticket you never expect him to win because it’s a million to one shot. But if he does win, you’ll believe it because one in a million still leaves one. If I’d read about a guy like me in the paper I wouldn’t believe it, cos it’s a million to one. But a million to ONE always leaves one. I’d never expect it to happen to me because the odds of it happening are a million to one. But a million to one always leaves one. One.

“One” marked the first time Metallica did a music video for one of their songs. The video featured footage from the film adaptation of Johnny Got His Gun directed by Trumbo himself, which the band bought the rights for to make incorporating it easier.

Q&A

Find answers to frequently asked questions about the song and explore its deeper meaning

Translations
Genius Answer
Was this song also in the movie Johnny Got His Gun?
Genius Answer

No, the song was not in the movie. Johnny Got His Gun predates “One” and …And Justice for All by about 17 years. Movie clips from Johnny Got His Gun were only used in the official music video of “One” as it represents the song well.

In addition, Metallica didn’t even exist when Johnny Got His Gun was released. Metallica was formed around late 1981, and at that point, Johnny Got His Gun was about 10 years old.

However, the music video for “One” did make it onto a re-release of the movie with other special features back in early 2009 when it made its first DVD debut. Although it did technically make it onto the DVD, it’s still not in the original movie, again only available as a special feature.

Where was "One" recorded?
Genius Answer

The song was, coincidentally, recorded at One on One Studios in Los Angeles, California. The rest of the songs from …And Justice for All and the self-titled album were recorded there as well.

Since 1999, the studio has gone by the name Extasy Recording Studios after it was bought in 1992 by the label Extasy Records.

Credits
Additional Engineering
Assistant Engineer
Mastering Engineer
Lead Vocals
Rhythm Guitar
Lead guitar
Recorded At
One On One Studios, Los Angeles, CA
Release Date
August 25, 1988
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