"Fuel" is a song by Metallica

Metallica

Metallica is an American heavy metal band from Los Angeles, California. Formed in 1981 when James Hetfield responded to an advertisement that drummer Lars Ulrich had posted in a local newspaper. The current line-up features long-time lead guitarist Kirk Hammett and bassist Robert Trujillo ...

. The theme of the song could be applied to the fact that people like to drive their lives (like their cars) too fast. It seems to be one of James Hetfield

James Hetfield

James Alan Hetfield is the rhythm guitarist, co-founder, main songwriter, and lead vocalist for the American heavy metal band Metallica. Hetfield co-founded Metallica in October 1981 after answering a classified advertisement by drummer Lars Ulrich in the Los Angeles newspaper The Recycler,...

's favorite songs as he later said before a concert played at an Oakland Raiders game, "We have to play Fuel...'cause it gets me pumped up." (Taped on Some Kind of Monster

Some Kind of Monster (film)

Some Kind of Monster is a 2004 documentary film featuring the American heavy metal band Metallica. It shares its name with the song "Some Kind of Monster" from Metallica's 2003 album St. Anger....

.)

The song was written by Hetfield, Lars Ulrich

Lars Ulrich

Lars Ulrich is a Danish drummer, and one of the founding members of the American thrash metal band Metallica. He was born in Gentofte, Denmark to an upper-middle class family. A tennis player in his youth, Ulrich moved to Los Angeles, California at age sixteen to pursue his training; though rather...

, and Kirk Hammett

Kirk Hammett

Kirk Lee Hammett is the lead guitarist and a songwriter in the heavy metal band Metallica and has been a member of the band since 1983. Before joining Metallica he formed and named the band Exodus. In 2003, Hammett was ranked 11th on Rolling Stones list of The 100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time...

, and was released as the third single from their seventh album, ReLoad

ReLoad

ReLoad is the seventh studio album by the American heavy metal band Metallica. It was released on November 18, 1997 through Elektra Records. The album is a sequel or counterpart to the band's previous album, Load. It debuted number 1 on the Billboard 200, selling 417,000 copies in its first week....

. Metallica have frequently played the song in concert over the years, including the 1999 live album S&M

S&M (album)

-Video release:Metallica also filmed and released the concert in DVD and VHS with direction by Wayne Isham. The VHS set has only the concert video, while the double DVD set has 5.1 sound , 41 minute documentary about the concert, and two "No Leaf Clover" music videos: "Slice & Dice" version and the...

with Michael Kamen

Michael Kamen

Michael Arnold Kamen was an American composer , orchestral arranger, orchestral conductor, song writer, and session musician.-Background:...

 conducting the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra. song Fuel was nominated for Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock Performance in 1999 but lost to Jimmy Page and Robert Plant for the song "Most High

Most High

Most High is a 2004 film starred in, written by, and directed by Marty Sader. The film deals with the descent of the main character, Julius, into drug addiction.-Plot:The main character Julius loves helping people, so he works at a clinic...

"

Song usage

As an instrumental piece, "Fuel" was the theme song and used as background music during race recaps for NASCAR

NASCAR

The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing is a family-owned and -operated business venture that sanctions and governs multiple auto racing sports events. It was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1947–48. As of 2009, the CEO for the company is Brian France, grandson of the late Bill France Sr...

 broadcasts on NBC

NASCAR on NBC

NASCAR on NBC, identified by its on-air logo as NBC NASCAR, was a series of NASCAR races that aired on the network from 2001-2006. Prior to the contract that gave NBC broadcast rights the network aired races as early as the 1964 World 600...

 and TNT

NASCAR on TNT

NASCAR on TNT is the tagname for any NASCAR series race that has been broadcast on Turner Network Television by Turner Sports.-Prior to 2001:...

 from 2001 to 2003 seasons. (It was also used for the 2004 coverage of the Daytona 500

Daytona 500

The Daytona 500 is a -long NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race held annually at the Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Florida. It is one of four restrictor plate races on the Cup schedule....

, but not as the theme song.) However, from the MBNA Cal Ripken, Jr. 400 until the end of the 2001 season, the opening scream ("Give me fuel, Give me fire, Give me that which I desire!") was removed because of its close association with terrorists in the wake of the September 11 terrorist attacks. The pre-release version of the song entitled "Fuel For Fire" (with different lyrics) appears on the NASCAR Full Throttle CD

Compact Disc

The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...

.Sometimes at live concerts, James and Kirk slide their guitars to make a engine roaring sound to add the taste of the theme of the song.

"Fuel" featured in the House M.D. episode "Known Unknowns" (Season 6, Episode 7)in an attempt to recreate the conditions of a patients original symptoms.

Avril Lavigne

Avril Lavigne

Avril Ramona Lavigne is a Canadian singer-songwriter. She was born in Belleville, Ontario, but spent most of her youth in the small town of Napanee. By the age of 15, she had appeared on stage with Shania Twain; by 16, she had signed a two-album recording contract with Arista Records worth more...

 has covered the song live paying tribute to the band at MTV Icon

MTV Icon

MTV Icon was a series of annual television specials produced by MTV between 2001 and 2004, each paying homage to a musical artist or band selected as a cultural icon, in a format similar to the network's annual Video Music Awards and Movie Awards events...

: Metallica, held in Universal City

Universal City, California

Universal City is a community in the San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles County, California, that encompasses the 415 acre property of Universal Studios...

, California

California

California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...

 in 2003.

Track listing

UK CD Single 1

1. "Fuel"
2. "Sad But True (Live)"
3. "Nothing Else Matters (Live)"

UK CD Single 2

1. "Fuel"
2. "Wherever I May Roam (Live)"
3. "One (Live)"

UK CD Single 3

1. "Fuel"
2. "Until It Sleeps (Live)"
3. "Fuel (Live)"
4. "Fuel (Demo)"

All live tracks are recorded on April 20, 1998 at the Brisbane Entertainment Centre

Brisbane Entertainment Centre

The Brisbane Entertainment Centre is a centre, located in Boondall, a Brisbane City suburb, in Queensland, Australia.The arena has an assortment of seating plans, which facilitate the comfort of its users, subject to performance. Specific seating plans usually are allocated, depending on the...

, Brisbane

Brisbane

Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...

, Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

Charts

Chart (1998)	Peak position
UK Singles Chart	31
US Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks	6