Metallica's James Hetfield performed live for the time since his rehab stay at a tribute to Eddie Money last Thursday (February 20th). The singer and guitarist played an acoustic rendition of Money's “Baby Hold On” at the Saban Theatre in Beverly Hills, California.
Hetfield was an unannounced surprise guest at “A Star-Studded Tribute To Eddie Money,” a benefit with proceeds going to the USC Eddie Money Cancer Research Fund. Sammy Hagar, Rick Springfield and George Thorogood were among the night's other performers.
Hetfield and Money were friends, and before playing the song the Metallica frontman recalled how he first connected with the late singer. He explained, “So I got to hang out with Eddie the last probably three years of his life. I saw the cleaned-up version of Eddie.”
He recalled that he first met Money at an Oakland Raiders football game where Eddie was performing the national anthem, saying, “I met him before he went out there, and he kinda blew me off . . . I saw through that ego, and he saw through mine, and we got to be friends, 'cause I think our egos matched the size or our insecurities.”
Hetfield told us a while back that connecting with others was always a challenge for him: “Connecting with people has never been easy for me. I think the more that people know about me and my struggles, the easier it will be to connect with people. I've put myself out there, and if they choose to stomp on my heart, or to embrace it, that is up to them.”
Hetfield has been largely out of the public eye since last fall when Metallica canceled an Australian tour and announced that he was returning to rehab for the first time since 2002 to battle his addictions.
Hetfield made his first major public appearance since entering rehab on January 30th, when an exhibit featuring 10 of his classic custom cars opened at the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles.